12月5日，是国际志愿者日。我们援利青年志愿者邀请了援利医疗队一起，以自己的方式庆祝了这个节日。我作为援外志愿者的一员，自己的工作能得到大家的肯定，是对我最大的鼓励。

    今天，利比里亚最大的报纸《Daily Observer》发表社论，庆祝国际志愿者日，转一下。

Celebrating International Volunteers Day

    Saturday, December 5, 2009 was International Volunteers Day, and Liberia was not left out in marking this important day. Under the theme, “Volunteering for our Planet,” local youth groups came together to demonstrate the spirit of volunteerism and educate the public on various aspects of volunteerism. The jamboree, organized by the Monrovia City Council, was climaxed by a series of events, including a five-kilometer run for peace, the cleaning of the PHP beach and a debate on “the importance of our environment” by student groups representing the 15 counties of Liberia.

    The United Nations General Assembly established the IVD in 1985. It is now celebrated worldwide with thousands of volunteers involved in a range of initiatives including clean-up campaigns, conferences, exhibitions and morning teas, all aimed at highlighting the role of volunteers in their communities. The Day offers an opportunity for volunteer organizations and individual volunteers to concretely showcase their contributions to peace and development.

Over the years, rallies, parades, community volunteer projects, environmental awareness, free medical care and advocacy campaigns have all featured prominently on IVD.

     Recognizing the crucial role volunteers play in addressing environmental issues, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) program often invites people to join its “Volunteering for our Planet” campaign.

     Together with UN’s “Seal the Deal” movement, the campaign aims to gather the number of volunteering hours and report this at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (7-18 December) in Copenhagen.

    Indeed, the General Assembly’s act of establishing volunteerism was in the right direction. All the member states need do now is to support volunteerism, as it serves as an indispensable force in human development and nation building, something that has not been accorded due recognition in Liberia. There is no doubt that the UN is keen on strengthening volunteerism around the world and that is probably why the world body spearheaded a series of campaigns that led to the re-launch of volunteerism in early 2008. Our local volunteer organizations need to form a strong network that will ensure that the contributions of volunteers to Liberia’s Gross Domestic Product are quantified and recognized.