I never imagined how deeply volunteering could change my life. Like many, I once thought of it as something purely humanitarian, offering a helping hand in times of crisis and bringing relief to those in need. But stepping into the world of gender advocacy and women’s empowerment through UN Women has redefined what it means to be a volunteer.

Yağmur Söylemez, UN Volunteer from Türkiye navigated through her volunteering experience and shared, "Volunteering gave me the courage to confront inequalities head-on, raise my voice  and inspire others to take action." She raised awareness on the structural barriers facing women in their daily lives.

This is my first experience serving with UN peacekeeping operations.  My day-to-day tasks include documenting, reviewing and analyzing cases of conflict-related sexual violence. This exercise helps identify trends and patterns to inform prevention and response interventions.

This year, International Women’s Day comes on the heels of an unprecedented global movement for women’s rights, equality and justice. Echoing the priority theme of the upcoming 62nd session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women, International Women’s Day draws attention to the rights and activism of rural women, who make up over a quarter of the world population, and are being left behind in every measure of development.

"Voices Against Violence" in Togo is an $85,000 USD project that was funded and implemented by the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme between October 2016 and April 2017.  The project is based on an informal education program developed by the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts and UN Women.  It aims to fight against gender-based violence by raising the awareness of young secondary students about the root causes of violence, ways to prevent it, and finding solutions.