Charity plays an important role in upholding the values and advancing the work of the United Nations. Donations of time or money; volunteer engagement in one’s own community or on the other side of the world; acts of caring and kindness with no thought of recompense; these and other expressions of global solidarity help us in our shared quest to live together in harmony and build a peaceful future for all.
慈善事业对于弘扬联合国价值观念，推进联合国的工作，具有重要作用。奉献时间或捐献款项；在自己的社区或在遥远的世界其他地方投身于志愿者的行列；力行关爱而不求回报；如此种种全球团结的善举，帮助我们实现共同的追求，让大家和睦相处，其乐融融，为所有人建设一个和平的未来。

I welcome this first observance of the International Day of Charity, which was proclaimed last year by the United Nations General Assembly and which coincides with the anniversary of the death of Mother Teresa, whose life and good works for some of the human family’s poorest and most vulnerable members inspired emulation across the world.
去年联合国大会宣布了国际慈善日，今年首次开展纪念活动，对此我表示欢迎。国际慈善日恰逢特里萨修女逝世周年纪念日，她一生为人类大家庭中最贫穷、最脆弱的人们奔走呼号，作出杰出贡献，成为全世界竞相学习的楷模。

Strangely, charity sometimes gets dismissed, as if it is ineffective, inappropriate or even somehow demeaning to the recipient. “This isn’t charity”, some donors take pains to claim, “this is an investment”. Let us recognize charity for what it is at heart: a noble enterprise aimed at bettering the human condition.
然而令人费解的是，慈善事业有时却被人不屑，似乎这种事业没有效益，不合时宜，甚至对于接受者来说有失尊严。有些捐助者会刻意宣称：“这不是施舍，而是一种投资。”让我们对慈善事业的实质予以承认：慈善是高尚的事业，其目标是让人类生活更加美好。

At a time when we aim to accelerate our efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and define a bold agenda for the period beyond 2015, the role of charity can and should grow.
目前，我们正在力求加快速度，实现千年发展目标，并为2015年后规划雄心勃勃的议程，此时此刻，慈善事业的作用可以也应当发扬光大。

UN bodies such as the UN Volunteers Programme and UNICEF offer venues for people across the world to get involved. In establishing the Day, the General Assembly asked that charity be encouraged through education and awareness-raising activities; initiatives such as the United Nations Academic Impact’s ASPIRE -- Action by Students to Promote Innovation and Reform through Education -- have encouraged young women and men to take on the responsibility of ensuring that their less fortunate peers have the financial opportunity to go to school. The UN’s humanitarian agencies rely on charitable donations from the public as well as the generosity of governments to continue their lifesaving work in response to natural disasters, armed conflicts and other emergencies.
联合国的各个机构，如联合国志愿人员方案和联合国儿童基金会，为全世界人民参与提供了种种机会。大会在设定国际慈善日时要求通过举办教育和公共宣传活动鼓励慈善行为；开展了各种举措，如联合国学术影响倡议所开展的“学生采取行动通过教育推动创新和改革”活动，鼓励男女青年承担起责任，确保同龄人中较为不幸的人有钱上学。联合国人道主义机构继续开展拯救生命的工作，应对自然灾害、武装冲突及其他各种紧急状况，这项工作有赖于公众的慈善捐助，有赖于各国政府的慷慨资助。

On this new International Day, I call on people everywhere, of all ages, to act on the charitable impulse that resides in every human being.
值此新的国际慈善日之际，我呼吁全世界人民，不分长幼，行动起来。慈善之心人皆有之，愿此善心化为善举。