The Refugee All Stars of Sierra Leone stop by ONE’s HQ

Yesterday morning the ONE staff got a more than special treat when the Refugee All Stars of Sierra Leone stopped by our office and performed. The Refugee All Stars of Sierra Leone is a group of musicians from Sierra Leone who, during the Civil War, came together after being forced into a camp in The Republic of Guinea. The band’s members united through their love of music and need for an emotional and artistic outlet. The group is currently touring the country, showing their documentary and spreading not only their story but the reality of thousands of refugees around the world.

After viewing the documentary and then meeting in person with the group, I was struck not only by what they’ve been through and endured, but by their ability to remain so positive. I can’t possibly wrap my mind around their losses and struggles, and yet when I look at them I see only hope, positivity and resilience. This morning they said they are part of ONE and the movement to Make Poverty History. Just as they are using their voice, they recognize that Americans are also using their voices and doing their part to help make a difference…and they thanked us for our work.

The Refugee All Stars of Sierra Leone have toured Africa, visiting other refugee camps to spread the message of hope and change. Currently they are touring the U.S. to play and screen their documentary. Visit the Refugee All Stars of Sierra Leone’s website and check out their list of tour stops. If they are in your area, do not miss this incredible opportunity.

NY World Vision AIDS Experience Event

World Vision, a ONE partner, will host the World Vision AIDS Experience in Grand Central Terminal, June 20-24. This interactive exhibit features a stirring audio tour combined with captivating photography that will transport you to the heart of Africa. The exhibit is free and open to the public in Grand Central Terminal’s Vanderbilt Hall.
WHERE:
Vanderbilt Hall
Grand Central Terminal
101 East 42nd Street and Park Avenue
New York City
WHEN:
Tuesday, June 20 1 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Wednesday, June 21 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Thursday, June 22 2 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Friday, June 23 9 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Saturday, June 24 12pm - 10 p.m.

World Refugee Day…keeping the flame of hope alive

Home has a different meaning for each and every one of us. For me home is New Orleans, and in August I understood for
the first time what it’s like to feel displaced. The sense of loss
and hopelessness was overwhelming, and yet I recognize how fortunate I was to
have the luxury of temporarily relocating and, eventually, returning.

For 20.8 million refugees around the world, returning is an
impossibility. The small glimpse I had into their daily reality changed my
conception of home, and today, on World Refugee Day, we should all take time to
recognize and honor the millions of displaced persons. Consider what it would mean to lose your home.
It’s not just a house, but a community, culture and sense of self. It’s having
the world turned upside down and working to rebuild from scratch. Yet through rebuilding,
there is hope.

The theme for this
year’s World Refugee Day, keeping the flame of hope alive, serves as “a salute to the indomitable
spirit and courage of the world’s refugees”. Their strength and resilience is
enhanced by the work of ONE’s partners, whose information you can check out on
our Partners Homepage. The work they do on the ground delivers not only
lifesaving aid in emergencies but also the tools they need to rebuild.

For more information on World Refugee Day, check out CNN and UNHCR.

Yahoo! and ONE launch the new ONE.ORG

Yesterday Yahoo! and ONE launched the newly revamped ONE.ORG
website. Let me be the first to recommend taking a bit of time and exploring
our cutting edge, Yahoo! powered look. With a bevy of new tools, including
Yahoo! Groups, Yahoo! Answers and Flickr, you’ll be able to connect easily with
others across the U.S. and around the globe to get even more involved in the
fight against global AIDS and extreme poverty. The best thing about the new
site is it’s fun to use!

Some of my favorite offerings are the Photos and ONE Ticker.
The ONE Ticker at the top of the homepage counts in real time the
number of people who are joining as ONE to take action. It now stands at
2,337,603. That’s pretty impressive! With the Photos, everyone can
literally put a face to the movement by using Flickr to upload a picture
of themselves to the site. Add your face now so I can stop seeing my picture (and
the photos of the other ONE staffers) cycle through.

You certainly don’t need me to run through everything the
site has to offer. Besides, it’s always more fun to explore on your own, so
stop reading my blog and start using ONE’s great new site. Enjoy!

PS Go to the Yahoo! homepage where ONE is being
featured today. It is the single most highly trafficked website on the Internet,
and a wonderful contribution from Yahoo! to ONE.

America expands fight against malaria

Today, every 30 seconds, a child in Africa will die from malaria.
This year, 1.2 million people will lose their lives to malaria.
This week, America is stepping up to do even more to help fight back.

On Thursday, America expanded its life-saving efforts to help fight malaria through the President’s Malaria Initiative, a $1.2 billion, five-year initiative to help fight malaria in Africa. Announced in 2005, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda and Senegal will now join Tanzania, Uganda and Angola as part of this initiative, and in 2007, the U.S. will add another eight countries.

America took another big step Thursday with the appointment of the first-ever U.S. Malaria Coordinator, Admiral R. Timothy Ziemer. This new position brings increased U.S. focus on the fight against malaria in Africa and the world’s poorest countries, making it Admiral Ziemer’s full-time job to help guide those life-saving efforts.

Bottom line, Thursday’s announcements mean that more people in poor countries will have access to the tools they need to help fight and beat malaria. With AIDS and TB, malaria is one of the biggest killers in the world’s poorest countries, especially for young children and pregnant mothers. A mosquito bite can mean life or death. The medicines needed to treat it can be found at any American neighborhood pharmacy but aren’t available to most Africans.

What’s even more striking than the number of lives lost from malaria is that it’s completely preventable and treatable. The good news is that effective solutions like bednets and medicines only cost dollars. When ONE recently visited Tanzania, we saw how just one bednet, as a cost of just $7, protected a mother and her children from malaria for up to five years. These kinds life-saving interventions are a bargain, and an example where we see so clearly how America’s investments are money well spent.

When ONE spoke with Mr. Ziemer, he expressed his commitment to the fight against global disease and poverty, saying about ONE that “the movement has caught on” and how to engage Americans in the fight against extreme poverty is “the question of the day”. While the President puts forward effective solutions such as his Emergency AIDS Plan and Malaria Initiative and Congress must then do its work to fund them, “ONE has a key role in clarifying the news, about what’s happening outside of Sioux City, Iowa and getting the word out.”

Ziemer said he was looking forward to getting to work, ready to focus on “accomplishing an ambitious program, one that’s all about saving lives in the countries that are hardest hit.” “Right now, we should be encouraged,” said Mr. Ziemer. “There are significant needs in these countries, but also opportunities for stabilizing and giving people hope.”

The President’ Malaria Initiative works in many countries with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, joining together in Angola this month to distribute bednets. Ziemer pointed to the successes of these joint efforts with the Global Fund: “It’s clear to me there’s a consensus on the goal. What I see and what we must do is continue to cooperate.” Ziemer’s staff seconded this, saying that “The Global Fund grants in a any given country are absolutely essential…it’s a good deal for the U.S., every dollar in is three out”, explaining how every dollar of America’s funding for the Global Fund must be matched by other countries 2-to-1.

At last year’s 2005 G8 summit, America and the world’s richest countries made an historic and ambitious promise to protect 85% of vulnerable Africans against malaria. Ziemer expressed support for the target, saying that G8 leaders are right to use their influence to further the fight against global disease and that “ambitious goals are good, let’s set our targets really high or else we’re going nowhere.”

You can read more about how the President’s Malaria Initiative and Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria are helping save and change lives in Africa and the world’s poorest countries.

In support of three life-saving amendments

In an impressive display of leadership, today Representatives in the House are working across party lines to offer three last-minute amendments that would add $380 million in poverty fighting assistance for safe drinking water, food rations for the refugees in Darfur, and AIDS assistance to those who need it most.

The three amendments are:

* The Obey-Hyde-Lantos amendment for $100 million to help Darfur and fight AIDS
* The Blumenauer-Leach amendment for $250 million for safe drinking water
* The McGovern-Payne-Leach amendment for $30 million for Emergency Refugee Migration Assistance.

To support these amendments we’ve set up our trusty, toll-free number: 1-800-786-2-ONE (1-800-786-2663)

Ask your Representative to support these three amendments and to oppose any attempts to cut such assistance.

I’m continually impressed by those on the Hill who reach across the political aisle to do the right thing: work together to make a difference in the lives of the world’s poorest people. I’ve done it before, and today I’ll do it again - I’m calling my representative and asking him to support these life saving amendments. Not only is it the right thing to do, but it’s a good investment! Improving people’s lives builds a positive image of the United States and a more secure future for us all.

Read on if you want more information on the three amendments…

The Obey-Hyde-Lantos amendment offers an opportunity to increase humanitarian aid going to Darfur and give more to the fight against AIDS. The United Nations reported that a critical shortage of funds has forced them to reduce food rations for refugees and displaced persons in a country where, already, tens of thousands are suffering from malnutrition and disease. The $100 million amendment could make a real difference in the lives of millions!

The Blumenauer-Leach amendment offers funds for safe drinking water and other critical programs to fight poverty around the world. Every 15 seconds a child dies of water-related diseases because they don’t have access to safe drinking water. But we can help change this by reaching out to our Representatives and asking then to support $350 million in life-saving aid.

The McGovern-Payne-Leach amendment adds $30 million to Emergency Migration and Refugee Assistance (ERMA). ERMA is a fund the president uses to meet unexpected refugee and migration emergencies.

Learn how others are making their city a ‘City of ONE’

On Monday, Lexington Mayor
Teresa Isaac and local ONE volunteers gathered in Lexington,
KY to encourage America to lead the world in the
fight against global AIDS and extreme poverty.
This was a very exciting moment for volunteers in Lexington who have been helping since the
very early days of ONE. Well before LIVE
8, volunteers in Lexington have been hosting volunteer meet ups, setting up ONE
info tables on campus or at church, and writing letters to their leaders asking
for leadership in the fight against extreme poverty. The Mayor speaking out on behalf of The ONE
Campaign really shows how far the volunteers have gotten in their city!

Click here to begin making
YOUR city a “City of ONE”

Aside from Mayor Isaac there
were also three other speakers who were willing to use their voice for the
world’s poorest people. Richard Mitchell
is the director of the Central Kentucky Council for Peace and Justice, Chantel
McCormick is a ONE campaign volunteer who helped make Lexington one of the
first to be proclaimed a “City of ONE,” and Lynn Phillips who is a professor at
the University of Kentucky that includes a presentation on global poverty and
ONE every semester. All the speakers
were great!

25 years after the discovery of AIDS…

25 years ago today, the Centers for Disease Control reported the first known
cases of HIV. A quarter century later in Africa
- the continent hit hardest by the HIV/AIDS epidemic - an estimated 3.2 million
people in the region became newly infected in 2005 while 2.4 million adults and
children lost their lives.

As scientists continue researching and making developments in the fight
against AIDS, there are things we can do NOW to prevent and treat the disease. The
first step is educating those who are most vulnerable. For those living with
AIDS, access to life saving medicines, like anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs), is
vital. These drugs, which can be had for less than $1 a day, will improve the quality of life for those
infected with the virus and enable them to work and care for their families.

After 25 years, great strides have been made but there is
much more to be done. The U.S.
has helped save hundreds of thousands of lives around the world, and now more
than ever - as Congressional Appropriations committees meet and make important
decisions - we need to make sure we continue funding important efforts like the
Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria and the President’s Emergency Plan
for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). For a full review of the global AIDS epidemic, read
the most recent report from UNAIDS.

I am proud to be part of ONE, helping to advance the fight
against global AIDS and extreme poverty. The work we’re doing now is making a
difference; we are helping to make AIDS history. Just imagine what we can do in
the next 25 years…

Volunteer Spotlight: Hana from Washington

My name is Hana Boxberger and I am a supporter and volunteer for the ONE Campaign. I am 16 years old and a sophomore at Sehome High School in Bellingham, Washington. I first became involved in ONE in April, 2005, when I was 15 years old. My Mom and I used to drive around in our car listening and singing to U2 as loud as we could. The love and appreciation of their music and lyrics drove us to see them on tour in Seattle. I had heard a little about ONE prior to this, but it was not until the U2 concert and hearing Bono speak about ONE that I really understood what the Campaign was about and how serious the situation was in Africa.

After the U2 show, I started thinking and gained a new perspective. I realized how fortunate I am to have been born in a wealthy country. I could just as easily have been born to parents who lived in a poor village in Africa or any other developing country. Part of the lyrics of a song Bono wrote, “Crumbs from your Table,” really struck me. “Where you live should not decide, whether you live or whether you die.” It made such sense. We then saw U2 in Dublin, Ireland at the end of June. I became even more inspired. We were fortunate enough to participate in the Irish Rally to Make Poverty History on June 30, 2005 right before the G8 summit. I wish we would have known about the G8 summit prior to this, so we could have planned our trip around that as well. But the Make Poverty History rally was very exciting.

Since then, I have volunteered for ONE at the Zimbabwe Music Festival in Bellingham and for the Power of ONE conference in Seattle. We have seen U2 in Boston, Las Vegas and Portland. After the Las Vegas U2 show, I had the idea for bringing ONE to my school. I had always been talking to my friends about ONE and it dawned on me that it seemed very important that my generation be educated and made aware of these emergencies in Africa and of ONE. With ONE’s focus being to change policies regarding the world’s poorest people, it seems to me the best people to educate about this would be teenagers, since it will be the teenagers who one day soon will be voting, running for public office, making policy changes and basically running the country.