The initiative focuses on protecting forests—vital for wildlife, climate, and the communities that depend on them. It also supports the government’s ongoing efforts, launched in 2022, to strengthen forest management across Gabon. Working in 17 rural communities, these UN Volunteers gather local knowledge, lead discussions, and share practical tips on how to protect the environment.

In the MENA region, climate change is intensifying existing hardships—shrinking food and water supplies and deepening instability for communities already displaced by conflict. Enter Jahidul Islam: a Bangladeshi climate and disability inclusion expert who brings both technical insight and lived experience. He is a wheelchair user who has faced structural barriers firsthand.

My country, Bangladesh was a beginner when I was born. She and I grew up almost together. We have traveled through the caravan of time and experienced transitions of more than four decades now. In all these years, I have seen her moving through the tough tunnels of development dynamics.

Imagine a mother holding her newborn, dreaming of a safe, bright future. Now picture that same mother on a Pacific Island, watching as the rising sea swallows her home. Or in an Indian city, where pollution clouds her child’s future.  Though worlds apart, these places share a common plea to future generations—to leave the world better than we found it. 

Chawanagwa Nyirenda's grassroots experience with 14 communities in Malawi on climate change adaptation led him to the Young Talent Pipeline.

The Community UN Volunteers were selected from 22 unions under Bandarban and Rangamati districts representing the marginalized group of ethnic minorities descending from tribal groups in the hard-to-reach terrains of Hill District Regions - 58% women. The volunteers began their assignments in December 2023 to support the multi-donor Local Government Initiative on Climate Change (LoGiC).

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.

PREPARING CONTINGENCY PLANNING FOR DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT IN THE SOLOMON ISLANDS