To celebrate  International Day of Volunteering on 5th December 2010, Joining Hands organized an online Essay and Slogan writing contest open to Indian youth residing in India and between 16- 25 years of age, supported by United Nations Volunteers India, WAYE, Times Foundation, IEEE, WILPF, VSO and WWF. The topics were-“Role of youth in achieving the Millennium Development Goals for Essay Contest and “Develop IVD theme for year 2011” for Slogan Contest. Essay and a slogan writing competition can be an ideal opportunity to engage youth towards achieving MDGs.

Joining Hands was able to reach and circulate information about the contest to a large audience despite small budget, thanks to internet and online social media tools, our partner organizations, volunteers and supporters. The ease of submission (online submission) allowed youth from all over India to participate as it made it simple to send the entries. It was heartening to note that youth from J&K, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Assam and Maharashtra participated in the contest.

By taking part in the contest, Indian youth learnt about MDGs and the existing problems in the society, explored ways and means to eradicate them, and got a chance to express their ideas with logical solutions. The entire process made them more informed as it generated additional awareness resulting in attitudinal changes and inspiring more people to get involved for community development to further MDG related actions. This has also helped highlight the need of volunteering for community projects.