IYV+10 - UNV Sri Lanka

Report prepared by Fadhil Bakeer Markar
Cover Page photograph – © Muradh Mohideen / ThreeM Photography
1
Forward .......................................................................................................................... 4
Introduction ................................................................................................................... 5
State of Volunteerism in Sri Lanka ............................................................................. 5
IYV+10 ............................................................................................................................ 6
Rationale .................................................................................................................... 6
The Global Call for Action .......................................................................................... 6
Pillars .......................................................................................................................... 7
IYV+10 National Steering Committee ............................................................................ 8
Members of the IYV+10 NSC ...................................................................................... 8
Relationship with the Government ............................................................................... 9
Communication Strategies ............................................................................................. 9
Online Presence ......................................................................................................... 9
Media Outreach ....................................................................................................... 10
Celebrity Endorsements........................................................................................... 10
National Stakeholder Initiatives................................................................................... 11
V Forum .................................................................................................................... 11
V Workshop.............................................................................................................. 11
Provincial Sub-Committees ...................................................................................... 12
Youth Focused Initiatives ............................................................................................. 13
UN Club Networking Project .................................................................................... 13
V Force [National Voluntary Taskforce] ................................................................... 14
Partnered Events.......................................................................................................... 15
Scouts Services and Public Relations Week ............................................................. 15
Rotaract Shutterbug................................................................................................. 15
Youth Model United Nations ................................................................................... 15
Kelani Nadee Yatra ................................................................................................... 16
Youth is the World - Guinness World Record .......................................................... 16
Training for Trusteeship ........................................................................................... 16
Speeches and Awareness Campaigns .......................................................................... 17
International Volunteer Day [IVD] ............................................................................... 18
The South Asia Launch of the State of the World’s Volunteerism Report [SWVR] ..... 18
V Awards [Volunteer Awards]...................................................................................... 18
Press Conference ..................................................................................................... 19
Secretariat ............................................................................................................... 20
The Judges................................................................................................................ 22
"Unveiling of the Finalists" ..................................................................................... 23
"Grand Finale" ......................................................................................................... 23
Finalists – The Profiles ............................................................................................ 25
Theme Song ............................................................................................................. 29
Artists ....................................................................................................................... 30
Stories to Inspire ...................................................................................................... 30
The Team.................................................................................................................. 30
Executive Coordinator’s visit ................................................................................... 30
2
Mission Accomplished ................................................................................................. 31
Beyond IYV+10 ............................................................................................................. 32
The Team...................................................................................................................... 32
Acknowledgments........................................................................................................ 35
Annexes ........................................................................................................................ 36
V Forum report ........................................................................................................ 36
Provincial Sub-Committee report ............................................................................ 36
Beyond IYV+10 Report ............................................................................................. 36
IYV+10 Sri Lanka in pictures ..................................................................................... 36
Media Gallery [Press Releases and Press articles] ................................................... 36
Website and Social Media Links .............................................................................. 37
National Steering Committee TOR – IYV+10............................................................ 37
Provincial Sub-Committee TOR................................................................................ 37
“Stories to Inspire” ................................................................................................... 37
UN Club Charter ....................................................................................................... 37
Contact Details of National Steering Committee Members .................................... 37
3
Forward
Following the UN General Assembly resolution in December 2008, which invited
governments, youth, media, civil society, the private sector, volunteer organizations,
academia and the UN to mark the tenth anniversary of the International Year of Volunteers
[IYV+10] and UN Volunteers [UNV] to be the focal point, the UNV Country Team welcomed
IYV+10 with much enthusiasm in Sri Lanka.
With the key objective of “celebrating the great diversity
of volunteerism in Sri Lanka” the team embarked on a
journey that created much interest on volunteering
among the general public. Many new partnerships led to
the establishment of new structures and forums and
helped create greater recognition of the contribution of
volunteerism to society and to peace and development.
The concept of volunteerism is not new to Sri Lanka, but
we saw the need to reinvigorate the interest and to
highlight the important work done by volunteers in the
climate of post-conflict reconciliation. IYV+10 provided
the best platform for this and we humbly believe that we
have been successful in achieving the IYV+10 objectives and the goals we set for ourselves.
‘Our Journey’ is also an attempt to describe the collaborative effort of many volunteers from
across the country in marking IYV+10.
In this report ‘Our Journey’ you will find information about the projects we have initiated to
mark IYV+10 in Sri Lanka. These will demonstrate the progress and results against the
IYV+10 objectives and highlights the tireless effort made by the team.
IYV+10 has concluded, but in Sri Lanka, the continued collaboration between the diverse
stakeholders who are part of the IYV+10 National Steering Committee, the endorsement from
the highest Government representative His Excellency the President and the visit of the
Executive Coordinator of the UNV have helped us create a sustainable framework for the
work we have initiated in Sri Lanka.
"What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The
end is where we start from." T. S. Eliot
It is our sincere hope that ‘Our Journey’ will be the start of a new beginning where
volunteerism will be at the heart of main stream policy discussions in Sri Lanka.
4
Introduction
State of Volunteerism in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka has a long history and rich culture of volunteerism moulded by religion and
permeating practically all aspects of human activity. Volunteerism in Sri Lanka is commonly
known as “shramadana” and is embedded in the cultural heritage for many generations. But it
has to be noted that the ethos of volunteerism has not been confined to a single cultural
tradition and that diverse ethno-religious traditions in the country had embodied diverse
notions of volunteerism, giving rise to many volunteering practices. In spite of shifting
motivations and permutations much of the impulse for volunteerism has survived to this day.
While individual volunteerism has continued over the centuries it did not take long for
organized volunteerism to earn a more dominant place in society. The latter has continued to
evolve and emerge as an important factor in economic and social development of the country.
Changing socio-economic and political
conditions in the country have impacted
on volunteerism, at times making
voluntary action more difficult.
The introduction of liberal economic
policies in the late 1970’s facilitated the
influx of donor funding for diverse
voluntary associations. The impact of
donor funding on voluntary associations
have not been uniform. On one hand,
donor funding has created more space
and
opportunities
for
voluntary
organizations leading to a proliferation of
such organizations. On the other hand,
donor funding has led to a dependency
syndrome, making the activities of voluntary associations dependent on external funding.
In spite of increasing economic pressure in the country due to the impact of neo-liberal
economic policies implemented over the last four decades, many individuals, groups and
voluntary organizations engage in voluntary action in all parts of the country. Although there
has not been a concerted national effort to facilitate, encourage and recognize individual
voluntary action in the country.
The presence of many individuals and organizations dedicated to volunteerism in all
communities attests to the fact that there are many other potential volunteers who would
swing into action provided that there is a greater effort on the part of the state, the corporate
sector, civil society organizations and international agencies to network, promote, encourage
and recognize voluntary action in the country.
Sri Lanka thus is at cross-roads: state and non -state actors need to find a common platform
to work towards a more coordinated effort to create opportunities for potential volunteers, both
local and overseas based, to serve population groups that require and deserve social support.
The latter include vulnerable groups in society such as the poor, marginalized communities,
the displaced poor women and neglected children.
Courtesy UNV/UNDP Country Strategic Partnership Profile, Drafted by Prof. Siri Hettige
5
IYV+10
Rationale
In this section you will see the rationale for the celebration of IYV+10 globally and the official
mandate of UN Volunteers to be the focal point leading this process across the world.
“The year 2011 marks the 10th anniversary of the International Year of Volunteers
(IYV) 2001. Opportunity exists for activities throughout the year that will showcase the
diversity, breadth and depth of volunteering worldwide and offer the chance to mobilize many
more volunteers and raise the profile of volunteering.
The UN Secretary-General was asked by the GA in 2001 to report back on the followup to IYV on a tri-annual basis. UNV prepared follow-up reports for the Secretary-General in
2002, 2005 and 2008. As a result of the 2008 report, the UN GA, in its resolution
A/Res/63/153 adopted on 18 December 2008 called for the marking of IYV+10. In the GA
resolution, the UN invited governments, with the active support of media, civil society and the
private sectors, as well as development partners and the relevant organizations and bodies of
the UN system, to carry out activities focused on marking the tenth anniversary of IYV in 2011
at the regional and national levels. The resolution also reaffirmed the United Nations
Volunteers programme as the focal point for the marking of IYV+10.
The overall goal of marking IYV+10 is focused on promoting greater global
recognition of the contribution of volunteerism to society and to achieving peace and
development.”
The Global Call for Action
“All stakeholders are invited to join the global effort to mark IYV+10.
In so doing all stakeholders are encouraged to reinvigorate the spirit of the International Year
of Volunteers and its four pillars:
1. Further promote recognition of the contributions of volunteers to society, and
peace and development
2. Promote better understanding of how volunteerism can change the nature
and pace of development beyond the Millennium Development Goals
3. Provide a platform for continued advocacy and policy Development
4. Facilitate linkages and cooperation with and among Volunteer Involving
Organisations in the public, private and civil society sectors.
6
All stakeholders are encouraged to:
1. Bring the voices of volunteers to the attention of policy decision-makers;
2. Show-case volunteers in action including informal volunteering by people
living in difficult circumstances, and self-support actions at the
community level;
3. Support the reactivation of National Committees for IYV+10;
4. Encourage local and regional consultations and support improved tools for
networking;
5. Support the European Year of Volunteering 2011 (and similar in other
regions);
6. Bring the voices of volunteers to the international stage during the UN’s
General Assembly (GA) session in 2010 and 2011 – plus during the
Commission on Social Development meeting in the UN Secretariat;
7. Include the marking of IYV+10 in activities and/or events already planned to
take place in 2011;
8. Advocate for a GA resolution with strong recognition of the value of
volunteerism to society with recommendation to governments for
institutional support, and with call on governments and society to
support and fund volunteer initiatives.
9. All stakeholders are encouraged to immediately engage in participatory
dialogue and to formulate Plans of Action to mark IYV+10.”
Pillars
National Stakeholders marking the IYV+10 are invited to enhance volunteerism in all its forms
in terms of:
Recognition: acknowledge value of volunteerism and relation to MDGs
Facilitation: ensure volunteer opportunities for diverse people
Networking: strengthen partnerships, exchange experiences
Promotion: promote inclusive and representative volunteerism
7
IYV+10 National Steering Committee
In line with GA Resolution 631153 and the Global Call for Action, an IYV+10 National
Steering Committee [NSC] in Sri Lanka, representing a diverse spectrum of stakeholders,
was initiated in November 2010 and launched on the International Volunteer Day [IVD] of the
same year.
The NSC appointed two co-chairs to lead the IYV+10
initiatives.
National ownership was an important
consideration, thus one co-chair was appointed from the
Ministry of Social Services [MoSS] representing the
Government and the other from the University of
Colombo.
The NSC was the formal body that provided leadership
and coordination at national level for IYV+10 initiatives.
The principle objective of the NSC was to encourage joint
collaboration of the differing sectors to address the local
concept of volunteerism.
The NSC had a total of 15 meetings during its tenure and spearheaded many advocacy
initiatives during the year. Furthermore the members of the NSC have agreed to continue its
work as a forum to formulate activities, projects and programmes also beyond 2011.
Members of the IYV+10 NSC
Academia
Colombo University
Civil Society
Sarvodaya
Government
Ministry of Social Services
Media
Maharaja Broadcasting Corporation (MTV)
Private sector
The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce
UN
UNDP, UNV
VIO
Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) & Sri Lanka Scouts
Youth
National Youth Services Council (NYSC)
8
Relationship with the Government
The IYV+10 NSC has had a strong and close relationship with the
government of Sri Lanka from its inception. When the committee was
launched on International Volunteer Day, the Advisor to the Hon. Minister of
Social Services read out a statement of commitment from the Ministry. From
that point onwards IYV+10 was officially endorsed and all initiatives taken
place with some representation from the Ministry of Social Services.
The government’s commitment to IYV+10 became even more evident with
the appointment of the advisor to the Hon. Minister as a co-chair of the NSC.
The Hon. Minister has also personally attended many of the
initiatives to reiterate the strong relationship with the government
and several Ministers have endorsed our initiatives and attended
events.
The pinnacle of the strong relationship and the fine work done
by the NSC was the message of support received from His
Excellency the President of Sri Lanka, endorsing the flagship
project V Awards and commending on the year along programme
led by the NSC.
This strong relationship will be continued in the future, with the
establishment of the National Volunteer Secretariat [NVS] which will
be a follow up initiative of the earlier VOICE project. NVS will be supported by UNV with
capacity building support for one year and be housed at the Ministry of Social Services and
the idea being for it to continue as a special department under the ministry following this
inception phase.
Communication Strategies
Online Presence
One of the first steps taken for IYV+10’s visibility was its presence online. It was a strong
belief of the stakeholders that an online
presence must be integral to the communication
of the message on volunteerism, to mobilize
youth, and to share the stories and pictures of
IYV+10 and the events initiated by the NSC.
The IYV+10 Sri Lanka website was the centre
point of the online campaign and it was
complemented with many other social media
tools. Twitter albeit being not so popular among
the general public was used to link with other
social media tools and to update our followers
during events, especially from “Launch of the
State of the Worlds Volunteerism Report”, V
Awards “Unveiling of the Finalists” and the
“Grand Finale”.
The stats highlight the wide ray of audience
reached through a multitude of tools.
9
Media Outreach
Albeit online media and social media are starting to gain interest in Sri Lanka, the reach is
limited to youth and technologically advanced individuals from the urban centres. Therefore,
an outreach through the traditional channels like print and electronic media deemed essential.
The approach to receive media attention
was proactive as pre and post-event press
releases were circulated to all media
institutions.
The coverage has always been national.
Over 75 news pieces on print media
covering English, Sinhala and Tamil
newspapers have appeared. At numerous
occasions the events have also been
covered by national television. These clips
can be found on the YouTube channel,
iyv10srilanka. During our flagship project, V
Awards, trilingual news coverage on a daily
basis was aired for nearly 6 months.
Further, members of the NSC have been on
several talk shows, e.g. ‘Good Morning Sri
Lanka’.
During, IYV+10, two high-level visits from
UNV headquarters, Ms. Flavia Pansieri,
Executive Coordinator and Mr. Peter Devereux, Partnership Development Officer have taken
place, allowing for additional media coverage, on both print and electronic media.
Celebrity Endorsements
Finally celebrity endorsement is something much wished for by social advocates to take the
message of IYV+10 and volunteering to a wider audience with a stronger impact. In Sri
Lanka, there are no personalities who are more known than the National Cricketers.
The IYV+10 communication strategy for the year and
beyond therefore had celebrities right at its centre.
In March 2011, during the Cricket World Cup, Mr. Mahela
Jayawardena, internationally recognized cricketer joined
the campaign to promote volunteerism in Sri Lanka and to
endorse the first event, the V Forum.
With the start of V Awards, Mr. Kumar Sangakkara, at that
time the Captain of the Sri Lankan Cricket team at that time and two of the most popular
young pop stars Bathiya Jayakody and Santhush Weeraman, known as BnS, joined the
IYV+10 team to spread the message of volunteerism across the island.
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National Stakeholder Initiatives
V Forum
One of the first IYV+10 Steering Committee initiatives in 2011 was the V Forum held on 25
March 2011. It brought together various stakeholders from the public and private sectors, civil
society, the media and volunteers the
intention being to meet, network, and get
inspired. Over 150 participants attended the
event, graced by the presence of the Hon.
Minister of Social Services. Considering the
positive response, the forum is planned to
take place annually.
A dynamic panel of speakers, Mr. Douglas
Keh [UNDP Resident Representative a.i. /
Country Director UNDP], Mr. Kushil
Gunesekara [Founder of the Foundation of
Goodness], Mrs. Rosy Senanayake [IYV
Goodwill Ambassador 2001], Mr. Ravi
Fernando [The UN Global Compact Focal
Point] and Mr. Neshan Gunesekara [Project
Director - Training for Trusteeship] addressed
the
gathering.
Following
the
panel
discussions the participants broke into
working groups based on thematic areas
related to the Millennium Development Goals.
V Workshop
Following the success of the V Forum and the high response received from participants, the
NSC decided to organize a follow-up workshop with a special focus on volunteering activities
nationwide called the V Workshop. This was held on 14 June 2011.
The workshop participants mapped out volunteering activities supporting development goals
and identified potential partnerships at the provincial/district level for further activities. This
exercise provided the necessary inputs needed to establish IYV+10 sub-committees at the
provincial level and better define the role they can play.
11
Provincial Sub-Committees
On 23 June 2011, Provincial Sub-committees [PSC’s] were established in the nine provinces
in the presence of the Hon. Minister of Social Services and UNDP Country Director a.i. The
sub-committees were to act as the focal points for
IYV+10 activities across the country and include a
variety of stakeholders going also beyond the
members of the NSC. The PSC’s role is to
network and coordinate volunteer activities in their
respective provinces even beyond IYV+10. This
was the first event carried out in all three national
languages including the press releases.
Out of the nine established committees some
were more at ease with the task and took on the
leadership to initiate meetings and coordinate
activities themselves. Most encouragingly that the
two committees from the Northern and Eastern
provinces found the establishment as a highly
useful network, as they were able to coordinate
the work they do, strengthen them and avoid
duplication.
These two PSCs established among the other
their own structures in the province and initiated
district committees [Eastern] and in the Northern
Province young people registered as V Force
members and to this end, from 3 districts out of 5,
the youth coordinator in the North managed to
register over 4,300 youngsters to the National
Voluntary Taskforce [V Force].
12
Youth Focused Initiatives
UN Club Networking Project
Noting the fact that UN clubs at school level are engaged in activities to help promote
development goals as advocated by the United Nations, UNV together with the IYV+10 NSC,
V Force, the UN Information Centre [UNIC] and two leading schools [St. Pauls Milagiriya Girls
School and Vishaka Vidyalaya] organized an occasion on 17 September 2011 and marked a
new chapter in UNV’s work by reaching out to the volunteers at school level. The event ended
with the signing of a charter by 13 schools present, and the setting up of a committee
composed of the representatives of the school UN clubs to coordinate their activities
throughout the year. UNIC has been appointed as the coordinating body from the UN and
NSC together with UNV will continue to encourage school based UN clubs to register and
work closely with other UN clubs.
13
V Force [National Voluntary Taskforce]
The V Force provides a nationwide platform for volunteers to
network, join hands in voluntary action and promote
volunteerism and the volunteering spirit.
V Force volunteers have taken part in all IYV+10 initiatives in
different capacities, such as event organizers, rapporteurs or
photographers. In addition they have been volunteering at
numerous charity and club events, targeting diverse groups.
V Force is seen as a unique concept to Sri Lanka, and very popular among the younger
members of society. Members are coordinated through an email group and at the moment
[March 2012] on the national online group counts over 400 registered youngsters as V Force
volunteers.
Currently the NSC is in the process of exploring the possibility of institutionalizing V Force as
an independent entity.
14
Partnered Events
Scouts Services and Public Relations Week
Sri Lanka Scouts Association marks the ‘Services and Public Relations Week’ annually. This
is an event where over 40,000 scouts from all over Sri Lanka in teams of 4, volunteer to
provide services to the general public. During IYV+10, the NSC joined hands with the Scouts
Association where provided for a space to advertise IYV+10 on the over 10,000 job cards
printed. These cards were carried by the 40,000 scouts who visited many thousand homes
within this week.
Rotaract Shutterbug
Rotaract Shutterbug was initiated by the Rotaract Club of
Panadura and the initiative was endorsed by a range of
stakeholders including the NSC. The project provided an
opportunity for young photographers to receive
professional training on photography, take part in a
competition and get exposed to a variety of specialty
fields in photography through a photography week filled
with photoantastic activities. The Club dedicated a
category for photographs conveying powerful messages
of volunteerism. Shutterbug provided a great platform for
photography amateurs and enthusiasts to explore and
develop themselves.
Youth Model United Nations
Youth model United Nations [YMUN] was a two-day international relations simulation for
university level students and youth between the ages of 18 and 30 initiated in 2011 by the
Rotaract Club of Colombo North Sri Lanka. At YMUN, delegates were able to gain insight into
the workings of the United Nations and the dynamics of international relations by assuming
the roles of UN representatives and members of other international bodies and national
cabinets. YMUN was an exciting opportunity
for students to debate issues that confront
world leaders and to draft resolutions in
response to these global issues. YMUN was
the first conference that gave the opportunity
for students in higher education institutions to
be part of a Model UN. YMUN was endorsed
and partnered by many public and private
institutions including the Ministry of Higher
Education. The NSC joined hands and
endorsed this event, whilst many V Force
members played important roles at the
conference.
15
Kelani Nadee Yatra
The ‘Kelani Nadee Yatra’ was a journey to raise
awareness on the adversities of climate change
in Sri Lanka. It took place from 17 to 29 August
2011, organized by Eco friendly Volunteers
[ECO V]. 20 young nature enthusiasts, between
the ages of 18 and 20 took part in the journey for
climate justice from Nallathanniye on ‘Sripada’
(Adam’s peak) and commuting down on Kelani
River. Specifically to mention is that among the
volunteers were also rehabilitated ex-LTTE
military cadres.
NSC endorsed this event, assisted ECO-V in the planning and preparation. Further the
National Coordinator attended the press conference held to launch this initiative.
Youth is the World - Guinness World Record
UNV, NSC and V Force were a part of the ‘Youth is the Word’ Guinness World Record
breaking event held on the 12 August 2011. Volunteerism played a vital role in breaking the
Guinness World Record for the largest Human Mosaic. In fact no separate budget was
allocated for this project and each aspect of this event was sponsored by organizations and
individuals volunteering their
time. The concept of the
project was to motivate the
youth of Sri Lanka to
volunteer and to meet peers
with the same passion
towards
volunteerism.
Simply,
it
was
about
celebrating
youthfulness.
The event which was the
brainchild of the Sri Lankan
team of British Council’s
Global Changemakers, was
organized to commemorate
the
United
Nations
International Year of Youth,
and especially the International Youth Day on 12 August 2011.
Training for Trusteeship
The Training for Trusteeship International Workshop [TFT] is a forum for young leaders from
South Asian universities, educational institutions and youth organizations from diverse
cultural, religious, geographical and professional backgrounds. TFT is the primary initiative of
the Weeramantry International Centre for Peace Education and Research. NSC endorsed this
event and partnered to mould the future leaders not just from Sri Lanka but also from the
neighbouring South Asian countries.
Participants represent some of the most outstanding young leaders of the region who are
engaged in civic activities that bring about positive, progressive social change. This year
IYV+10 played an important role by having one out of the 7 workshop days dedicated for
volunteerism.
Held in September 2011, at TFT, UNV together with VSO [IYV+10 NSC members] conducted
sessions on volunteering, IYV+10, volunteer management systems and UNV programme on
the day dedicated for volunteerism.
16
Speeches and Awareness Campaigns
Presentations and talks in many different settings have helped the IYV+10 awareness
campaign to promote its four pillars. Furthermore it has also provided a platform for UNV to
promote the message of volunteerism for development. Most of these talks were delivered by
the National Coordinator and some by the Programme Officer of UNV. Overall 2,000+
representatives from across the country have been addressed through this process. The
speech at the first Tedx Colombo stood out as the message was aired on the internet opening
up the possibility of viewing online. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQOsvFJfPAk
17
International Volunteer Day [IVD]
The International Volunteer Day [IVD] on 5 December 2011 was celebrated in Sri Lanka with
two events, South Asia Launch of the State of the Worlds Volunteerism Report and the V
Awards “Unveiling of the Finalists”.
The South Asia Launch of the State of the World’s
Volunteerism Report [SWVR]
The South Asia launch of the SWVR was
celebrated at the Ceylon Continental Hotel
Colombo. The event was attended by many
dignitaries including representatives from the
Government, Media, Heads of UN agencies and
Civil Society organizations.
The Panel
Partnership
included Mr.
Development
Peter Devereux,
Officer
(UNV),
Additional Secretary (Ministry of Social Services), Mr.
Douglas Keh, Country Director (UNDP) and Prof. Siri
Hettige, Sociologist (Colombo University).
The event was well covered in the media. In fact it was
featured in many news bulletins that evening and was
covered in print media throughout the week, from small opeds to full page articles.
V Awards [Volunteer Awards]
“Shining a light on those who serve in Silence”
Following all four pillars of IYV+10, the National Steering
Committee initiated and implemented many programmes
to covering these recognition. The NSC was in the strong
view that an award ceremony should be held. Yet was not
only supposed to serve the recognition pillar, but also help
promoting volunteerism.
The main reason to hold such an award ceremony
stemmed from the fact that Sri Lanka lacked a solid
platform to recognize the enormous contributions made by
volunteers to the economy and the society at large. V
Awards aimed to fill this gap recognizing and rewarding the
most outstanding volunteer contributions at a national level. The concept behind this project
was to honour individuals who make extraordinary contributions to society and to identify role
models and champions who can inspire a
nation to volunteer for social causes.
Following
many
discussions
and
st
negotiations, News 1 [news arm of The
Capital Maharaja Organisation] agreed to
join hands with the NSC to initiate this
programme.
18
The understanding between News 1st
st
and the NSC was that News 1 would
handle all promotional activities of the
project
starting
from
calling
for
applications right up to the actual awards
ceremony
the
NSC
would
take
responsibility for the Secretariat to handle
the initial short-listing of candidates,
select the impartial high level judging
panel and manage the communications
process with the nominees. Events
related to V Award were to be organized
jointly.
Going national in all three languages
required a lot of resources, financially as
well as in kind. Several corporate
sponsors therefore came on board to
assist financially; in addition to the large
st
contribution made by News 1 itself.
Many NSC members also assisted
financially as well as in kind.
This initiative that started in June 2011
went on to touch many hearts across the
island, from the general public to much
celebrated artists. Currently discussions
have already started to explore the
possibility of having V Awards 2012 or
2013.
Press Conference
The launch of this event happened at a press conference held on the 09 August 2011, at The
Capital Maharaja Auditorium, Colombo. At this event the calling for nominations was done,
and the public was requested to nominate volunteers in English, Sinhala or Tamil.
The panel for the press conference
included, Mr. Mano Wikramanayake,
Group Director – The Capital
Maharaja Organisation, Mr. Douglas
Keh, Country Director –UNDP, Mr.
Kirby de Lanerolle and Prof. Siri
Hettige. Co-chairs of NSC, Mr. Ravi
Gamage of News 1st and Mr. Fadhil
Bakeer Markar Project Coordinators.
19
Messages from the launch;
“V Awards is an initiative to celebrate the inspiring volunteer efforts of Sri Lankans across the
island”
“The partnership between the IYV+10 National Steering Committee and News 1st
demonstrates exceptional leadership in the country's efforts to rebuild in this new era of
peace”
Mr. Douglas Keh, Country Director, UNDP
“V Awards will not only be the ideal platform to recognize the outstanding volunteer efforts by
our Sri Lankans but also to inspire many more to engage in volunteer activities in their given
capacities”
“The Ministry of Social Services hopes that many would utilize this initiative to volunteer for
the national development of Sri Lanka“
Hon. Felix Perera, Minister of Social Services
“This initiative to recognize outstanding Sri Lankan Volunteers not only highlights the
exceptional contribution these individuals make to society, but will inspire many others to
follow their shining example”.
“This propagation of volunteerism is a most worthy cause which we as a media organisation
serving the people are proud to be a part of”
Mr. Mano Wikramanayake, Group Director, The Capital Maharaja Organisation (Pvt) Ltd
“IYV+10 National Steering Committee has embarked on this journey with the nine partnering
organisations, not only to recognize our volunteers, but to reach out to our volunteers and say
thank you, whilst ensuring volunteerism is noted in national policy discussions”
“V Awards is a quest, a search for the ultimate volunteer hero of our country”
Mr. Fadhil Bakeer Markar, National Coordinator for IYV+10
Secretariat
V Awards began in June 2011 with the formation of the “V Awards Secretariat”, to conduct the
administrative and operations aspect of the awards ceremony. After nominations were called,
the Secretariat received more than 450 applications from all around the country, representing
diverse communities.
The creation of the V Awards Secretariat was integral to
the whole process of selection. The V Awards Secretariat
was situated at the UN compound. A hotline was created
to handle any queries and was functioning on weekdays
where the public was able to reach the members of the
secretariat in English, Sinhala or Tamil.
All nominations were entered into a database following the
allocation of an application number given on a linguistic
basis.
The V Awards Secretariat played an integral role in coordinating the entire process, from the
initial planning stages to the actual events. It also facilitated the V Force volunteers who were
part of the process from the beginning.
20
Many volunteers have helped the secretariat in variety of ways.
Further over 100 V Force volunteers were part of the organizations
of the two V Awards events.
The evaluations were facilitated by the secretariat. They were done
in a two tier process. Initially the evaluation panel led by one of the
Co-chairs, Mr. Kirby de Lanerolle, conducted the desk review. Once
nominations were received by the secretariat they were sent to the
evaluation panel comprising of a combination of UN staff and NSC
members.
The evaluation panel was representative of all three
national languages (English, Sinhala and Tamil). The
evaluation team met successively during a period of 2
weeks and thoroughly examined applications and
analyzed them to see whether they fit the criteria set or
not. The team of evaluators were provided with a set of
guidelines to fabricated by the NSC standardize
procedure. Applications that fulfilled the criteria mentioned
in the nomination forms received a mark and if the mark
attributed to the application met mark it would be put
forward to the high level panel of judges.
This panel was facilitated by the other Co-chair, Prof. Siri
Hettige. The judges comprised of a group of five eminent
personalities recognized within Sri Lanka and
internationally.
The panel of judges was selected by the NSC
ensuring that the judging panel would represent
ethnic, gender, religious and professional diversity.
Once the high level panel had further shortlisted the
nominations the judges requested the secretariat to
carry out thorough checks by means of telephone
conversations and police reports on each respective
candidate. This was done to ensure their credibility
and authenticity. The secretariat in this made sure
that nominees complied with the requests. After these
inquiries the V Awards production crew also went to
personally visit each prospective candidate. In fact
the video evidence gathered was also integral part of
to the selection process of the finalists from the 26 shortlisted candidates, as that information
allowed for realistic insight into the work carried out by the respective nominee.
21
The Judges
Comprised of eminent personalities, the support and dedication of the panel of judges
towards the initiative played a crucial role in its implementation, its members are:
Ms. Sunethra Bandaranayake
Sunethra Bandaranaike is a Sri Lankan philanthropist. She is the sister of former President
Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga and former Speaker Anura Bandaranaike. She
worked as a researcher in the Minority Rights Group at the Overseas Development Institute
and held the post of Co-ordinating Secretary to the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka during her
mother's tenure. She currently chairs the Sunera Foundation an NGO which works with
differently abled youth and adults.
Ms. Jezima Ismail
Jezima Ismail holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Ceylon in 1955, a Master
of Arts degree in Education at McGill University in 1966 and a Diploma in TEFL from
University of Sydney in 1972. With a teaching career spanning 32 years and 13 years as
Principal of the Muslim Ladies College, Colombo, she has a vast experience in the field of
education. Her special interests include education (formal and informal), women and children,
religion and media. She currently holds many important offices and positions in institutions
varying from Government institutions to Non-Governmental Organizations. Finally she is a
well know human rights activist.
Mr. Chandra Jayarathne
Mr. Jayarathne is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka and of the
Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, UK. He was also the former Secretary
General of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce and a renowned figure in the field of commerce
and industries. In 2001 the LMD magazine named him as the Sri Lankan of the year.
Professor. Somasundaram Sandrasegaram
Prof. Sandrasegaram is an education specialist who currently works for the Asian
Development Bank and is also a Council member of National Institute of the Education. Prof.
Sandrasegaram received a scholarship from the Japanese Government to complete a
Masters in Education at Hiroshima University after completing an undergraduate qualification
in the same subject from Peradeniya University. Prof. Sandrasegaram was the former Dean
of the Faculty of Education at University of Colombo, and has lectured at Alabama University
and the University of Hiroshima. A former member of the National Education Commission, a
council member of the South Eastern University and Education Board Member of the Open
University Faculty, he has authored 30 books in English and Tamil, as well as numerous
articles.
Dr. Vinya Ariyaratne
Dr.Vinya S. Ariyaratne, is the General Secretary of the Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement of
Sri Lanka. He is a medical doctor specialized in community medicine. Dr. Ariyaratne has been
extensively involved in health programmes related to the war affected communities in Sri
Lanka. In the early 1990’s, at the height of the armed conflict in Sri Lanka, he initiated an
innovative programme to address the psycho-social effects amongst children affected by the
war. Dr. Ariyaratne has also been involved extensively in civil society peace and reconciliation
initiatives. He has been trained as a professional facilitator for peace dialogues and engages
in teaching assignments related to peace building, conflict resolution and reconciliation.
22
"Unveiling of the Finalists"
As a part of the International Volunteer Day [IVD],
which was celebrated on 5 December 2011, the first
phase of “V Awards” called “Unveiling of the
Finalists” was held at the Stein Studios in
Rathmalana. At this event 26 shortlisted nominees
were recognized, out of whom 15 finalists further
selected for the Grand Finale. The event was
attended by many high profile individuals including
Mr. Peter Deverux, Partnership Development Officer,
UNV HQ.
The evening began with the photo exhibition that was arranged at the front corridor of the
studio. The photos were from the Rotarct Shutterbug initiative that the NSC partnered with.
The exhibition was sponsored by the popular gem and jewellery store, Zam Gems.
V Force volunteers played an important role in this event. From shadowing a volunteer to
being a part of the backstage crew, they contributed to make this event a success. Further
nearly 7 volunteers captured moments from this event.
Watch the full show here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OAWyN8Hw9k
23
"Grand Finale"
The Grand Finale, amidst an audience that numbered over a thousand invitees, saluted and
honoured the finalists for their exceptional volunteer work. The event, held on 21January
2012, was an elegant evening with entertainment by renowned artists. The evening ended
with Top Finalists being recognized and the 'Volunteer of the Year' being crowned for the
exceptional work done in various social causes.
V Awards was our flagship project, one of the largest
CSR initiatives. V Awards was also an initiative that
represented the inclusive nature, was witnessed by
many high level dignitaries representing the
Government, United Nations, Corporate Sector,
Media and key volunteer involving organisations.
The Grand Finale was witnessed by many high
profile individuals like Ms. Flavia Pansieri, Executive
Coordinator UNV, who specially flew down to witness
this event and to appreciate the work done by the
NSC members in Sri Lanka. Further several cabinet
ministers, members of parliament, ambassadors, UN
agency heads attended the event.
The event was made glamorous in so many different
ways. The guests and finalists were featured on the
green carpet with a large V Awards backdrop at the
back. The entrance corridor was filled with 15
banners with the 15 stories of the 15 finalists.
Most importantly, it was not just the thousand audiences that witnessed the event, rather
many thousands more did, as the show was live telecasted on two national channels and also
streamed live web.
Watch the full show here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Lk5YwosVYY
24
Finalists – The Profiles
Mr. Malindu Udawatta
Date of Birth: 21.10.1994
Place of Origin: Colombo
Type of Work: Volunteer teacher to under privileged children in the Northern Province.
At the mere age of 16 Malindu Udawatta transformed his vision in to a fully-fledged scoop of
reality. His journey as a volunteer began as a teacher in science and mathematics at the
Kilinochchi Maha Vidyalaya for children affected by the war. From there his extraordinary
work spread to make a difference in the lives of those children at the Rajagiriya Sacred Heart
of little Hearts church. He is even a Public Relations Officer with 'Viru Daru Fund’, an
organization established by the children of Army Officers. As he continues his good work it
must be noted that all of Malindu's inspirational volunteer work has taken place thus far has
been achieved within less than a year, highlighting the true meaning of "where there is a will
there is a way"
Mr. M.I. Udumma Lebbe
Date of Birth: 19. 12.1951
Place of Origin: Akkaraipattu
Type of work: Community Volunteer
M. Ismail Udumma Lebbe is an individual who took a colourful and diverse path in dedicating
his life to the needy and poor. Finding alternative lands for over 500 internally displaced
people in Akkaraipaththu area, providing secure employment, promoting self-employment
through the means of donating sewing machines and making other contributions such as
spectacles, grinders and bicycles is just some of the various voluntary works carried out by
Udumma Lebbe. In addition, he organized a medical clinic with the aid of the Health
Department while helping to raise funds for the cancer hospital. Udduma Lebbe’s inspiring
volunteer work authenticates him as an extraordinary individual, a frontward person dedicated
towards assisting his people and uplifting the community.
Ms. Sharmini Perera
Date of Birth: 16. 11. 1964
Place of Origin: Kandy
Type of Work: Inaugurated the “Home of Hope” in 2001
While Sri Lanka was still ravaged by the claws of civil war hope had still found a way to
sprung out of the initiative Sharmini Perera begun in 2001- "Home of Hope" giving a new
lease of life to the children affected by the war of the Northern Province. When all seemed to
be lost Sharmini provided them with a safe haven they can call home. She went on to
introduce the sweeter things in life to these children- an pathway to gather knowledge through
the library she set up, computer skills through the Computer Training Centre enabling them to
walk in par with the technological world and even the opportunity to indulge in the fine arts
such as music through music classes. Her future plans include building a transit home for the
prison kids - a safe and dignified shelter.
Mr. Kushil Gunasekera
Age: 55 years
Place of Origin: Seenigama
Type of Work: Founder of the Foundation of Goodness
Being the founder of the Foundation of Goodness Kushil Gunasekara has dedicated his life
and wealth into uplifting the lives of over 25,000 people in Southern Sri Lanka. His Foundation
of Goodness has 30 empowerment sectors especially designed to help the beneficiaries to
fight poverty through productive activities. Kushil is currently working on a Northern
Empowering project overcoming all the challengers into elevating the living standards of those
living in poverty.
25
Mr. Palitha Gunasekara
Date of Birth: 02. 07. 1950
Place of Origin: Colombo
Type of Work: Founder of PALINK School of Sports
Dedicating his life into coaching talented young girls, to engage in cricket, from various parts
of rural Sri Lanka, Palitha Gunasekara believes in creating equal opportunities for both male
and female youngsters and allowing them to grow and meet their fullest potential not only in
their skills but also as professional sports personalities. As the founder of PALINK School of
Sports, Palitha has not only voluntary provided his professional expertise as a coach, but also
has sponsored a number of players with their material requirements. Thus, Palitha has been
able to guide many teams to reach greater heights at local and international level.
Mr. T.H.A Heenbanda
Date of Birth: 16. 09. 1953
Place of Origin: Anuradhapura
Type of Work: Care Provider for Ayurveda medicine
Using his expert skills to identify medicinal plants and concocting the medicines together to
make preparations, T.H.A Heenbanda has been serving his community as a care provider for
Ayurveda medicine preparation and special medical practices in Anuradhapura. He visits
each patient and helps in the application of the concoctions. In order to help those in need he
takes great interest and care and walks the extra mile by personally going into the shrubs and
forests in search of the herbs. Heenbanda’s volunteerism not only centres around the medical
field but has also spread towards religious activities and community development, thus
making him the strength of his village.
Ms.Lakshmi Ratnayake
Date of Birth: 18.02.1940
Place of Origin: Rajagiriya
Type of Work: Activist in suicide prevention
With 33 years of exhilarating volunteer service at Sri Lanka Sumithrayo, a charity, working in
the field of suicide prevention, Lakshmi Ratnayake was given the responsibility of Directing of
3 centres. She spearheaded launching of 9 befriending centres and initiating the Rural
Suicide Prevention Programme. Currently Lakshmi serves as the National Trainer for
Sumithrayo, while having served as the International Trainer and the representative of the
Asia Region for the International Board. Lakshmi continues to mobilize her service to the
remote areas in the country to help the less fortunate people in order to help them cope with
feelings of suicide and depression. She has made lifelong achievements by her constant
presence in these effected people’s lives by preventing acts of suicide and giving them hopes
of social inclusion.
Dr. Gamini Goonetilleke
Date of Birth: 07.10.1949
Place of Origin: Colombo
Type of Work: Medical Doctor
Over the last 18 years more than a hundred people have benefited from Dr. Gamini
Goonatilleke’s selfless services. As a leading expert on the treatment of diseases of the upper
digestive tract, he has performed the complex curative operations free of charge on patients
who most of the time had ingested acid as part of an abortive suicide attempts. Furthermore,
he goes beyond his call of duty and pays the patient’s preoperative needs and also their
hospital bills in full. Nevertheless, he goes above and beyond their health by helping them find
employment through his personal network. His efforts have built confidents on lives of these
rehabilitated patients as they have been affected by the absence of their families
26
Ms. N.K. Dharmarathne
Date of Birth: 04.08.1968
Place of Origin: Matale
Type of Work: Community Volunteer
Kumari Dharmarathne started to brighten the lives of those living in the rural village of
Wanaraniya by reactivating the Women’s Welfare Society in the village. Through this program
she has been able to provide the women with getting equipment and necessary training to
start self-employed businesses. Her efforts reached into building houses for widows and
donating essential items for school children to continue their education. Furthermore, she
initiated to provide sanitized water to the village for the benefit of over 170 homes. Kumari has
also constructed a building in her private property to conduct English language teaching and
Computer skills training program. It is her willingness to give and share that makes Kumari
one of the great citizens of this country.
Ms. Pearl Marigold
Date of Birth: 12.02.1939
Place of Origin: Kandy
Type of Work: Pioneer of the Women Empowerment Centre
As the pioneer of Women Empowerment Centre in Mullgampola village of Kandy, Pearl
Stephen’s volunteer efforts has changed the lives of women and children who have been
abused and living under hardships. She is not only a women’s rights activist but also a mentor
for these women. Pearl has become a foster mother for many children including street
children whom she sends to school and provides protection. Furthermore, she has helped
those affected by the Tsunami and actively participated in relief efforts around Batticalao
district. Her efforts emphasized in renovating maternal wards in Kalmunai and building homes
in many war affected areas. Her genuine personality influences everyone who comes in
contact with her to do good for humanity.
Dr. Kapila Gunawardena
Date of Birth: 06.01.1955
Place of Origin: Kandy
Type of Work: Medical Doctor
As a Gynaecologist by profession, Dr. Kapila Kumara Gunawardena started his journey as a
philanthropist two decades ago. He had dedicated his service and wealth into elevating the
standards of many hospitals in Sri Lanka and was acclaimed at both international and local
levels. Dr. Gunwardana’s services reach the education sector as well through the many
scholarships he has helped to offer. He also helped finance the building of a library which was
a long felt need for Chillaw Mugunuwatuna Primary School. Furthermore, he voluntarily
worked to improve the infrastructure facilities in rural areas, provide medical facilities in war
affected areas and felicitate war heroes thus influencing to change human lives. His
contribution towards the elimination of maternal deaths by presiding in the Association of
Gynaecologists is commendable.
Ms. Srimathi Munasinghe
Date of Birth: 09.06.1947
Place of Origin: Rajagiriya
Type of Work: Voluntary teacher
A teacher by profession, Srimathi Chandralatha Munasinghe, has dedicated herself to service
for the past 31 years. Even after retirement, for the past 14 years, she continues her service
through conducting tuition classes to school children completely free of charge. Srimathi
teachers “Sinhala and Sinhala literature” to any child who is thirsty for knowledge with no
regard of his/ her social, ethnic or religious background. Due to her selfless efforts Srimathi is
a role model and an example for all teachers dedicated to their service.
27
Dr. Sinniah Thevananthan – “Winner”
Date of Birth: 10.01.1972
Place of Origin: Colombo
Type of Work: Founder of the Osilmo Special Education
and Research Centre for autistic children
Dr. Thevananthan tirelessly worked towards ensuring the
same rights, freedom and opportunities for autistic
children that other children enjoy. Thus, he set up the
‘Osilmo Special Education and Research Center’ as a
residential care giving facility to support autistic children.
He and his team of specialists believe in overall
development of a child that goes beyond medication
towards a series of therapies and rehabilitation
systems which are provided on a voluntary basis. His
services have reached beyond all geographical, ethnic
and religious differences in the country to brighten as
many innocent lives as possible.
Mr. S. Senthurarajah
Date of Birth: 19. 12.1951
Place of Origin: Ampara
Type of work: Pioneer of the Mahashakthi Foundation
Sanmuga Senthurajah has dedicated himself into upgrading the lives of those left poor and
vulnerable by the devastating civil war. Through his “Mahashakthi Foundation” he has
installed 18 branches of the foundation. He worked passionately towards empowering women
and uplifting their leadership skills, child education and economic plans as a way of providing
stability to those who were truly in need. Furthermore, as the founder of the SWOAD in
Ampara, he tirelessly worked towards reducing fraudulent activities and improving the quality
of life. He has also encouraged leisure time activities such as reading, gardening and
community gatherings as part of a balanced life.
Mr. Damitha Senaka
Date of Birth: 19. 12.1951
Place of Origin: Colombo
Type of work: Founder of the Kosala Dullewa Foundation
As the founder of the Kosala Dullewa Foundation [KDF] for children with special needs,
Damitha Senaka, has embarked on a mission to assist these differently able children
irrespective of their ethnic and religious differences. In his efforts he strives towards social
inclusion of these children through compiling a National Data Base of all children with special
needs, conducting classes for children with special needs in the educational and aesthetic
fields, organizing awareness campaigns, health camps and workshops. Through the KDF,
Damitha has earmarked many short term and long term projects for the benefit of not only the
children but also their parents as well.
28
Theme Song
The theme song is a tribute to volunteers across Sri Lanka. It was the first time so many
artists have come together in Sri Lanka, voluntarily, to honour and salute the volunteers. The
music video contains footage of the work of the 15 finalists. What was more important was the
inclusiveness nature of this song, where the song containing lyrics in all three national
languages. Please see the lyrics below.
/
/
හදට
/
/
හද
/
/
/
-
හ
/
ද
/
ද
SHINE YOUR RAY OF LIGHT
GIVING HOPE TO SEE IT THROUGH
WITH THE STRENGTH TO STAND AND FIGHT
WE WILL MAKE IT ME AND YOU
,
,
,
,
!
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU'VE DONE
THERE'S NO WAY WE COULD DESCRIBE
HOW YOU BRIGHTENED UP THE SUN
AND YOU FILLED THESE EMPTY LIVES
-
හ
/
ද
/
ද
Watch and listen to the song here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8acdp7q4Q&list=UUB8EkqwuDofmeYFXGKPiFBw&index=6&feature=plcp
29
Artists
Many well-known artists joined hands with the V Awards team, at the “Unveiling of the
Finalists”, “Grand Finale” and with the theme song. And most importantly in this collaboration
they all volunteered to perform.
Mekala Gamage – Singer
Naadro – Percussion Band
Ravihans – Music Producer
Voice Print – A cappella Artists
Prashadhi Academy – Dance Troupe
Sri Lanka Youth – Dance Troupe
Bathiya and Santhush [BnS] – Singers
Centigradz – Singers
Samitha Mudunkotowa – Singer
Heshan Gamage – Singer
Azlan Shariffdeen – Singer
Natasha Rathnayake – Singer
Shahala Anees– Singer
Avinesh Amaranath– Singer
Sachith Peiris – Singer
Stories to Inspire
Since the beginning of the V Awards ‘journey’ in June 2011, NSC members witnessed many
outstanding volunteers from all parts of the country and from all sections of the community.
The promotional campaigns, endorsements from the cricketing stars comprising Kumar
Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardena, artists’ and the glamorous “Unveiling of the Finalists”
which was held on International Volunteer Day, stimulated great enthusiasm among the
public.
The V Awards team wanted these outstanding stories that have created an immense interest
among the public to be documented. The book ‘Stories to Inspire” is result of that idea and
contains the stories of the fifteen V Awards finalists.
“Stories to Inspire” we hope will inspire each and every one of you, touch many hearts across
Sri Lanka and encourage many to volunteer and help build a society that ‘cares for others’.
The Team
V Awards was our sincere effort to say ‘thank you’ to individuals who contribute to society with
a great amount of love. It will not be correct if we don’t thank the individuals who helped with
our flagship project. Therefore this is dedicated to all those who helped to make V Awards a
memorable event.
30
Executive Coordinator’s visit
Ms. Flavia Pansieri made a visit to Sri Lanka to attend
the Grand Finale of V Awards. Her presence was very
important as it reflected the commitment and support
that the UN system as a whole and the UN
Volunteers has for such initiatives.
Apart from this, the numerous media interviews Ms.
Pansieri provided had a positive impact not only on
the relationship the country office has with the media
partners but also contributed to the positive image of
the UN as a whole at an important Sri Lankan political
juncture.
Mission Accomplished
In our eyes, the mission was accomplished with great success. Moreover, for us the success
can be limited to the amount of volunteers we were able network, the amount of individuals
we were able to inspire and the number of volunteers we were able to mobilize. But the real
success was far beyond that, through all initiatives we led, we not only inspired many
thousand volunteers across the country, but inspired the key stakeholders from the
government, media, the UN to recognize that “volunteerism matters”.
Below chart simply illustrates, how all four pillars were achieved during IYV+10 in Sri Lanka.
31
Beyond IYV+10
A workshop titled “Beyond IYV+10” was held at the Cinnamon Lake Side on 24 January 2012,
the Workshop was to identify lessons learnt, priority objectives and future activities for the
IYV+10 National Steering Committee Sri Lanka, particularly with regard to the establishment
of the upcoming National Volunteer Secretariat. The event was funded by VSO Sri Lanka.
The day’s sessions went on to reflect upon the many experiences the NSC has been through;
discuss and further the rationale behind the initiative of setting up a National Volunteer
Secretariat; determine the role and involvement of the NSC members in future activities; seek
out methods of strengthening the relationships with the Provincial sub-committees and draft a
proposal for the mandate and functioning of the NSC.
The workshop brought a noteworthy ending to an eventful year in Sri Lanka. However it was
also the start of a new era, where members decided to continue IYV+10 NSC as the NSC on
Volunteering.
32
33
The Team
The UN General Assembly designated UNV as the focal point for IYV+10 around the globe.
On a national level, the work of IYV+10 was tasked to the Country Offices. Being the focal
point, the UNV COT in Sri Lanka, has worked remarkably hard from establishing the NSC to
implementing diverse national programmes.
The dedication and hard work of this team was integral to the success of “Our Journey”, thus
noting their names in this report is deemed essential.
Supervisor, UNV Country Office
Mr. Douglas Keh – Country Director, UNDP
Programme Officers
Ms. Sonia Josserandmercier [February 2011 – July 2011]
Ms. Lulwa Al-Kilani [August 2011 – October 2011]
Mr. Natal Donnaloia
Country Office Associate
Ms. Sharmalee Jayasinghe
National Coordinator, IYV+10
Mr. Fadhil Bakeer Markar
Operations and Communications Assistant
Ms. Ashani Jayasinghe [till February 2011]
Ms. Bhagya Rathnayake
Operations and Communications Support Assistants
Ms. Amanda Seneviratne [till February 2011]
Mr. Muditha Katuwawala [February 2011- August 2011]
Ms. Manoli De Silva
Ms. Venushka Gammampila
V Awards Secretariat Support Assistant
Ms. Avanti Weerakoon
V Force Volunteers
Mr. Muradh Mohideen
Mr. Varuna Ponnamperuma
34
Acknowledgments
IYV+10 National Steering Committee Members
UNDP, FAO, OCHA for the in kind contributions
V Force Volunteers
st
V Awards and News 1 Team
Corporate Sponsors
Volunteer Photographers
Everyone who helped us in our journey!
35
Annexes
V Forum report
Provincial Sub-Committee report
Beyond IYV+10 Report
IYV+10 Sri Lanka in pictures
Media Gallery [Press Releases and Press articles]

http://www.thesundayleader.lk/2011/08/14/v-awards-shining-a-light-on-those-whoserve-in-silence/

http://www.newsfirst.lk/english-news/index.php?view=news_more&id=1819

http://www.undp.lk/SubPressReleases/Pages/detail.aspx?ItemID=31

http://print.dailymirror.lk/life/132-life/53091.html

http://www.sundaytimes.lk/110821/Magazine/sundaytimestvtimes_1.html

http://www.island.lk/modules/modpicturegallery/gallery_pictures/1313831452wo11.jpg

http://www.sundaytimes.lk/111002/Plus/plus_19.html

http://www.dailynews.lk/2011/12/06/news36.asp

http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2011/12/11/imp03.asp

http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2011/12/04/new42.asp

http://sundaytimes.lk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=13637:awardsunveiling-of-the-finalists-&catid=37:events&Itemid=555

http://www.lakbimanews.lk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3783:apotpourri-of-paintings-on-display-at-leo-art-2011&catid=41:mag&Itemid=12

http://www.dailynews.lk/2012/02/23/spo11.asp

http://www.sundaytimes.lk/110925/Plus/plus_15.html

http://www.sundaytimes.lk/111002/Plus/plus_19.html
36
Website and Social Media Links
Website
http://www.iyv10srilanka.com/
Facebook
IYV+10 Page: http://www.facebook.com/IYV10SriLanka
V Awards Page: http://www.facebook.com/VAwards
UNV Page: http://www.facebook.com/UNVSriLanka
Volunteer Touch a Life Group: http://www.facebook.com/groups/iyv10srilanka/
YouTube Channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/iyv10srilanka
Twitter Account
http://twitter.com/#!/iyv10srilanka
Flickr Photo stream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/iyv10srilanka/
National Steering Committee TOR – IYV+10
Provincial Sub-Committee TOR
“Stories to Inspire”
http://www.iyv10srilanka.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/V-Book_Final.pdf
UN Club Charter
Contact Details of National Steering Committee Members
37