My assignment covers five countries: the Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, the Republic of Marshall Islands, Nauru and Palau. I work with the United Nations and government partners to coordinate climate change adaptation and youth projects.

At the heart of this community-driven initiative are three UN Community Volunteers assigned to FAO: Fatoumata Ka, Abdoulahat Ngom and Amadou Fall.  

UNEP is actively seeking young, passionate, and skilled talent from less represented regions of the world to join the organization and become the environmental leaders of tomorrow. This online recruitment drive will last until 15 May 2023. This is your chance to help us all work together to protect our Earth; your chance to help us shape your own future. --Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP, speaking to potential applicants in a video message

Digital transformation brings new possibilities where we can measure the sustainability, track detriments such as green house emissions and maximize use of our existing resources. This is part of UNEP's Medium Term Strategy, the outcomes of which I support.  

My name is David Ouma and I am a national UN Volunteer Specialist. I serve as Project Management Assistant at United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Nairobi.  My academic background in Biology and my six-month internship in marine conservation at the Kenyan coast led to this UN Volunteer assignment. 

In 2021, 24 Chinese youth took up UN Volunteer assignments to serve with 14 UN agencies around the world. Shuyi Song was one of them. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Shuyi's scheduled on-site assignment was changed to a telecommuting opportunity.

Volunteering is not just about responding to an immediate crisis. It's also about making sure the affected population is well on its way, sustaining itself.

Q. Anita, can you tell us about the programme you are serving with? A. The programmes where I am involved are the FAO-Kosovo Programming Framework and Programme on Forestry titled "Support to strengthening sustainable and multi-purpose forest management to improve rural livelihoods and address climate change in Kosovo." Both will enhance Kosovo’s capacities for sustainable use of natural resources and contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), for instance, Life on Land.

Vanuatu is a small island developing country with pristine coasts and luscious tropical nature that is also at high risk of natural disasters. The compounding impact of this is a climate security crisis, with quickly deteriorating livelihoods, and lacking opportunities for a sustainable ecosystem where all can thrive. COVID-19 only compounded matters further.