For International Volunteer Day (IVD)  2019, we are actively engaging UN Volunteers and university students in a Campus Talk to raise awareness about the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and volunteerism. When: 6 December 2019, Peking University.

On the occasion of International Volunteeer Day 2019, join us! as we celebrate volunteerism for an inclusive future. Activities include: Discussions on volunteerism with distinguished guests Motivational speeches from volunteers Video show on volunteer works Sharing inspiring international and national volunteeer stories Award distribution for best volunteer-involving organizations

On the occasion of International Volunteer Day 2019, we are organizing presentations from youth volunteer groups, a fashion show from an LGBTQ group and a music session performed by people with disabilities. We are partnering with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports and the VolCam network. The best group will be awarded a cash prize of US $500. When: 5 December 2019,  Phnom Penh, Combodia

To celebrate International Volunteer Day (IVD), we will have a fun walk. This will start from Motael church in Dili to the Dili Centre, which is the venue of our IVD event. We are happy to partner with the Timor-Leste Red Cross Society, National Scouts Association of Timor-Leste, Australian Volunteers International, Volunteer Services Abroad, Peace Corps, Pateo in Dili Centre, MOVE (Portuguese NGO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), World Health Organization (WHO), UN Women and the UN Resident Coordinator's Office.

As a UN Volunteer Disability Rights Officer with the Governance and Participation Unit of UNDP, I champion the rights of people with disabilities and act as a passionate voice for their support and inclusion.

Through my assignment with IOM, I help to increase the understanding of the positive contribution of migrants towards their communities and enhance their inclusion. Migrants are a vulnerable group affected by multiple forms of discrimination and therefore deserve attention. I believe that migrants should be recognized as agents for development. If people had more positive attitudes towards migrants, this would help in preventing discriminatory treatment within society. 

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. 

Samara Hamid, a national UN Youth Volunteer Site Planner and Project Associate with IOM, believes that by becoming a volunteer one can extend knowledge and skills in the humanitarian and development sector.

In Colombo, Sri Lanka, UN Volunteer Alex Suwitra acted to anchor the engagements of UN agencies, international partners, NGOs and government and safeguard the immediate and longer term disaster response to the needs of communities in distress. The unique geography of the country that makes it more susceptible to the effects of climate change creates a very contrasting situation – floods and landslides in the southwest parts and drought in Sri Lanka’s north and east regions.  

The partnership of UNV, IBSA Fund and the Cambodian Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport aimed to increase the ability of Cambodian youth to build their skills and find decent work through volunteerism, as well as contribute better to their own development and the economic development of their country by reducing poverty amongst youth.