The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme welcomes new Executive Coordinator, Mr. Olivier Adam

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On 17 January 2017, Mr. Olivier Adam (France) arrived in Bonn as the new Executive Coordinator of the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme. Mr. Adam was appointed by the UNDP Administrator Ms. Helen Clark and succeeds Mr. Richard Dictus (Netherlands).

Bonn, Germany: On 17 January 2017, Mr. Olivier Adam (France) arrived in Bonn as the new Executive Coordinator of the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme.  Mr. Adam was appointed by the UNDP Administrator Ms. Helen Clark and succeeds, Mr. Richard Dictus (Netherlands).

UNV launches report on volunteer efforts in 2015 Nepal earthquake response

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UNV launches report on volunteer efforts in 2015 Nepal earthquake response

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Rebuilding with the community after a disaster: Volunteer engagement in the 2015 Nepal earthquake

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Report found that volunteerism served to strengthen local institutions in the disaster-affected sites, mobilize and develop the capacities of distraught communities, and increase coordination efforts among key players that responded to the earthquake.

Furthermore, the report posits that through their engagement in response efforts at the community level, UN Volunteers were able to help advance the social inclusion of women, promote volunteerism among local people and decision-makers, and create opportunities for youth participation and capacity development.

The one billion count! Unlocking the potential of people living with disabilities

Bonn, Germany
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For UN development practitioners, whilst we are firm proponents of the indivisibility of all rights for all peoples at all times, rarely do we get the opportunity to start with those farthest behind or get to scale.

The one billion count! Unlocking the potential of people living with disabilities

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For UN development practitioners, whilst we are firm proponents of the indivisibility of all rights for all peoples at all times, rarely do we get the opportunity to start with those farthest behind or get to scale.

When girls progress, the goals progress

UN Volunteer midwives in South Sudan
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Five international UN Volunteers serving as midwives with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in South Sudan, but currently on evacuation in Kenya, celebrated the International Day of the Girl Child by visiting a school in a slum settlement in Nairobi.

UN Volunteers Roselyn Owour, Epher Welavunuka, Petronila Khagai, Anne Munene and Jennifer Kibicho held a sensitization session with school girls to raise awareness about gender equality, the importance of going to school and not missing classes, and the challenges facing girls around the world.

The school - World Hope Academy in the Kawangware slum in Nairobi - has a total student capacity of 400 children, most of them coming from poor families that live in the slums.

How to change the world in one word: Volunteer!

Isabela Barriga
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"Young people can change the world!" These words spoken by a youth representative from the Municipal Volunteer Network in Cuenca, Ecuador, made me think. In general, young people are told that they have the power to make a difference and create a better world, but this is often just left in words. How can youth really contribute to the development of their societies?

My name is Isabela, I am 23 years old, and I am of American and Ecuadorian nationality. I left the United States in July of 2016 to join the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme to explore how youth are contributing to the development of my second home, Ecuador.

This is how I got to participate in the First Regional Meeting of Youth Volunteer Networks in Cuenca, where I had the opportunity to interact with young volunteers from Latin America and learn how volunteering contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the region.

Perseverance as the virtue of sustainability

Emperatriz Nieves
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The motives that make individuals become volunteers are countless – however, I still can’t single out one in particular. The day I started on this path was because I wanted to donate my hair for the manufacturing of wigs for women who were going through difficult times of illness, such as breast cancer.

The day I received an alert for an online volunteering opportunity with the UNV Latin American and the Caribbean Portfolio, I had already applied for different assignments throughout the years. My happiness was immense. My perseverance gave me the possibility to collaborate, not only contributing with knowledge about the reality of my own country, Venezuela, but also with other groups and situations in other latitudes, in this case Nicaragua.

Building a society that respects human rights

Ruplal Aidi
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My experience as a volunteer has made me realize that equality and non-discrimination – cross-cutting human rights – should be upheld and applied by everyone, regardless of their area of work, to make a difference in their communities.

As a UN Volunteer Human Rights Officer with the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), I am engaged in monitoring, investigating and reporting human rights violations and abuses, as well as building capacity of civil society partners and state authorities. 

Aside from monitoring detention centres, prisons and police cells, I am engaged in the creation of local human rights networks, and I help them develop their capacity in monitoring and advocacy to build a society that respects human rights with dignity, mutual understanding and peaceful dialogue.

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