In 2007, I came to the United Nations Volunteers Headquarters in Bonn. I was a Senior Programme Specialist for the Asia-Pacific, Europe, and CIS (APEC) responsible for UN Volunteer management, joint programming, and humanitarian support. This was one of the most rewarding and inspiring assignments of my UN career because I interacted with and directly supported hundreds of (mostly) young women and men worldwide who demonstrated passion and commitment to serve others less fortunate through volunteering with field-based UN agencies.

Nearly 150 participants from government institutions, academia, and UN agencies attended the launching ceremony. Mr. Wang Jiarui, Chairman of China Soong Ching Ling Foundation, Mr. Hang Yuanxiang, Executive Vice Chairman of the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation, Mr. Olivier Adam, UNV Executive Coordinator, Mr. Zhang Yi, Deputy Director General of CICETE and Mr. Devanand Ramiah, UNDP China Deputy Residence Representative jointly launched the project.

This video introduces the new partnership signed by the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme and Samsung in April 2016 in a ceremony held in São Paulo, Brazil. With this unprecedented partnership, UNV aims to expand the global reach of its UNV Online Volunteering service as well as explore innovative methods of co-creation related to corporate volunteering for the Sustainable Development Goals.

On 28 June 2016, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme concluded a partnership agreement with Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. UNV has long been engaging with different private sector partnerships, even before the launch of the UN Global Compact in 2000. UNV placed over 200 volunteers from the private sector for short-term assignments to support such diverse areas as food industry and environmental assessments.

The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), both members of the "Forum for Volunteering in Development" (Forum), will jointly host the 2016 International Volunteering Cooperation Organizations (IVCO 2016) conference in Bonn. About 200 participants are expected to join the three-day event will take place from October 9-12th and focus on the theme Increasing Resilience of Communities Through Volunteering.

The Brazilian Corporate Volunteer Council (CBVE) signed an innovative partnership with the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme in Brazil, with the objective to collaborate for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals by mobilizing the commitment, solidarity and civic engagement that is unique to volunteerism.

United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme Executive Coordinator, Richard Dictus, and the Head of the UN Division from the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Simon Koppers, engaged in a strategic partner dialogue, with the aim of strengthening collaboration and exploring further partnering opportunities, in particular in the context of the 2030 Agenda and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The "CEOs’ roundtable on national volunteerism", which was held on 22 October 2015 in Kenya, was a milestone for the national volunteer community in the country, as it concluded with a call for the speedy adoption of the National Volunteer Policy and an appeal to put in place a framework for promoting volunteerism in the country. The National Volunteer Policy has been developed with significant support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme, and can also help raise the profile of volunteers in the country.

On Thursday July 2nd, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme Executive Coordinator, Richard Dictus, and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) President, Youngmok Kim, signed the new Agreement on the United Nations University Youth Volunteer Programme, which further strengthens the collaboration between the two organizations.

The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme and the African Union Commission (AUC) today signed a project document on enhancing the African Union Youth Volunteer Corps for peace and development in Africa. The project is based on the previous understanding where both organizations committed to harmonizing efforts to promote volunteering as a catalyst for advancing socio-economic development.