International Volunteer Day (IVD) 2010 was celebrated all over India with a variety of interesting, informative and impressive activities. National essay and slogan writing competition A national essay and slogan writing competition was organized to spread greater awareness of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and inspire and involve more people to join the movement towards achieving the MDGs by 2015.

UNV Executive Coordinator Flavia Pansieri is in Australia this week meeting with government and civil society representatives to share information about the unique contribution of volunteerism to peace and development and the celebration of the tenth anniversary of the International Year of Volunteers (IYV+10).

A famous Arab proverb states, "The 1,000 miles walk starts with one step." In the case of southern Morocco, local communities of the Iguiouaz oases and UN Volunteers have been making progressive strides in adapting to climate change to protect their environment. The population of this region relies mostly on farming, arboriculture and livestock farming, but fertile land is scarce when rain is infrequent. To address this situation, 600 community members have mobilized to strengthen the ecosystem's resilience to climate change and increase the adaptive capacities of the communities.

It was like a "battlefield from a scene in a war movie," is how one disaster management officer described villages after the tsunami of 2009, the worst natural disaster for Samoans in living memory. Despite the challenges that natural disasters present in terms of progress towards the MDGs, an incredible surge of post-tsunami volunteerism has surfaced to help communities recover and ensure that they could protect themselves against future calamities.

Painting the MDGs.

In many cities and town across Uzbekistan, UN Volunteers not only help communities but are simultaneously changing the notion of what it means to volunteer in this part of the world. They visit schools and engage children and youth to volunteer.

Port Louis, Mauritius:  Originally from Italy, since last February, I have been a  "volonter pou Moris", which means "volunteer for Mauritius" in Mauritian Creole, serving in the UNDP Country Office in Port Louis as a UNV Intern in Inclusive Development and Gender.  In my internship, which is fully funded by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I have been assigned to the Support to Inclusive Development project which is aimed at assisting the Mauritius Government in its efforts to address the issues of poverty reduction, socio-economic developm

Making a difference: An assessment of volunteer interventions addressing gender-based violence in Cambodia (Partners for Prevention, 2010) highlights the crucial role and the far-reaching positive effects that community volunteers play in the prevention and response to gender-based violence.

The invitation to sign the book was a rare honour reserved for VIPs and other special friends of the City of Bonn. The signing ceremony was held at the Bonn Old Town Hall alongside a special exhibition in the city’s market square to celebrate United Nations Day, October 24. The ceremony was attended by a large gathering of well-wishers including the Rector of UN University, Dr. Konrad Osterwalder, the Mayor of Bonn, Ms Bärbel Dieckmann, other local dignitaries and a large group of UNV staff, some of whom are pictured in the attached photograph.

The invitation to sign the book was a rare honour reserved for VIPs and other special friends of the City of Bonn. The signing ceremony was held at the Bonn Old Town Hall alongside a special exhibition in the city’s market square to celebrate United Nations Day, October 24. The ceremony was attended by a large gathering of well-wishers including the Rector of UN University, Dr. Konrad Osterwalder, the Mayor of Bonn, Ms Bärbel Dieckmann, other local dignitaries and a large group of UNV staff, some of whom are pictured in the attached photograph.