More than one billion people do not have access to safe drinking water and some two billion people lack access to proper sanitation services. In collaboration with development partners and working closely with communities and municipalities, the UN Volunteers (UNV) programme helps strengthen local capacity to ensure the sustainable use of, and equitable access to, natural resources. UNV also provides technical expertise in water and sanitation, supports efforts to generate income in an environmentally sustainable manner, and engages in activities such as environmental awareness campaigns and education programmes. Read

Bonn, Germany: A new agreement signed earlier this week between the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) will help coastal communities in Sri Lanka get back on track from the devastating impact of the 26 December tsunamis. Read

Ha Noi, Viet Nam: Viet Nam’s Ha Long Bay ecological importance has been recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Yet, despite its international recognition and classification as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the bay’s natural integrity is at risk of being destroyed Recognizing the need to stop the trend of environmental degradation , UNESCO, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme and Viet Nam’s Youth Union jointly developed a two-year project aimed at mobilizing the bay’s youth population into action. Read

Bonn, Germany: In 2003/2004, UN Volunteers mobilized local volunteer action to promote environmentally-friendly habits. Read

Bonn, Germany: Of the 5,000 UN Volunteers on the ground every year, nearly 1,000 work in crisis situations tending to the sick, feeding the hungry and protecting the vulnerable. Living and working in some of the world’s most difficult places, UN Volunteers help the UN and its agencies such as the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the World Food Programme (WFP) address the challenging situations facing those in dire need. Read

Bonn, Germany: Montserrat - the Emerald Isle. The official tourist brochure bills the island as "the way the Caribbean used to be". But things have certainly changed here ever since nature started blowing off steam – and mud and rocks and devastating pyroclastic flows. The towering Soufrière Hills volcano has come back to life. Read

Bonn, Germany: On 20 June, UNDP Sri Lanka bade farewell to the team of Indian UN Volunteers who assisted the Government of Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the worst floods experienced by the country in over 50 years. Read

Ha Noi, Viet Nam: Tucked firmly in the natural habitats where rare species thrive and using the immense water catchments, a large human population heavily dependent on the natural resources for their basic survival created the need to reconcile the objectives of socioeconomic development with conservation. Read

Bonn, Germany: Answering an urgent request from the Assam Relief Commissioner, a team of UN Volunteers dispatched by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) responded rapidly to assess damage after a powerful cyclone killed at least 36 people and left thousands homeless in India’s north-eastern region. Read

Colombo, Sri Lanka: Eight national UN Volunteers from India joined relief operations in southern Sri Lanka just days after unprecedented floods and landslides claimed over 260 lives in the country’s worst disaster in 50 years. Read