For the past two years, Susan has been serving as a UN Volunteer with the UN Economic Commission for Asia and Pacific (ESCAP). As the Occupational Safety and Health Officer, she has drafted a specific occupational safety and health policy, which is in the process of implementation.

"At the beginning of the pandemic, there were no specific treatment modalities, and no vaccines were available for COVID-19. It was important to isolate the people infected from COVID-19 and contact tracing on time to stop the spread of the virus."

Dyah joined the Biodiversity Finance Initiative (BIOFIN) Project as a UN Youth Volunteer in 2018. BIOFIN is a global partnership that addresses the challenges of biodiversity financing in a comprehensive way. This initiative provides an innovative methodology that enables countries to measure biodiversity expenditure in the medium term and identify financial solutions that are most suitable for bridging biodiversity and financial disparities.

As a part of the maritime disaster assistance project, Thevuni contributed to supporting one hundred vulnerable fisheries households affected by the MV X-Press disaster through a cash-for-work programme to clean up the Negombo lagoon. Until the successful completion of the project on 31 January 2022, Thevuni facilitated coordination between government institutions and project implementation partners. She monitoring project progress, reviewing and editing reports and communications materials from the implementing partners. 

Growing up in Homs, Syria, Maha was always interested in technology, analyzing and solving problems, and she dreamt of becoming a software engineer one day. "I started studying for a degree in Software Engineering. However, during my second year at the university, the Syrian crisis broke out, where I started volunteering as a first aider with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent to nurse victims," recalls Maha. 

In Luwuk, about 12 hours drive away from Palu when the earthquake hit, Tofan, then 24, feared the worst from a disaster that eventually killed more than 4,300 people. “We were very panicked for our loved ones. We could not contact them because there was no phone connection and electricity,” he says.

Weng provides strategic information, advocacy and technical support to coordinate stakeholders to deliver comprehensive life-saving HIV service. She focuses on technical and administrative support to programmes and coordinates partners from the Government, private sector and local communities. "I have been devoted to the field of HIV/AIDS for years, and UNAIDS has helped broaden my scope to go beyond medical care. My UN Volunteer assignment allowed me to participate in changing the underlying institutional inequality that burdens people living with HIV," she explains.  

UN Volunteer Yo Kunieda supported the work of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) in Fiji from March 2020 to March 2021. Her main contributions centred on a Small Island Developing States (SIDS) project, which supports small islands to better manage disaster and climate risk. 

In her work, Sabrina supports UNICEF programmes for gender equality through data analysis in gender-disaggregated ways – including both gender and disability at the field level data collection and analysis. This aids decision-makers to observe the changes and take appropriate action to improve the programme by ensuring equal opportunity for children, women, and persons with disabilities. 

Youth-led organizations consider youth issues a crosscutting theme in sustainable development. One example is UNDP Nepal’s My Way, Green Way campaign.  Campaign organizers distribute bicycles to young girls in various parts of Nepal to provide easy and independent transport to and from school. A mobile application has also been launched that incentivizes bicycle use per kilometer.