Global Youth Service Day (GYSD) is a public education campaign that highlights the amazing contributions youth make to their communities through year-round volunteering. GYSD engages young people to help with community problems such as school reconstruction, environmental degradation, ethnic and religious conflict, HIV/AIDS, violence, and other critical concerns.

Organized annually by Youth Service America with support from the Global Youth Action Network, a consortium of international organizations, and more than 100 National Coordinating Committees, Global Youth Service Day has grown from 27 participating countries since its inception in 2000 to more than 100 countries in 2008. The event is carried out through the work of National Lead Agencies around the world that encourage participation in their local areas.

In the eight years since its creation, more than 40 organizations, including People to People International, the Inter-American Development Bank, U.S. Department of State’s Youth Programs Division, Peace Child International, Special Olympics, United Nations agencies, International Association for Volunteer Effort, and others, have partnered together to promote Global Youth Service Day.

Together with People to People International Student Chapter memebers, millions of young people in countries from Afghanistan to Sudan, from Iran to Tonga, from Mexico to Mongolia, and from more than 100 other countries, come togther to implement community service projects during Global Youth Service Day.

“Young people are changing the world through their energy, idealism, and ingenuity,” said Steven A. Culbertson, President and CEO of Youth Service America. “They possess the desire to help solve some of the world’s most complex problems like global climate change, poverty, education health, and HIV/AIDS.”