VSO

It's that time of year again... 👀 On Friday 6th December, we will be welcoming you to celebrate the inspirational work of VSO volunteers from around the globe at our annual Volunteer Impact Awards. 🏆 You don't want to miss this! Make sure to register your interest by signing up directly on our website: #WeVolunteerFor #SDGs #GlobalGoals #Volunteers #Volunteering

This week I've facilitated a refresher workshop on the Ethiopian Volunteering Policy (Draft), and presented the general overview of the #globally-agreed and #comprehensive volunteering framework, #Global #Volunteering #Standard to Volunteer Involving Organizations (VIOs), Youth-led organizations, and government agencies. The workshop had the objective of creating strong reinforcement between volunteering for development (V4D) initiatives and the draft policy objectives to drive long lasting change. The draft policy was presented to partcipants and participants reflected on the V4D implementation challenges attributed to the absense of approved policy & whether the policy strengthens active citizenship. The workshop was organized by VSO in collaboration with the F.D.R.Ethiopia Ministry of Women & Social Affairs. Participant organizations include; Ethiopian Red Cross Society, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) , Peace Corps , CorpsAfrica , ZOA , @Federation of Ethiopian Association of PWDs, @Ethiopian Women with Disabilities National Association, Drop of Water, @Ethiopian Youth Council, Addis Ababa Youth Association, Rotaract Ethiopia, Ethiopian Youth Federation, @Network of Active Youth Enderase Youth Assocation YAMG @CDG and others

"Development work is a profession that addresses real needs of people often neglected and left behind. It profoundly impacts their lives, and it brings out the essence of their humanity helping them become who they've been destined to be." In the latest edition of our Life at VSO series, discover Teclah Ponde's inspiring journey at VSO and her impactful work in the development sector. Learn what drives her passion as a Project Implementation Lead, managing transformative Livelihoods and Health projects across several regions in Africa. #WeVolunteerFor #SDGs #GlobalGoals

Join us this Thursday for a free webinar to learn more about VSO's peacebuilding work on the Kenya-Ethiopia border. Remember that you must sign up directly on our website to secure your place: https://bit.ly/3XWvrzC #WeVolunteerFor #Peace #SDGs #GlobalGoals #Volunteering #Webinar

"I feel I have certainly become a better teacher. It is a total win, win. I feel privileged to have had this unbelievable opportunity." As we mark #WorldTeachersDay, we speak to the inspiring Kam Jaga, who has been supporting communities in rural Nepal to over the socio-cultural and economic barriers that prevent children, particularly girls, from accessing education. Read more about his journey in Baglung and make sure to share this piece with your network. #WeVolunteerFor #QualityEducation #SDGs #GlobalGoals #TeachersDay

Volunteers are at the heart of what we do at VSO. It is with fierce pride that I am representing VSO as a volunteer here at UNGA and SOTF this year. Yes, I’m also Chair of the Board and privileged to serve alongside 9 others who play this vital governance and stewardship role. And it’s an example of the different ways that volunteers can lean in and make a difference. At VSO our volunteers are woven into the fabric of all we do - whether at a community, local, national and international level. This means from communities in 35 countries around the world, at every level through to the corridors, rooms and chambers of “power” here at the United Nations. Working through the power of volunteering across the areas of education, health and livelihoods, means our impact is tremendous. Join me in celebrating the power of volunteers 👇🏽 I will start with my fellow board members! Thank you for all you do: Susan Hickey Geoff Skingsley Christopher Muwanguzi Janet Muir Belay Addise Monalisa Sibongile Zwambila, MBA Maryam Abisola Adefarati Vincent Motholo CA(SA) Mashaer Bashir-Ali

Sign up to our Building Peace on the Kenya-Ethiopia Border webinar on the VSO website: https://bit.ly/3XHpLYC Join us for our free webinar on Thursday 17th October to hear first-hand from volunteers, Rahma and Temesgen, about the amazing work they’re doing in this area. You will also have the opportunity to hear some inspiring stories of the communities they're working with, and ask any questions you have at the end of the session. #WeVolunteerFor #SDGs #GlobalGoals #PeaceDay

'Localisation' practice at its core - Community members (we call them ‘Primary Actors’ at VSO) in an education programme (Building Foundational Learning Through Technology-BFLTT) in Sierra Leone, delving deep on periodic data to review, validate, and challenge project results, based on evidence. Across VSO projects, an innovative people-centred method and process called MILE (Measuring Impact for Learning & Empowerment), allows primary actors, such as in BFLTT, to jointly design, jointly monitor, and jointly learn about project results, thereby increasing their knowledge, their ownership, and empowerment, in taking greater control of their own development. Above all, the process improves VSO's downward accountability to the people it works with. It is inspiring to hear when primary actors say they 'feel their power' in the process or they feel 'valued'. MILE remains bottom-up in learning, evolving, and adapting. More about MILE: https://lnkd.in/gnTV9R9a      

For several years, VSO has embraced a distributed leadership model, focusing on bringing together diverse perspectives from across the globe in both its programming and in its leadership structures. Now, we are excited to be taking a further step, by adopting a co-leadership model in our CEO role, with the appointment of Donne Cameron and Kathryn Gordon as co-CEOs for VSO, starting today.    In this piece, we hear from Donné and Kathryn about what co-leadership means for VSO, how this form of leadership reflects VSO’s values and the promise it holds for harnessing the power of people-led development. #WeVolunteerFor

This week, we're proud to be back with another episode of our volunteer-led podcast, The Green Perspective! 📣 In this episode, Fridah Okomo and Cetric Mululu sit down with Pranay Shrestha, an International Volunteer from Nepal working in Kenya on VSO's From Waste To Work project. ♻   As an expert in transforming waste into livelihoods, Pranay is inspiring youth to turn waste into profit while also keeping our planet clean. Listen on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/4d2jlJg Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/4d7Pr6M Watch on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3XiBRY8 Or visit our podcast website for more information: https://lnkd.in/eSEWt-Hb #WeVolunteerFor #SDGs #GlobalGoals #ClimateAction #ClimateSolutions #WasteManagement #Kenya #TheGreenPerspective #StayGreen