Chisinau, Moldova: The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) community in Moldova is a diverse group. It comprises people of different ages, from different social classes, different political backgrounds, and various levels of education. It includes citizens from grassroots movements to institutional NGOs, activists, professionals, and it has support from the international community.

Dushanbe, Tajikistan: I was sent to Tajikistan as a UN Youth Volunteer Communication Officer with the UN Resident Coordinator's (UNRC) office. The UNRC office is in charge of leading the reform process of operational activities. Within this reform falls the effort to consolidate the communication work of all UN agencies. For this purpose, the UN Communication Group (UNCG) was created for all those who are in charge of communications at one of the country’s 21 UN agencies to meet regularly.

Ankara, Turkey:  I come from Moldova and I am now working as a UN Volunteer with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Turkey. I have been living in Turkey for a few years and have had the opportunity to observe the approach of the Turkish people towards volunteerism. In Turkey people help each other with their hearts and from their hearts on a continuous basis.

Tashkent, Uzbekistan: For as long as she can remember, Madina has loved to study and discover for herself the traditions and cultures of different Anglophone countries. Despite initial fears about the challenges of assuming a teaching position without formal pedagogical training, her desire to contribute something to society and to share her knowledge with younger generations prevailed and still remains her daily source of motivation.

Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina: The International Organization for Migration (IOM) of Bosnia and Herzegovina has a variety of important and successful projects related to border management, migration, and human trafficking. In early February 2013, I was warmly welcomed as a new intern  with the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme in the Migration Health Programme. This great opportunity brings a new perspective to my previous migration experience.

Prague, Czech Republic:  The Czech Republic has long been associated with the fight for the protection of human rights, cultural heritage and human development.  In a way, Czech volunteers such as myself who are being deployed by the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme  represent a continuation of the legacy of great Czech leaders such as Tomas Garrigue Masaryk and Vaclav Havel, and their commitment to democracy, peace and humanity.

Astana, Kazakhstan : During my one-year assignment in Kazakhstan, there were a few questions with which I became familiar. One of these questions was why I chose to come to Kazakhstan. Being a statistician, I must say that it could be called a chain of random events. I received the announcement of the volunteer position one week before the application deadline, just when I was about to finish my dissertation.  To my surprise, almost everything in the terms of reference matched to my background.

Astana, Kazakhstan: The only things I knew about Kazakhstan were from a comedy film, and also that it was a huge country. This was before that evening when I opened my email to discover an offer for a United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme’s assignment at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Kazakhstan.

Pristina, Kosovo: I am Hiroko Oda, a UN Volunteer from Japan under the Hiroshima Peacebuilders Center (HPC) programme. I organized the Anti-Corruption Journalism Award on 9 December 2011, marking International Anti-Corruption Day together with my colleagues at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) where I serve as a UNV Programme Analyst for Democratic Governance.

Plementina, Kosovo: The integration of Roma Ashkali Egyptian (RAE) is a challenging social issue for Kosovo. In Plementina, a small village in the Obliq municipality, a community of some 40 Kosovo RAE returnee families is facing very difficult living conditions since a fire broke out in their apartment building and made it inhabitable. While they wait for the building to be repaired by the municipality and the central authorities, these families are unable to meet their daily basic needs and as a result their re-integration is severely jeopardized.