For The Future, By The Future: UNICEF Clubs Help the World's Children

Forbes

23-04-2025

Young UNICEF Club members from across the country think globally and act locally, organizing community events to support the rights and needs of children around the world.
UNICEF National Youth Council member Aryan, right, at the UNICEF USA Youth Leader Retreat in October 2024. As part of the Youth Council, Aryan and 13 other young leaders, ages 14–24, work within UNICEF USA and nationwide to voice the concerns and viewpoints of children and young people. Many National Youth Council members started their volunteer journey by joining or starting a UNICEF Club at their school.
© UNICEF USA
Volunteering is often the first time a young person feels their impact on their community. They go from being observers to active participants and begin claiming their agency when they realize they don't need to go very far to create change. The power to do so lies within themselves.
Often, for the first time, they see someone else's lived experience outside their own. Through this, they then discover what can sometimes feel like the rarest of finds when it comes to human feelings: compassion. Fueled by this compassion, they set out on a journey toward a sense of purpose. One which, in many cases, lasts a lifetime. As George Bernard Shaw wrote, purpose is "the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one." For UNICEF youth volunteers, that mighty purpose is clear: to relentlessly pursue a more equitable world for every child.
UNICEF USA is proud to count 752 student-led UNICEF Clubs in 40 states, all of which are leading this effort at the grassroots level. This National Volunteer Week, we are sharing some of their stories. Just as UNICEF will not rest until every child is healthy, educated, protected and respected, neither will they.
Elliott, back row, eighth from left, with fellow participants at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service event in the Atlanta metro area. As part of the event, Elliott united members from four different UNICEF Clubs for a day focused on child nutrition. He began volunteering with UNICEF because he wanted to make a meaningful impact, especially for displaced and refugee children. Since then, his passion for making a difference has only grown.
© UNICEF USA
For Southeast Youth Representative Elliott, 18, raising awareness around UNICEF USA's "Healthy" goal means supporting child nutrition globally while inspiring local change through education and advocacy.
"I go to school in an area that is food insecure," Elliot shared. "Even if families can afford food, healthy options often aren't available. Many people either don't have enough to eat or only have access to unhealthy food because their area has no other options. Both of which lead to serious physical and mental health challenges. I want to help every child have a bright future."
That's why, for this year's Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, Elliott and his fellow UNICEF Club memberes organized an event to spotlight food insecurity both abroad and in the U.S. He brought together members from four UNICEF Clubs across the Atlanta metro area to learn and take action together. Attendees rotated through hands-on stations, including making sandwiches for a local food bank and writing letters to their Senators and Representatives advocating for healthier free or reduced-price school lunches. As Elliott put it, "Every child should have access to healthy food. It's the basis of a healthy life."
In Arizona, Pariza, center, and fellow UNICEF Club members pack donated books for shipment to school libraries in Kenya. All books were collected through the generosity of their local community.
© UNICEF USA
As President of her UNICEF Club at a high school in Arizona, Pariza, 18, was looking for a project that, in her words, "perfectly embodied UNICEF." That's when she came across the African Library Project. "We all had books that we had outgrown and were now sitting on our bookshelves, catching dust," she said. "What better idea than giving these books a second life?" Their Club committed to providing a fully stocked school library for children in Kenya. They ended up donating over 2,000 books to African students.
On what motivated her to start this project, Pariza explained, "The children in Kenya who received these books all have a dream they wish to accomplish. I hope these books help them start making those dreams come true. Like every child, they deserve the opportunity to have a proper education."
At first, the project seemed too daunting, but something remarkable happened: others in the community showed up. "We had reached out to nearby schools for help. When I arrived at one of the schools to pick up books, my jaw dropped," Pariza said. "Rubbing my eyes again and looking at the stack of books, I saw that the school had collected roughly 1,700 books in the first week!"
Thanks to the overwhelming response, the Club was able to create two libraries instead of one to ensure every book found a home."I love that our biggest worry went from how we would get 1,000 books to what do we do with all these books?" Pariza said. A good problem to have and a reminder of "how strong we can become when working together to support a cause."
From left: Ava with fellow UNICEF Club members Gabrielle and Sarafina at their high school clubs fashion show.
© UNICEF USA
At first glance, a fashion show might not seem like the most obvious way to raise awareness for child and social protection issues, but one run by a UNICEF Club in Georgia this school year proved otherwise. One of the areas of child protection is mental health, an issue many young people are passionate about since one in seven worldwide struggle with it. Two key elements that support mental well-being? Community and creative self-expression. The student-led fashion show combined the two.
'Arts are often overlooked at our school,' said Ava, 17, the Club's Vice President. 'We wanted to host an event that gave space to students passionate about fashion, music and creativity. A fashion show felt like the perfect way to celebrate self-expression and bring people together.'
The Club raised money to support UNICEF flexible funding by selling tickets and concessions, while students across the school came together to support the show and its message. The event became more than just a runway; it became a way to celebrate culture, community and confidence, things often overlooked in day-to-day school life, where comparison and fear of judgment can hinder true creative expression.
"We saw students from all grades, backgrounds and cultures come together,' Ava shared. 'Some modeled traditional attire, some helped run the event and others cheered from the audience. It reminded us that community isn't about being the same; it's about using our differences to create something meaningful.'
From right: Aryan with Kitty van der Heijden, UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNICEF Deputy Executive Director, Partnerships, and Dr. Zeinab Hijazi, UNICEF Global Mental Health Lead, at the Innovative Financing for Mental Health event at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September 2024. At this event, UNICEF and the Global Coalition for Youth Mental Health launched an open letter, signed by more than 40 businesses and organizations, urging for increased investment and action on child and youth mental health worldwide.
© UNICEF
Aryan, a sophomore in college, first got involved with UNICEF by joining his high school's UNICEF Club in Riverside County, Calif., a place that allowed him, in his words, 'to both teach kids and advocate for the issues that affect them.'During the pandemic, he took his advocacy online, participating in virtual Congressional meetings to speak up for children's rights. At first, speaking in spaces traditionally dominated by adults presented a learning curve for him, but he has since mastered feeling comfortable amplifying his voice and those of his peers, reaching even the highest levels.
Now in his third and final year as a UNICEF USA National Youth Council member, Aryan reflected on the significance of being respected as a young person and feels that he genuinely has a seat at the table. A pivotal moment for him occurred last September when he attended the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
'I was surrounded by government and corporate leaders from around the world, but surprisingly, we were all united for the same cause,' Aryan shared. 'I joined a roundtable with several global leaders and spoke about the need to prioritize mental health investments and explore new public-private partnerships. Afterward, some of those leaders approached me and asked me my viewpoints on mental health from a university student perspective. I felt genuinely validated and energized that my voice was being heard. It meant a lot that adult leaders would seek out my input as a young person, and recognize how we all have perspectives to share that can bridge our generations."
Through his volunteer journey, Aryan said one of the most important skills he's developed is learning to be not just a "storyteller" but a 'story-re-teller.' To him, that means "listening deeply and really hearing people,' because only by listening can we 'understand people and our world better.'
Ready to start your volunteer journey with UNICEF USA? Take your first step by completing an Advocacy Action at act.unicefusa.org and join or start a UNICEF Club at your school this fall!