This December 5th, UN Volunteers celebrates Global Volunteer Day 2025, a date established to celebrate the strength and solidarity of millions of people who dedicate their time, skills, knowledge, and willpower to help others. In addition to honoring the actions of volunteers, the date is also an invitation to encourage many others to do the same, and to recognize the human impact behind each contribution.
How Global Volunteer Day inspires ongoing action around the world
Celebrated on December 5th, Global Volunteer Day 2025 highlights a movement that has been growing steadily and is highly relevant to many communities. According to the United Nations, the number of people dedicated to volunteering reaches 2.1 billion, representing a very significant percentage of working-age adults worldwide. This number of volunteers includes people who teach, support young people, respond to disasters, offer a listening ear, or simply lend a hand when most needed.
UN Volunteers reinforces this spirit alongside UNDP, which has been welcoming volunteers into the UN system since 1971. In 2025, more than 14,500 volunteers participated in various important situations around the world, according to the specific needs of each region, and worked on missions of different characteristics, helping in crises, conflicts, peacebuilding and community development initiatives.
The International Year of Volunteering for Sustainable Development
The beginning of 2026 will also be the official start of the International Year of Volunteering for Sustainable Development. The main objective of this initiative, foreseen in Resolution A/RES/78/127, is to align the actions of volunteers and expand their role in promoting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Why monthly volunteering strengthens communities and drives sustainable development
The reach of monthly volunteering becomes even more evident when we consider the sheer number of people from diverse regions of the world who choose to help without expecting any financial return. With this choice, communities become more resilient, support networks expand, and they find joint solutions to the problems each faces.
Volunteering can be done in so many ways, and in many cases, it begins with simple gestures like mentoring that open doors for a young person or providing immediate help in the face of a disaster. These are small, often individual actions, but when repeated by millions of people, they form a global chain of solidarity that has the power to impact society on a large scale. And it is precisely this sum of individual initiatives that brings the world closer to the Sustainable Development Goals.
This growing culture of monthly volunteering also encourages more coordinated efforts, where communities learn from one another and build stronger, shared strategies to deal with challenges. As these initiatives become more visible, they inspire others to participate, creating a cycle in which solidarity spreads and becomes part of everyday life.
How each voluntary contribution reveals human power and transforms local realities
UN Volunteers play a role in showing the world that volunteers are essential in times of emergency, conflict, and development processes. They offer immediate support, human presence, and above all, hope to people who often do not see a positive future in the face of difficult circumstances. In many regions, volunteer work is the only form of assistance available, making each gesture even more significant and causing a greater impact in order to improve people’s quality of life in some way.
Global Volunteer Day 2025 demonstrates that volunteering is a constantly evolving and expanding human force, driven by billions of people worldwide. With the launch of the International Year of Volunteers for Sustainable Development, the way is paved for greater recognition and, consequently, for maximizing the impact of this network of solidarity that makes a difference in the lives of so many people.
