Online volunteers have been crucial to upscale the impact of Youth Co:Lab’s regional programmes. Coming from different countries and ethnicities, these online volunteers bring a variety of skills to the table. They have applied their skills and knowledge through a range of activities, including proofreading and translating communications materials, conducting research supporting COVID-19 related efforts. 

UN Community Volunteers Milena Reljic, David Georgiev and Nikola Josipovic are busy with initiatives related to the COVID-19 outbreak, as many other development workers are. They help Roma communities, to which they also belong, to tackle COVID-19 global challenges, and ensure that the interests of the Roma are given due attention and delivered upon.

The main goal of the partnership is to enhance the capacity and engagement of youth from the region as key actors of change in global development issues. A selected number of Mount Kenya University students will be deployed for six months in various UN agencies in Kenya as UN University Volunteers to apply their knowledge and skills in several areas of UN peace and development work. The deployment is a result of the partnership agreement initially signed on 1 November 2019 between UNV and Mount Kenya University.

While equipping youth volunteers with the necessary skills to help progress the implementation of SDGs, the workshop also encouraged participants to explore the interlinked contributions of volunteers in the context of the 2030 Agenda. This was done through knowledge sharing and leadership building.

Roma belong to the largest ethnic minority in Serbia and are still among the most deprived communities, often facing discrimination, social exclusion and unequal access to employment, education, housing and health services. The 2017 Regional Survey on socio-economic position of vulnerable Roma in the Western Balkans, commissioned by UNDP, showed that the biggest challenges for social inclusion of Roma in Serbia are their high unemployment and inactivity rates. While the education aspect has improved for Roma, it is not resulting in their employment.

Volunteerism is a significant part of Sri Lankan culture. In the World Giving Index published in October 2019 by the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), Sri Lanka ranked number one in time volunteered. 

Having volunteered for various causes over the past 10 years, from working in animal shelters to supporting playgrounds for disabled children, Polina quotes Mahatma Gandhi to explain her motivation: The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. These words of Gandhi describe my attitude towards volunteering. --Polina Listopad, UN Volunteer with UNICEF, Moldova

Across the globe, the impacts of anthropogenic action are pervasive as never before: in the Maghreb, crops grown on marginal lands are failing; in Egypt, rising sea levels are impacting impoverished neighbourhoods; in Jordan, competition and tensions over resources is predicted to only intensify as warming temperatures further heighten

By 2030, the sustainable goals (SDG4) aims to ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes. Nowadays, young women do not have the same access to education and training as their male peers. According to UNICEF, globally, 264 million children and adolescents do not have the opportunity to enter or complete school.

The conditions in the pastoral community of Karamoja region in North Eastern Uganda, reliant on subsistance argriculture, make it difficult to prioritize children's education without sensitizing the population to the long-term importance of school for every child. According to a 2017 survey by UNICEF, only 60 percent of young people are in school. Girls are largely looked at as a source of bride wealth while boys herd cattle for most of their lives - both responsibilities denying them an opportunity to study.