Topic outline

  • Disability and Inclusion

    Volunteerism is a powerful means of bringing people together, supporting the development of community-based solutions to social inclusion and breaking the physical and attitudinal barriers that prevent different marginalized people from their full participation in their own development. UNV has the vision of recruiting volunteers from a range of backgrounds as diverse as possible and to fully reach social inclusion within its environment, as well as supporting all volunteers to prevent and tackle all forms of discrimination in their working environments and every aspect of their lives in order to promote genuine cohesion and inclusion.

    This also means that persons with disabilities are a specific target group of UNV. Living with a disability can be perceived as a strength rather than as weakness, and by providing persons with disabilities with the opportunity to volunteer, barriers to inclusion in the development sector can be overcome.

    In this section, you will also find further information on diversity and inclusion at UNV, namely a sign language course, a webinar series on diversity and inclusion as well as further interesting resources provided by UN and other organizations.


    Representatives of 70 stakeholders participated in the engagement and partnership meeting for the UNDP-UNV Talent Programme for Young Professionals with Disabilities at UNV headquarters. (UNV, 2017) 

  • Inclusion in action at UNV: Learning International Sign

    Visit the section on Learning Materials below to access the International Sign Course and to read about how UNV personnel learnt the basics of International Sign Language (ISL) thanks to a two-months project by HRS Capacity Development Team and UNV Field Unit in Ukraine.
    Access the Video Library below for short video tutorials and other information on ISL. 
  • Inclusion to make diversity work

    As part of learning webinars for UN Volunteers, the UNV Capacity Development Team hosted a series  focusing on the critical topic of Diversity and Inclusion. Theses aim to develop in-depth understanding of the UN Core Value of “Respect for Diversity” among UN volunteers and to transfer learning into action in their daily lives, both personally and professionally. 
    Access all learning materials, webinar recordings and additional resources in the immediate sections below.
     
  • Gender Equality

    As the Sustainable Development Goal 5 recognizes, achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls is crucial for sustainable development. To achieve this and to ensure that no one is left behind, it is important to understand the role of gender in development and in different contexts, including volunteerism. 
    Volunteers as potential promoters of social inclusion can support gender equality and women’s empowerment in any part of the world!
    To get you started on the gender journey, and access recorded webinars, click on the respective sections below.