Everyone has the power to make a difference in the world. Driven by this conviction, I started my UN Volunteer assignment with the UN's Refugee Agency, UNHCR in Somalia. The humanitarian context grapples with multiple displacement complexities.  I am stationed in Hargeisa in Somaliland. I am deeply involved in the collection, management, and analysis of data on persons of concern, including asylum seekers, refugees, returnees, and internally displaced people. 

My motivation to become a UN Volunteer stems from my belief in the power of every individual to effect change and contribute to the creation of a more just and sustainable world. --Naida Spahic, UN Volunteer Grant Investment Package Monitoring Assistant with UNDP, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Carol is an Irish-funded UN Youth Volunteer with the UNDP Multi-Country Office for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean serving as Assistant Gender Analyst. She majored in political science and economics and her interest in gender issues and equality led her to work in multiple organizations and other volunteer positions. Her work experience and passion for development called her to be a UN Volunteer.

Upon joining UNICEF's Child Protection team in 2019, Angelique dedicated herself to strengthening child protection systems, with a particular emphasis on reinforcing the social service workforce.

More than a year since its launch, In Their Sneakers has been the foundation of projects nurturing creativity in coming up with solutions for forcibly displaced people to effectively integrate into local communities. Serbia, over the years, has seen significant forced displacement both within its borders and among its neighbours in the region. It currently hosts more than 3,000 refugees, asylum-seekers, and migrants.

What does your assignment with UNDP mean to you? To me, this assignment is an opportunity where you don't just serve for livelihood, but also to change people's lives as much as you can. I am aware that one person cannot do much, but I am convinced that the change starts within each of us. This is much easier to do when you are part of a team of professionals who share common values. I am fortunate, because both in the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, I have very open-minded colleagues, who helped me to change my mindset.

Volunteering in the mental health field has been a deeply enriching and transformative experience. It reminds me of the resilience of the human spirit and the power of compassion in making a difference in people's lives. --Hazal Kalıncı, UN Volunteer Staff Counsellor with WHO, Türkiye When and why did you decide to volunteer?

Leonardo Martínez is a UN Volunteer serving as Protection, Childhood and Humanitarian Action Specialist with the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Colombia, which is the lead host country for Venezuelan migrants and refugees. These migrants and refugees face a hoard of humanitarian issues. The situation is worsened by internal armed conflict, as approximately 6.9 million people in rural areas are under the control or influence of non-state armed groups.

According to reports, since the war started more than 2.4 million Ukrainians have crossed the border into Romania from Ukraine or Moldova.

Delrin joined the UNV team in 2021 with an assignment in the Darién, a difficult-to-reach indigenous jungle area located on the Colombia-Panama border. A daily average of between 1,000 and 1,500 migrants pass through this place, and access to drinking water is a permanent need. "UNICEF installed water treatment plants in the Darién with which approximately 40,000 liters of drinking water are currently produced per day. My task is to monitor them so that local communities and migrant populations can efficiently use that water," Delrin continues.