The United Nations Volunteer (UNV) programme and the Beijing Volunteer Service Federation (BVF) co-hosted the first International Volunteer Service Exchange Conference on 12-13 October, in Beijing, China.

100 young Korean students attended the first ever United Nations Volunteer (UNV) programme-Korea Joint Forum on Volunteering for Peace and Development at the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 8 October. The Forum heard of the overwhelmingly positive contributions young people can make to international development through volunteering.

100 young Korean students attended the first ever United Nations Volunteer (UNV) programme-Korea Joint Forum on Volunteering for Peace and Development at the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 8 October. The Forum heard of the overwhelmingly positive contributions young people can make to international development through volunteering.

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 new State of World's Volunteerism Report: Transforming Governance was designed to create a conversation," said Richard Dictus, Executive Coordinator of the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme which published the document. "I look forward to an inspiring dialogue on the impact of volunteerism and governance," said UNV's chief at the launch of this report at UN Headquarters on 5 June 2015.

Member States of the Open Working Group on the Post-2015 agenda agreed, "There should be [a sustainable development goal] on peaceful and inclusive societies, with the aim of building effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels,"  recalled Helen Clark, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme at the launch of the State of the World's Volunteerism Report 2015. "Volunteers can help engage people from all walks of life in making progress towards that goal a reality," she concluded.

Volunteerism can widen spaces for voice and action within the development process, including for young women and girls. An expert panel discussion, organized by the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme on the margins of the 59th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW59), explored the role of volunteerism in enhancing the accountability of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and advance gender equality.

Port-au-Prince, Haiti: My name is Francesca Pinna, I am a United Nations Volunteer in the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Country Office in Haiti. I never thought that I would get engaged in the field of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR). It happened by chance after the earthquake that hit the Italian city of Aquila in 2009. I understood what an unexpected natural disaster could really provoke and how much destruction could have been avoided through an adequate knowledge of disaster risks and appropriate preparedness.

Manila, Philippines: My name is Alma B. Sevillano, I am from the Philippines and I work as a UN Volunteer for the Haiyan Response and Recovery programme.  

Volunteerism can widen spaces for voice and action within the development process, including for young women and girls. An expert panel discussion, organized by the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme on the margins of the 59th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW59), explored the role of volunteerism in enhancing the accountability of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and advance gender equality.