ONE Blog
Filter by:
Dear G8,
|
On Tuesday, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Grameen Bank founder Muhammad Yunus and the former President of Ireland Mary Robinson joined together to present the G8 with one simple request: send every child to school. In an open letter to the leaders of the G8 countries, the group asked for the G8 to commit to launching a Global Fund for Education. The proposal comes from a pledge made by President Obama himself, which you may have read about here before. The letter reads:
Putting every child in school seems like a tall order, but history has shown that remarkable progress is possible with a combination of dedicated government investment and international support. Ethiopia, for example, was able to double its enrollment rates between 1999 and 2007, leading to a total of 3.3 million more children in school. Increased government spending on education, incentives for girls to enroll and the construction of schools in rural areas all contributed to this impressive progress. Across Africa, stories like this have resulted in 34 million more children in school since 1999. A Global Fund for Education could help replicate successes like Ethiopia’s by helping to galvanize new momentum toward basic education and reverse the declining investment the sector by international donors. This is more vital than ever given the current global financial climate. In many countries, expenditure on sectors like health and education will be one of the first victims of stretched government budgets, and a skilled, educated workforce will be one of the key ingredients to recovery and fueling long-term economic growth. We’ll be following the G8 closely next week, so we’ll keep you posted on any new education commitments and hopefully, a plan to launch a Global Fund for Education. -Nora Coghlan |
HIV Travel Ban Set to be Lifted
|
The Obama administration is moving forward with a rule change that would end the current regulation preventing HIV-positive individuals from entering the U.S. The proposed change, issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), within HHS, appeared in today’s Federal Register. The posting is a request for public comment, due by August 17, 2009. CDC will then review the comments and make any appropriate modifications, issuing a final rule later in the year. In the CDC/HHS post, the agency notes, “While HIV infection is a serious health condition, it does not represent a communicable disease that is a significant threat for introduction, transmission, and spread to the U.S. population through casual contact.” This issue was in the news most recently with the high profile denial of a visa to British activist Paul Thorn who was seeking to participate in the Pacific Health Summit in Seattle. Thorn was denied entrance to the U.S., despite efforts by Senator Patty Murray and Congressman Jim McDermott on his behalf. The proposed CDC/HHS change would amend the definition of “communicable disease of public health significance” and would remove references to HIV from the scope of medical examinations that aliens must undergo before they obtain admission to the U.S. ONE will be tracking this development closely, and will let you know what happens. -Rena Pacheco-Theard |
Petition Drop in Florida!
|
Yesterday Danielle DePas, Sara Paterni and I visited the offices of Senators Martinez and Nelson to ask for their support on the Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2009 (s. 624).
I am hopeful that Florida’s senators will take a critical step toward providing access to clean water for the poorest people around the world by cosponsoring this important legislation. -Alix Gordon, Miami ONE Member |
Recently I discovered that Miami is one of the top cities for access to clean water. As a resident of Miami-Dade county this is great news. However, I am also quickly reminded how lucky we are. The very things we take for granted, opening a faucet, grabbing a glass of water are not possible for millions of people worldwide.
This important bill will help provide 100 million people with sustainable access to clean water and sanitation. It is shocking to learn that currently more than 1 billion people do not have access to clean water and that 2 out of every 5 people do not have access to basic sanitation services.Bring What You Love
|
Tomorrow, July 3rd, ONE is proud to present “Youssou N’Dour: I Bring What I Love” a new film from one of Africa’s most celebrated musicians (and past A-Lister). The screening will be in West Hollywood, CA at 7:00 pm. In his home country of Senegal, Youssou N’Dour is a powerful cultural icon and an important voice on social issues. Youssou is also a member of the ONE Policy Advisory Board, reflecting his deep commitment to the fight against poverty. His new film I Bring What I Love is a music-infused cinematic journey about the power of one man’s voice to inspire change. The film chronicles N’Dour, a devout Sufi Muslim, as he releases a deeply personal and religious album called Egypt in the hope of promoting a more tolerant face of Islam. Director Chai Vasarhelyi follows N’Dour for over two years–filming in Africa, Europe, and America–to tell the story of how he faces these challenges and eventually wins over audiences both at home and abroad. You can RSVP for the screening here. We hope to see you out! -Kim Smith |
ONE “Concerted” Effort – Gina’s Email
|
A month ago I received an email from a ONE Member named Gina Kim who simply said she wanted to do a small local event that brings attention to those living on less than $1 a day, and she wanted to do it with ONE. Well, I’d never met Gina before in my life, we lived over 450 miles away from each other, and I didn’t know she was also a ONE member. So, of course I said, “Sounds Great. Let’s do it!” – I called her and together we mapped a game plan over the phone. Immediately Gina got a couple of friends together and they built a small coalition of people in her community. After just a couple weeks of spreading the word, Gina’s coalition included volunteers from church groups, student groups, local entertainers, a Starbucks and a shopping center called Amerige Heights Town Center. They scheduled a date and a set an important goal: Talk about extreme poverty, the solutions, the successes, and talk to as many people as possible in ONE business day! - AND WHAT A DAY IT WAS! While 9 different performers drew crowds to the ONE stage, 15 volunteers went to work to start conversations. Computers were set up to show video clips of the work thousands of ONE members are doing around the country. Volunteers wearing ONE shirts handed out wristbands, recruited new members and started global poverty conversations throughout the day. It turns out that Gina’s short email to me, over a month ago, resulted in nearly 1 new ONE Member every 2 minutes that day! — And twice as many conversations! Gina said they were all so proud after their event and in her most recent email, Gina expressed: “..[in] the spirit of reverence toward becoming socially relevant… [a] community found itself chiming into a social agreement to make poverty history!” ONE members like Gina are getting in touch with their local organizers all the time. Together we are finding creative ways to educate Americans on the smart solutions to fight extreme global poverty. Get involved with us! If you’re not sure how to get started contact your local field organizer, OR you can find a local event in progress. Thanks for the email Gina – maybe ONE day we’ll get a chance to meet in person! -Roscoe Mapps, ONE California
|
Not Letting the Vultures ‘Carri-on’: New African Legal Support
|
On Monday, the African Development Bank (AfDB) launched the Africa Legal Support Facility. The initiative is intended to provide funding and advice to African governments navigating complex commercial transactions or facing litigation by vulture funds. As the name implies, these funds ‘prey’ on distressed investments purchased at heavy discount (the ‘carrion’ of the financial world, for those who like my pun), including the cheap debt of struggling companies and countries. The funds then seek repayment of face value plus high interest rates. The need for this facility was first expressed by African finance ministers in 2003, in response to increasing problems from vulture funds. In a prominent case just two years ago, the fund Donegal International was awarded $15.5 million by the High Court in London for Zambian government debt it purchased for less than $4 million. The international community has observed that savings from debt relief programs - intended to support health, education and other development efforts - are being eroded as resources are diverted to settle vulture fund claims. This issue is even more important in light of the current global financial crisis, as many countries will be forced to take on new loans to cope with its impacts, and will fall further into debt. Beyond legal and technical assistance, the new facility is also intended to prevent African countries from being disadvantaged when negotiating resource-centered deals with powerful countries and companies. -Rena Pacheco-Theard |
What We’re Reading 7/2/09
|
New York Times Op-Ed: Ban Ki-Moon: Come Together, Right Away Financial Times: IMF Plans Debt Issuance for Bail-Outs Reuters: Recession Must Not Derail AIDS Fight: UN Official Huffington Post: the Italian Job: What the 2009 G8 Summit Must Deliver on Health and Aid for Africa Reuters: U.S. Seen Backing Climate Target at G8 FT: WTO Sees Global Increase in Protectionism -Grace Lamb-Atkinson |
Flooding the Senate
|
25 days. More than 100,000 signatures. A team of 13 partner organizations. A hundred million lives in the balance. All this, culminating in ONE day on Capitol Hill. I was a proud part of a team of nearly 40 ONE volunteers, staff, interns and partners who flooded the Senate yesterday with our petition for the Durbin-Corker Water for the World Act, S.624 — a bill to bring first-time, sustainable water and sanitation access to 100 million people by 2015. The energy at ONE’s DC headquarters, our initial meeting place, was awesome. That’s what happens when you bring together passionate, motivated individuals for a great cause and a real chance to make a difference. This group was buzzing with news about the petition (we hit the 100k mark on Monday after only 25 days of campaigning) and, of course, S.624. “ONE’s campaign to ensure passage of the Water for the World Act of 2009 is critical,” explained John Sauer, Communications Director for Water Advocates. “Safe drinking water and sanitation are the bedrock of global health, affecting all aspects of development, education, and basic human security. It is time to end the appalling casualty toll of unnecessary death and sickness due to water-and sanitation-related diseases. Proven solutions exist and can be provided. ONE’s efforts today are bringing us closer to adequately addressing this global crisis.” Our joint campaign is already getting results. We learned from Shannon Penberthy, Associate Director of Global Government Relations for ONE partner organization Procter & Gamble, that Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) recently agreed to join Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Jack Reed (D-RI) and Johnny Isakson (R-GA) as new cosponsors for S.624. That brings the total count to 10 cosponsors, thanks in large part to the hard work of P&G, Water Advocates, ONE and all our partners. ONE’s Government Affairs team estimates the bill needs at least 20 cosponsors to move forward in the Senate, so we’re already halfway there! After that exhilarating news, we deployed in small groups to Capitol Hill, where we delivered our petition (with a thank-you note to those senators who already signed on as cosponsors) to all 100 Senate offices. “The impact of ONE members visiting offices and personally delivering this important message on behalf of the world’s poorest people is immeasurable,” explained Arjun Mody, ONE’s Assistant Director of U.S. Government Relations. “You can’t duplicate the passion and power of ONE members armed simply with a wrist band and a voice. We made an impact today with each and every U.S. Senate office.” Thanks to our efforts and those of our partners, we believe the Water for the World Act is now poised to reach our goal of 20 cosponsors, and eventually become law. But while that may take more time to achieve, I for one already consider this campaign a huge success — in raising awareness about the 884 million people without access to clean water and 2.5 billion without access to adequate sanitation worldwide, bringing U.S. citizens together on this critical issue, and getting senators and their staff to at least look twice at a simple bill that only exists to do good in the world. Our volunteers echoed my sentiments. “I am thrilled for ONE, those who participated in the campaign, and all those who will benefit from the eventual passing of this bill. It’s a strong and vital piece of legislation, and I’m proud to have done my part,” said Ola Kareem, a volunteer from Washington, DC. A heart-felt thanks to all our volunteers, our hard-working partner organizations, and everyone who took a few moments out of their busy lives to sign our petition. Together, we are changing the world. -Emily Stivers |
U2 360 and ONE: Astronaut becomes ONE member in opening show!
|
Thanks to U2’s support of ONE, we’ve been given a chance to work with their current 360 tour. We’ve been working on this for months now, and finally, yesterday, we saw the first show. I arrived last Friday to put together ONE’s booths at the concert and coordinate our volunteers. I’ve never seen a rock concert in the making, much less a stadium show for a crowd of 90,000. Within 10 minutes of arrival I was standing at the front of the stage looking out into an enormous sea of empty seats. The scale of the whole thing was overwhelming — and that was without lights, sound, or a crowd.
Monday afternoon we ducked outside of the front gates where loyal fans had been queuing for days to ensure they got the best spot next to the stage when the gates opened. The fans came from all over the world, from Spain to Ireland to Chile. Lots of smooching going on. I think some new aquaintances may have occurred. One fan appeared at the photo booth dejected that she didn’t have anyone to kiss. A group of willing volunteers wasn’t far behind offering to help remedy that problem. Tuesday was a long time coming, and my adrenaline kicked in as I watched the gates open and the fans rush in. For the next few hours we signed up as many fans as we could physically talk to, and took over 300 pictures of people giving their kiss to the future. As U2 started up, we packed up our booths as everyone was inside the stadium, and it was high time that we joined them. The concert itself was stunning. I’d heard the rehearsals, but the show itself was an order of magnitude more powerful, punctuated by a stadium literally shaking as fans jumped up and down to the music. There were some amazing moments of the show that talked about ONE. First, they linked up to the International Space Station and Bono asked Frank de Winne, the UNICEF ambassador and astronaut, to join ONE, which he enthusiastically agreed to — a spaceman has signed up for ONE!! Later on a giant Archbishop Desmond Tutu appeared on the screen, talking about the people who’ve made great social changes throughout history and how we all are those same people, especially when we act together as ONE. And finally, Bono introduced the song “One” with the Kiss the Future photo montage, urging the audience to sign up as they watched the ONE pictures floating across the screen. I left the show with a silly grin on my face as I packed up all our stuff and headed home for some much needed sleep. With all the excitement I hadn’t realised how much being on my feet all day in the 34 degree celsius heat had taken out of me. It was the best type of tired there is. Ill be blogging from every show… Next time I’ll be shorter I promise, just wanted to catch you up. -Weldon Kennedy |
Between Friday and the first show yesterday, I worked on getting together the ONE booth and lining up volunteers for the shows. We have two booths at the venues where volunteers explain ONE and invite people to join up. New members get one of our special edition ONE wristbands, and can have their photos taken as part of “The Future Needs a Big Kiss” - a concept that fits perfectly with ONE’s optimistic view of shaping and embracing the future. The band are using these pictures in a segment of the show, so there is a chance that the best kissers and huggers will end up seeing themselves on the ginormous IMAG screen during the show.ONE at Cornerstone
|
We’re at the Cornerstone Festival in Bushnell, IL, this week signing up new ONE members. The festival grounds are, literally, in the middle of cornfields. Driving in, there were corn fields in all directions. I walk out of my hotel room in the morning, and there are corn fields. If you’ve never seen them, corn fields are beautiful first thing in the morning, rolling like waves. Corn fields are definitely growing on me. We got a little creative to get some attention for ONE as the Cornerstone Festival officially opened tonight. Right after they signed up, some new ONE members helped build a small wall of ONE bands. The wall attracted a lot of attention, and we signed up a bunch of people when they stopped to check it out. Things really get rolling tomorrow, with a full slate of bands on all of the stages. We’ll keep you posted how we’re doing growing the movement in corn fields out in Illinois. -Kimberly Cadena |
Featured Series
About the Blog
The ONE Blog is a daily log of the anti-poverty movement. The site is operated by ONE staff, with frequent contributions from volunteers, members and partner organizations.
The ONE Blog updates readers daily with the latest in global development news and analysis and what ONE members and our partners are doing around the world to influence world leaders in the fight against global poverty.
The content of each post and each comment represents the views of that author and does not necessarily reflect the views of ONE or ONE Action. ONE does not support or oppose any candidate for elected office, and any post expressing support or opposition for a candidate is not endorsed by ONE.
SHARE:
TAGS: 2009 G8 Summit, G8, Italy, Policy News