Christina Papadopoulou has been working with the UN Human Rights office (OHCHR) in Guatemala since 2008. She is a UN Volunteer who has chosen “to serve society and promote ideals such as social justice and equality.”

Papadopoulou is one of the nearly 8,000 UN Volunteers mobilized every year by the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme, the UN organization that contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide. This year UNV and its stakeholders mark the tenth anniversary of the International Year of Volunteers (IYV+10).  Read article

Kiev, Ukraine: On 5 December 2008, the Kiev School of Oriental Languages conducted lessons for senior pupils within the project 'Volunteers for Human Rights organized by the All-Ukrainian Youth Public organization 'Service for Peace' and the NGO 'Peer to peer'.   Read article

Port-au-Prince, Haiti: Chaque dimanche après-midi dans la région de Grand’Anse, plus de 150 jeunes issus de plusieurs établissements secondaires ainsi que leurs professeurs d’éducation civique se réunissent pour discuter des défis que représente l’édification d’un état de droit en Haïti et des problèmes auxquels doit faire face la collectivité, particulièrement les jeunes et les femmes.  Read article

In CIVICUS' newsletter focusing human rights, Robert Leigh, UNV Senior Policy Specialist, argues against the perception that access to volunteering opportunities is not perceived as a right, or being a "one-way" process with the rich helping the poor. He discussed the shift in volunteering as a two-way process and illustrated this through UNV's project involving people affected with HIV/AIDS.  Read article

This three-part volunteer story, written by Jessica Teicher, speaks of the joys of teaching English to Uzbek kids and knowing Uzbek culture and its people while volunteering. But it was dampened when the government refused to extend the volunteers' visas. They left after only five weeks instead of staying for two years as planned.  Read article