Throughout, in promoting social cohesion and resilience in post-conflict affected areas, UN Volunteers assigned to United Nations missions helped mobilize local volunteers within communities by supporting inclusive and rightsbased dialogue and inter-community engagement. Additionally, UNV is working with United Nations agencies, funds and programmes to implement rights-based programming initiatives in countries recovering from crisis.

UNV is uniquely situated to advance improvements to social services given its widespread network of volunteers at the national and community levels. To date, UNV’s interventions in basic social services have positively impacted areas such as primary health case, prevention of violence against women, education and food security. UN Volunteers work with local, institutional and national authorities to improve capacity to deliver basic services, while at the same time helping local communities and organizations strengthen their active participation in local governance processes.

UNV’s experience in these areas shows that community resilience, which can be enhanced through volunteerism, is the basis for successful and sustainable programmes. Social, economic and environmental sustainability are building blocks of sustainable development. And they are inextricably interlinked. Disaster risk reduction and the environment are closely related. Sustainable development requires that disaster risks are reduced and communities are better prepared for response and recovery.

Given the critical gaps in the evidence base for the contributions of volunteerism to peace and development, a key focus during this Strategic framework period will be to work with partners from academia and other volunteerinvolving organizations to develop a global research agenda on volunteerism. this will involve strengthening collaboration and cultivating research in the global South, continuing the publication of the State of the World’s volunteerism reports, and enhancing the measurement of volunteering at national levels, especially in developing contexts.

Youth Volunteering is a two-way street that enhances learning, skills development and personal growth in youth volunteers, and shows them the power of individuals to change the world. It also creates a sense of empowerment, boosts self-esteem and fosters the development of community spirit, especially among marginalized youth. youth volunteers can have a revitalizing effect on global peace and development processes, as they bring energy, passion and creativity, and are often the first to come up with innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing issues.

The UNV Strategic Framework 2014-2017 focuses on UNV programmatic effort in the key area of national capacity development through volunteer schemes. UN Volunteers facilitate efforts between governments, civil society, the private sector and partner United Nations entities. Fostering strong partnerships, generating complementary skills, resources and expertise, UN Volunteers increase the development impact and add to sustainability.

Through its UNV Strategic Framework 2014-2017, UNV supports efforts to advance innovation and knowledge by focusing on building a credible body of knowledge informed by research, innovation and evidence in order to advocate and enhance the integration of volunteerism into peace and development programming. UN Volunteers support partnerships especially in terms of engagement with civil society at all levels, creativity in addressing local challenges and facilitate innovative forms of volunteering to increase the depth and breadth of civic engagement.

The UNV Communications’ mission is to enhance communication about the value of volunteerism in peace and development and the importance on the contributions that UNV and UN Volunteers make to the impact on the results of the United Nations. The purpose of this new Communications Strategy is to guide communications on volunteerism for peace and development and safe-guard the organizational reputation of UNV programme; while adding value in the achievement of the main outcomes and results area of the UNV Strategic Framework 2014-2017.

UNV defines advocacy for volunteerism as a deliberate effort, based on evidence, aimed at persuading decision-makers to adopt policies and take actions that promote people’s participation in local and international development through volunteerism.

The Volunteer Learning Strategy addresses issues identified through a comprehensive Learning Needs Assessment, carried out in 2013. The Strategy lays out the foundation for competency development within UNV. It applies to all UN Volunteers, under the different modalities and sets UNV on a path to become a learning organization. The Strategy mirrors the phases of the volunteer management cycle, looking at the soft and hard skills necessary to promote volunteerism and to carry out the assignment, and contributing to learning for the professional life.