22 May 2024, Hiroshima, Japan – Witnessing the devastating effects of disasters in his hometown of Zamboanga City, the Philippines, Guiane Paul Pena, a 17-year-old student at Regional Science High School, became determined to help youth respond effectively to such crises. With his country’s vulnerability to a wide range of disasters, including floods, cyclones, droughts, earthquakes, tsunamis and landslides, exacerbated by climate change, Guiane’s efforts to strengthen local resilience, emergency response and preparedness are both timely and crucial.

15 May 2024, Hiroshima, Japan – Kuena James Dak, a dedicated South Sudanese entrepreneur, is driven by a passion to uplift the agricultural sector and empower local farmers. His vision is to bridge the gap between technology and agriculture. James works through his agritech venture to empower small- and medium-scale farmers so they can boost their productivity and raise their incomes.

Branson Pitakia, Information Technology Officer at the Solomon Islands National Disaster Management Office, illustrates the potential of knowledge and innovation in disaster management. His story shows how geospatial technology can help in disaster preparedness and response, and ultimately protect communities.

At the Fiji Meteorological Service (FMS), Rovil Kumar, a scientific officer specialising in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), coordinates the development of maps and geospatial portals that contribute to Fiji's resilience to extreme weather events. As part of his role, he compiles various maps for climate monitoring, flood mapping, and forecasting of heavy rainfall and tropical cyclones. By doing so, Rovil and his team contribute significantly to Fiji's preparedness and response strategies. To harness the skills to develop these products, Rovil Kumar participated in many trainings conducted by the United Nations Satellite Centre (UNOSAT) over the years, more recently attending the course "Geospatial Training on Flood Susceptibility and Cyclone Exposure Modelling". This training covered fundamentals of QGIS, cyclone mapping, hydrological mapping, and flood modelling using the Height Above Nearest Drainage (HAND) method. The training focused on using this HAND modelling method to perform flash flood vulnerability mapping and tropical cyclone risk mapping.  

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13 calls to take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts with strong emphasis on further implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). While climate change is a global phenomenon, some countries are more vulnerable to a warming planet. Given this, the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) was created in 2009 as a South-South cooperation platform for collective action to address global climate change. In 2021, UNITAR partnered with the CVF to implement the CVF capacity-building fellowship.

Fiona Meke, an Assistant Lecturer in the Department of Fisheries Studies at the Solomon Islands National University, is actively engaged in environmental research and conservation efforts in the Solomon Islands and the Pacific region.

11 April 2024, Hiroshima, Japan – Olha Vovchok, from Cherkasy, Ukraine, is an alumna of the UNITAR training programme “Bolstering Livelihoods: Digital Reskilling for Ukrainian Women Evacuees in Poland”. Olha participated in this programme in hopes of unlocking her potential and helping her community in a foreign country.

Micky Welin's career in disaster risk management (DRM) highlights the intersection of education, proactive initiative, and collaborative efforts in building capacity for disaster preparedness and response. In his capacity as the Planning and Logistics Support Officer at the National Disaster Management Office (NDMO) in Vanuatu, Micky Welin's journey highlights the transformative potential of targeted capacity-building efforts.

27 February 2024, Hiroshima, Japan - Anna Takai is a young changemaker with a heart as expansive as her dreams. The 17-year-old student at MITA International School, Tokyo, is driven by a passion for education and a fervent desire to make a difference.

The linkages between trade, food security and nutrition are complex and a priority in the agricultural trade agenda. In order to enhance policy and decision makers’ understanding of these linkages and its implications for policy design and implementation, the UNITAR Division for Prosperity and FAO developed the e-learning course “Comercio, Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutrición”.