Today, 20 March, is the first International Day of Happiness. It is a day for us all to recognize the relevance of happiness and well-being as universal goals and the importance of including them in public policy objectives.  

New measures of global progress and sustainable development, which go beyond Gross National Product-driven measures, are needed. This includes well-being, volunteering, and civic participation. Read

The first United Nations report on volunteerism, the State of the World’s Volunteerism Report (SWVR), made the case for the recognition of volunteerism as an essential component for the sustainable, inclusive, and equitable progress of communities and nations. Selected chapters of the State of the World’s Volunteerism Report (SWVR) are now available as separate publications for you to share and distribute. Read

This Overview of the UNV Programme Strategy summarizes the programme approach of UNV, outlining the focus of our work and defining realistic and practical ways to embed volunteerism into peace and development activities. We hope you find it useful in highlighting potential areas of synergy and collaboration. Read