The United Nations is leading a powerful new campaign to encourage governments to seal the deal on a fair, balanced and effective climate agreement - and volunteers can make a difference.

The Seal the Deal! campaign is mobilizing civil society along with political leaders and the business sector on an ambitious, global scale to raise a strong call for urgent and united action on climate change.  Read article

During Global Youth Service Day, millions of youth around the world organize community service projects to address the needs of their local communities through service, to be recognized for their contributions, and to be a part of a global youth service movement.

Over the past 21 years, Global Youth Service Day has brought together more than 40 million people in thousands of communities worldwide. It is held during a weekend every April in over 100 countries in every region of the world.

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Washington, D.C., USA: Hundreds of thousands of volunteers turned across the US to help their communities today, in response to President Barack Obama's call for a day of public service in honor of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday.

Click here for the website, USAservice.org.

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Today, United Nations Day and World Development Information Day, CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation, the International Association for Volunteer Effort (IAVE) and the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme are pleased to launch a joint publication, Volunteering and Social Activism: Pathways for participation in human development. The paper is based on a study undertaken by the three organisations in 2007-2008.  

The background study finds that both volunteering and social activism are important strategies for fostering people’s participation in social change and human development.

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More than 67 million people are expected to mobilize today under the slogan 'Stand Up Take Action' at events around the globe to demand that world leaders do not use the financial crisis as an excuse for breaking the promises they made in 2000 to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.  Read article

The ServiceNation Movement launched with a national Day of Action on 27 September 2008. Citizen organizers rallied their communities at hundreds of events across America, calling on their friends, families, and neighbours to advocate for a new culture of volunteerism in the US.  Visit site

Louisiana, USA: As the US Gulf Coast braces itself for the onslaught of Hurricane Gustav, this time thousands of volunteers are swinging into action to offer their support to evacuees. The American Red Cross is playing a major part, having prepositioned supplies into the region to shelter 500,000 people for six days. Some 3,000 disaster response volunteers and staff are already in place.  Visit site

Bonn, Germany: The 2008 Beijing Olympics is one of the biggest volunteer-involving events in history. On every street corner and in every venue, there's an army of volunteers meeting, greeting, translating, giving directions and helping visitors in every way imaginable. For an insight into what being a Beijing volunteer is all about, here's a selection of news, views and links - and a space for your own comments.  Read article

Mian Yang, Sichuan province, China: On 12 May 2008 an earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale struck Sichuan province in south-western China. Volunteerism is critical to the relief efforts. Read UNV volunteer Liu Lei's diary of his work with the IFRC here.   Visit site

Washington DC, USA: Millions of young people from Cambodia to Peru, from Pakistan to Liberia, from Mexico to Mongolia, are implementing community service projects during the 20th Annual Global Youth Service Day (GYSD).

Young volunteers will address important community needs through service and service-learning projects addressing climate change, literacy, poverty, human rights and many other issues.

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