Prague, Czech Republic:  The Czech Republic has long been associated with the fight for the protection of human rights, cultural heritage and human development.  In a way, Czech volunteers such as myself who are being deployed by the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme  represent a continuation of the legacy of great Czech leaders such as Tomas Garrigue Masaryk and Vaclav Havel, and their commitment to democracy, peace and humanity.

Astana, Kazakhstan : During my one-year assignment in Kazakhstan, there were a few questions with which I became familiar. One of these questions was why I chose to come to Kazakhstan. Being a statistician, I must say that it could be called a chain of random events. I received the announcement of the volunteer position one week before the application deadline, just when I was about to finish my dissertation.  To my surprise, almost everything in the terms of reference matched to my background.

Astana, Kazakhstan: The only things I knew about Kazakhstan were from a comedy film, and also that it was a huge country. This was before that evening when I opened my email to discover an offer for a United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme’s assignment at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Kazakhstan.

Pristina, Kosovo: I am Hiroko Oda, a UN Volunteer from Japan under the Hiroshima Peacebuilders Center (HPC) programme. I organized the Anti-Corruption Journalism Award on 9 December 2011, marking International Anti-Corruption Day together with my colleagues at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) where I serve as a UNV Programme Analyst for Democratic Governance.

Plementina, Kosovo: The integration of Roma Ashkali Egyptian (RAE) is a challenging social issue for Kosovo. In Plementina, a small village in the Obliq municipality, a community of some 40 Kosovo RAE returnee families is facing very difficult living conditions since a fire broke out in their apartment building and made it inhabitable. While they wait for the building to be repaired by the municipality and the central authorities, these families are unable to meet their daily basic needs and as a result their re-integration is severely jeopardized.

Tashkent, Uzbekistan:  The Ecological Boomerang project – or 'Eco-Boom', as people commonly refer to it – began its activities in Fergana in September. A joint initiative of UNV and the UNDP resource centre in Tashkent, and financially supported by UNV Uzbekistan under its IYV+10 Mini-Grant initiative, the project began its first training of trainers in October.

Tashkent, Uzbekistan:  It was a great honour for me, as the national IYV+10 Coordinator in Uzbekistan, to directly participate in the celebration of the birth of the United Nations. We enjoyed a gorgeous autumn day in Tashkent on Monday 24 October, still blessed with vitamin D from the sun.

Astana, Kazakhstan : Through a state programme, the Government of Kazakhstan is making efforts to encourage the repatriation of ethnic Kazakhs from abroad. The integration of repatriates into society is a challenge due to language and cultural barriers, lack of basic resources and legal and social support.

Vuno, Albania:  As part of the tenth anniversary of the International Year of Volunteers (IYV+10), the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme in Albania, together with the non-profit organization Projekte Vullnetare Nderkombetare (PVN), organized a volunteer work camp in Vuno, south Albania. During the last two weeks of June 2011, national and international volunteers participated in the camp activities, which aimed to promote environmental protection and Albanian tourism through voluntary work.

Fushë Kosovë, Kosovo: When I went to the district of Fushë Kosovë for the first time, I thought I was prepared enough not to be shocked. Driving in a warm and comfortable jeep, I didn’t have to walk on a muddy and uneven road to reach the school, where I was asked to go for an assessment visit.