"The new State of World's Volunteerism Report: Transforming Governance was designed to create a conversation," said Richard Dictus, Executive Coordinator of the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme which published the document. "I look forward to an inspiring dialogue on the impact of volunteerism and governance," said UNV's chief at the launch of this report at UN Headquarters on 5 June 2015.

Member States of the Open Working Group on the Post-2015 agenda agreed, "There should be [a sustainable development goal] on peaceful and inclusive societies, with the aim of building effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels,"  recalled Helen Clark, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme at the launch of the State of the World's Volunteerism Report 2015. "Volunteers can help engage people from all walks of life in making progress towards that goal a reality," she concluded.

Volunteerism can widen spaces for voice and action within the development process, including for young women and girls. An expert panel discussion, organized by the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme on the margins of the 59th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW59), explored the role of volunteerism in enhancing the accountability of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and advance gender equality.

Port-au-Prince, Haiti: My name is Francesca Pinna, I am a United Nations Volunteer in the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Country Office in Haiti. I never thought that I would get engaged in the field of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR). It happened by chance after the earthquake that hit the Italian city of Aquila in 2009. I understood what an unexpected natural disaster could really provoke and how much destruction could have been avoided through an adequate knowledge of disaster risks and appropriate preparedness.

Manila, Philippines: My name is Alma B. Sevillano, I am from the Philippines and I work as a UN Volunteer for the Haiyan Response and Recovery programme.  

Volunteerism can widen spaces for voice and action within the development process, including for young women and girls. An expert panel discussion, organized by the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme on the margins of the 59th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW59), explored the role of volunteerism in enhancing the accountability of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and advance gender equality.

One the occasion of International Women's Day, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme would like to encourage women to apply to international UN Volunteer assignments.  Please visit our website for more information: www.unv.org

This week and for the second time in less than a month, the average age in the building UNV Headquarters in Bonn dropped significantly, inversely proportional with the rise in levels of energy and enthusiasm. UNV, as part of a series of UN Youth Volunteer training sessions, is hosting  groups of young people attending their Assignment Preparation Training.

This week and for the second time in less than a month, the average age in the building UNV Headquarters in Bonn dropped significantly, inversely proportional with the rise in levels of energy and enthusiasm. UNV, as part of a series of UN Youth Volunteer training sessions, is hosting  groups of young people attending their Assignment Preparation Training.

On Thursday February 19th, Richard Dictus, the Executive Coordinator of the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme welcomed the Secretary General of the Arab Federation for Voluntary Activities (AFVA) Mr Yousuf Ali AlKazim from Doha, Qatar, at UNV Headquarters in Bonn. Mr Yousuf Ali AlKazim and Richard Dictus jointly launched the first ever Arabic version of UNV Annual Report 2013 which was made possible thanks to AFVA sponsorship. You can read the UNV Annual Report 2013 in Arabic by following this link.