Maria Adelaida Alberto
Position: UNV Programme Officer
Host Agency: UNDP Thailand
Country: Philippines

I have recently joined the UNV Team in Thailand as UNV Programme Officer.  Tasked to manage the UNV programme in Thailand, my job includes volunteer planning and management, partnership development and promotion of volunteerism. I have twice served as a VSO volunteer and I am happy to contribute insights learned from my previous assignments to the challenges of managing the UNV Thailand Programme. I have an MA on Women and Development from the University of the Philippines and currently working on my PhD in Development Administration from the Philippine Christian University.

While I am still on my induction phase, I am no longer new to Bangkok having had a short-term assignment here before for UNIFEM. Bangkok has always been a very fascinating place for me, it makes me feel so at home because we have a lot of cultural similarities in terms of family and community relations; yet it still excites me to wake up everyday knowing that surprises are yet to unfold.

 

Name: Maral Berdyniyazova
Assignment: Assignment Protection Officer
Host Agency: UNHCR Field Office
Nationality: Turkmenistan

I work as Associate Protection Officer with UNHCR FO Mae Sot in Thailand. The office covers three camps with the refugees and asylum seekers from Myanmar.  My assignment is dynamic and the tasks change on the bases of operations demands. Within two years of my assignment I had an opportunity to be involved into different protection based activities. Child protection was among my first tasks. It ranged from best interests determination for the unaccompanied and separated refugee children to identification of protection gaps and monitoring of child protection mechanisms established and implemented in the refugee camps by the camp operating partners and community-based organizations.  

In addition to child protection, I have organized and facilitated basic protection training for the refugees. Focusing on refugee rights and responsibilities as well as identification of and assistance to vulnerable groups in the community, training further aimed to involve the refugees into sharing of received knowledge with their communities. Another very important task has been assigned to me after the recent influx of Myanmar refugees to Thailand. It is my priority now to make sure that the new arrivals have access to basic needs. Apart from regular travel and monitoring, the work requires constant coordination of the day to day issues with governmental and non-governmental organisations. Certainly, nothing from the above could be done without the support and assistance from my colleagues, partners and friends. Having different professional backgrounds, we were united to assist the refugees in Mae Sot, town with one of the biggest humanitarian expat communities in Thailand.

 

Elise Bjåstad
Host Agency: UNDP Thailand
Position: Project Officer
Nationality: Norway

As part of the Governance Unit of UNDP Thailand, I am responsible for project administration and knowledge management, and will more specifically provide support on drafting technical papers, advice on project administration, coordinate knowledge sharing, field implementation, monitoring and evaluation. I am involved in projects focusing on Legal empowerment of the poor, decentralization and capacity building for local governance.I’ve spent most of my time since 2004 in South and Southern Africa, firstly completing a Master’s Degree in Development Studies at University of KwaZulu-Natal, and more recently doing research for the Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research on the role of ICTs in development. Prior to that, I conducted education policy research for Wits Education Policy Unit and have been a trainee in the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

 

Name: Raymond Brandes
Assignment: Programme Specialist
Host Agency: UN Partners for Prevention (P4P)
Nationality: Dutch

Asan Programme Specialist in the UNDP, UNFPA, UNIFEM & UNV Regional Joint Programme for Asia and the Pacific “Partners for Prevention: Working with Boys and Men to Prevent Gender-based Violence”, I’m providing programme management support, coordination of outreach and networking activities, technical assistance to the network of partner organizations and volunteers, and support to research on how volunteerism contributes to gender-based violence prevention.

In particular, I’m reaching out to the stakeholders of the programme to expand partnerships, placement opportunities and participation in activities; ensuring exchanges, cross-border sharing and networking; and supporting and coordinating research activities.Prior to joining the P4P programme team, I was the UNV Programme Officer in UNDP Thailand. I held the same position in UNDP Nepal in 2007. Before that, I was a Management & Organizational Development Advisor in Lithuania, Cameroun and Nepal. I also bring 10 years of private sector experience (Shell). As a Dutch national, I hold a degree in Chemistry and one in Management. Currently I’m also doing my Master’s in Sustainable Development via the distance learning programme of the University of London (SOAS).

Name: Diana Brandes
Assignment: Programme Specialist, Public-Private Partnership
Host Agency: UNDP RCB 
Nationality: Dutch

As Programme Specialist Public Private Partnership I am involved in Capacity Development for Local Service Delivery through promoting enabling environment and policy frameworks for local service delivery, the development of capacities of partners (local governments, businesses and communities) for developing and implementing innovative service delivery approaches. The Public-Private Partnerships for Service Delivery (PPPSD) programme is part of UNDP’ Bureau for Development Policy (BDP), Capacity Development Group (CDG), it is a multi-partner facility that developing countries use to obtain support in their efforts to define, promote and implement inclusive and sustainable Public Private Partnerships to reduce poverty at the local level. The PPPSD offers a flexible portfolio of demand driven services built on the basis of a strong partner network and results at the country level.

Through programmes in for example Bhutan and Nepal we are engaged with Integrated Solid Waste Management (ISWM)  to improve municipal solid waste management service provision to improve service delivery, create employment opportunities, and reduce environmental impacts through the piloting of pro poor gender sensitive PPP models. By promoting volunteerism for development within the communities the citizens become active participants and this will ultimately yield to the empowerment of NGOs, CBO’s and local authorities in formulating community responsive development projects. 

 

Name: Mark S. Cogan
Host Agency: UNDP Thailand
Position: Communications and Media Officer
Nationality: American

 

Name: Shane Doherty
Assignment: Associate Humanitarian Affairs Officer
Host Agency: UNOCHA
Nationality: Ireland

I have been assigned to the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). OCHA is a part of the UN Secretariat and supports mobilization, funding and coordination of humanitarian action in response to complex emergencies and natural disasters. We support and facilitate the work of UN agencies, non-governmental organisations and the Red-Cross/Red Crescent Movement in delivering humanitarian services. Our goal is to ensure that people affected by humanitarian crises receive the protection and assistance they need, as quickly as possible. Working in the world’s most disaster prone region means that we have plenty to do, from supporting the efforts of governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental relief actors to prepare for emergencies, to participating in major response operations.

Since starting with OCHA, I have been deployed to several emergencies, and have spent significant periods of time in Pakistan, the Philippines and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. Though we are expected to be able to take on a little bit of everything, the focus of my work has for the most part been on ensuring effective information flow during emergencies and supporting the efforts of response agencies to mobilize humanitarian funding. As facilitators and coordinators, we at OCHA often have a unique overview of humanitarian emergencies and are well placed to bring together local and international responders. Time and time again we are humbled by the critical role that volunteers play when disasters occur, by supporting search and rescue operations, delivering assistance and working to build back more resilient communities.

 

Name: Brian Gartland
Assignment: Associate Resettlement Officer
Host Agency: UNHCR

My name is Brian Gartland and I am an associate resettlement officer for UNHCR working in Mae Sot, Thailand, Tak Province. I work in three different camps in the area which are Mae La, Umpiem and Nupo. There are approximately 75,000 persons residing in these camps as of November 2009.  My primary responsibility is registering persons in these camps to find new homes in third countries. I also do refugee assessments, counseling and individual resettlement forms. In 2009, our office has already found new homes for approximately 4,000 persons in various countries around the world. The work is very satisfying, challenging and definitely never boring. I am proud to be an International United Nations Volunteer and urge others who are interested in gaining valuable experience to join the program.

Name: Jasmine Jenkins
Assignment: Associate Resettlement Officer
Host Agency: UNHCR
Nationality: New Zealand

When people think of refugees in Thailand, images of camps along the Thai/Myanmar border and people displaced there, sometimes for decades, most often spring to mind. And it is true that the vast majority of displaced persons with whom UNHCR works with in Thailand are from these camps. However, there is also a much smaller (around 2500) number of asylum seekers and refugees – who originate from over 30 different countries - that live in the urban areas of Thailand. It is with this group that I have been working in my capacity as a UNV for UNHCR. For the first 10 months volunteering, I worked with those seeking asylum in a team that determines whether such individuals should or should not be recognized as refugees by UNHCR. In Thailand (which is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention), those that are recognized as refugees are unable to remain legally in the country.

Therefore, UNHCR also assists refugees to be resettled in other countries. For the last four months, I have been a member of the team dedicated to this end. The work is understandably challenging, however, it is also overwhelming rewarding and motivating; I am humbled and inspired everyday by the amazing people that I meet and with the share tenacity and strength of the human spirit. In addition to the stimulating work environment and the diverse people that I interact with on a daily basis in the course of my voluntary work, I am also constantly surprised and excited by the city of Bangkok - a city replete with amazing food, massages, entertainment and smiles – which only adds to what has been a great UNV experience for me here in Thailand.

Name: Arika Nagata
Assignment: Associate Nutrition Officer
Host Agency: at FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.
Nationality: Japan

My main role here is to provide technical backstopping support to various projects related to food security and nutrition in Asia and the Pacific region. However, I also participate in various meetings, workshops and conferences, representing the organization, and explore the possible areas of interventions and activities in food security and nutrition in the region.

The work is challenging as the office covers 34 countries. Who knew that Asia and the Pacific region is home to nearly two-thirds of the world’s hungry and undernourished people? Yes, that is the situation, and tackling it is what my work is all about. I think being a UNV is a precious and rewarding experience for me and I am so happy that I can contribute to something good while doing something so enjoyable.

Name: Sveva Pettorino
Position: Project Officer for Reorienting Teacher Education To Address ESD project
Duty Station: UNESCO Regional Office, Bangkok
Nationality: Italian

 

Name: Nery Ronatay
Assignment: HIV/AIDS Officer
Host Agency: UNDP Thailand
Nationality: Philippines

As a UNDP HIV/AIDS Officer, I am in charge of the HIV/AIDS portfolio of UNDP. Currently, I am steering a project aimed at, in the long run, developing a National Guideline for MSM (male having sex with male) Prevention. The project is geared at finding out the State of the Art of HIV Prevention among MSM by looking into the critical strategies that has been implemented and the guidelines developed alongside them. Another key project that is in the pipeline is the development of stigma and discrimination index in Thailand that will illustrate the magnitude of stigma and discrimination experienced by people infected and affected by the disease  and be used as component  in developing national data sets for stigma and discrimination in the country. On top of this, I get to participate in government and civil society activities by providing technical inputs on some interventions/programs being developed. Working in HIV/AIDS area in Thailand allows me to learn the intricate web and network of people working for this issue--- coming from government, civil society and the community, both at the national and international level. Bangkok is a charming city, but the best reason to be here is the brand of kindness and friendliness that I encounter every single day at the office and the partners we work with.