It was like a "battlefield from a scene in a war movie," is how one disaster management officer described villages after the tsunami of 2009, the worst natural disaster for Samoans in living memory. Despite the challenges that natural disasters present in terms of progress towards the MDGs, an incredible surge of post-tsunami volunteerism has surfaced to help communities recover and ensure that they could protect themselves against future calamities.

Painting the MDGs.

In many cities and town across Uzbekistan, UN Volunteers not only help communities but are simultaneously changing the notion of what it means to volunteer in this part of the world. They visit schools and engage children and youth to volunteer.

Port Louis, Mauritius:  Originally from Italy, since last February, I have been a  "volonter pou Moris", which means "volunteer for Mauritius" in Mauritian Creole, serving in the UNDP Country Office in Port Louis as a UNV Intern in Inclusive Development and Gender.  In my internship, which is fully funded by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I have been assigned to the Support to Inclusive Development project which is aimed at assisting the Mauritius Government in its efforts to address the issues of poverty reduction, socio-economic developm

Making a difference: An assessment of volunteer interventions addressing gender-based violence in Cambodia (Partners for Prevention, 2010) highlights the crucial role and the far-reaching positive effects that community volunteers play in the prevention and response to gender-based violence.

The invitation to sign the book was a rare honour reserved for VIPs and other special friends of the City of Bonn. The signing ceremony was held at the Bonn Old Town Hall alongside a special exhibition in the city’s market square to celebrate United Nations Day, October 24. The ceremony was attended by a large gathering of well-wishers including the Rector of UN University, Dr. Konrad Osterwalder, the Mayor of Bonn, Ms Bärbel Dieckmann, other local dignitaries and a large group of UNV staff, some of whom are pictured in the attached photograph.

The invitation to sign the book was a rare honour reserved for VIPs and other special friends of the City of Bonn. The signing ceremony was held at the Bonn Old Town Hall alongside a special exhibition in the city’s market square to celebrate United Nations Day, October 24. The ceremony was attended by a large gathering of well-wishers including the Rector of UN University, Dr. Konrad Osterwalder, the Mayor of Bonn, Ms Bärbel Dieckmann, other local dignitaries and a large group of UNV staff, some of whom are pictured in the attached photograph.

Gulfam Mustafa, UN Volunteer Partnership and Resource Mobilization Officer serving with the UN Development Programme (UNDP) in Guinea Bissau  As an international UN Volunteer, I live in a country thousands of miles away from my home. I have my family and kids back in Pakistan. Following the news of increasing COVID-19 cases causes me fear, anxiety and mental stress.

Multilingualism allows communication between the different Member States of the United Nations (UN) with different languages and cultures. In promoting tolerance, multilingualism ensures greater participation of all Member States in the work they perform within the Organization, as well as greater effectiveness, better results and greater participation. To promote the use of the six official languages and to guarantee the full and equitable treatment of all official languages, there are minimum standards for multilingualism of UN websites.