Blog Contributor:
Kara Arsenault
Kara Arsenault is the New Media Content Manager at ONE. She grew up in a tiny town in New York’s Adirondack Mountains. She received a BA, with a focus on creative writing, from Middlebury College in Vermont. She previously worked at The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, NPR, and numerous arts organizations. She currently lives in Washington, DC with her husband and dog.
Nov 1st, 2010 2:53 PM UTC
By Kara Arsenault
|
ONE Campus is back and better than ever! An effort that has traditionally rallied students around the ONE Campus Challenge, this year’s ONE Campus program will focus on integrating our campus outreach into ONE’s national advocacy and campaign goals. This means more collaboration across universities and more opportunities for students to acquire the hands-on advocacy experience that they crave!
The program kicked off in September with a live video-conference and call to action with Barbara Bush, and we’ve taken off ever since. With a month under our belts, we have more than 100 student leaders across the country bringing the fight against poverty onto their campuses. This month, students are rallying around a number of advocacy actions, including ONE Vote 2010 platform drop-offs, “The Lazarus Effect” screenings and an educational flier campaign around Halloween.
Don’t worry, the contest we all know and love will be back better than ever and is scheduled to launch in early 2011. Until then, get in the game! There’s still plenty of time to host a Lazarus Effect Screening at your campus.
Are you interested in leading the fight against poverty on your campus? We want you! Go to http://www.one.org/campus/ and become a campus leader or join an existing chapter. At this very moment, there are students on your college campus hungry to make a big difference for the world’s poorest people. We need your help to channel that energy and ensure legislative and policy victories for improved government, greater economic development and smarter aid in the developing world.
Questions? Contact ONE Campus Coordinator Mike Fazzino or College and Young Adult Field Manager Erin Finucane .
Join the fight to make poverty history today!
|
Sep 23rd, 2010 6:35 PM UTC
By Kara Arsenault
|
I can’t believe I’m writing this, but Malaka and I just witnessed our last event on our last day in New York. And it was a great way to end.
Sitting here in the press room at CGI, we first heard (very briefly) from President Obama, who introduced the First Lady. She talked very passionately about the amazing work our veterans do.
And then to close the show, President Clinton sat down with Bill Gates. And they had a lot of interesting things to say, such as:
(more…)
|
Sep 23rd, 2010 3:24 PM UTC
By Kara Arsenault
|
Over the past few days, Malaka and I have listened to world leaders, big thinkers, smart bloggers and some famous musicians talk a lot about the need to end extreme poverty. But we realized that while we’ve been here in bustling NYC, it’s sometimes been hard to visualize exactly what that means.
So when it came time to go find lunch today, we decided to hit the streets (or the few blocks near the 92Y since we were crunched for time) and see what we could buy for $1.25 – the amount that more than one billion people in extreme poverty live on for an entire day.
Here’s what we found:
We could buy one mango.
(more…)
|
Sep 23rd, 2010 2:46 PM UTC
By Kara Arsenault
|
So I gave you something great to watch this morning while you had your breakfast. And now I’ve got something great for you to read while you have your late afternoon snack. Tony Blair and Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf co-authored a smart piece on governance, Africa and the MDGs for the Huffington Post – and it’s definitely worth a look.
Check it out here.
|
Sep 23rd, 2010 11:32 AM UTC
By Kara Arsenault
|
Just about an hour ago, I tuned in to hear President Obama address the UN General Assembly (his second big speech in two days). And while his words today didn’t just focus on the MDGs, he still hit on some really important themes. I thought I’d share a few excerpts that I particularly loved, and to read the rest of his remarks, click here.
“Yesterday, I put forward a new development policy that will pursue these goals, recognizing that dignity is a human right and global development is in our common interest. America will partner with nations that offer their people a path out of poverty. And together, we must unleash growth that powers individuals and emerging markets in all parts of the globe.
There is no reason why Africa should not be an exporter of agriculture, which is why our food security initiative is empowering farmers. And there is no reason why entrepreneurs shouldn’t be able to build new markets in every society, which is why I hosted a summit on entrepreneurship earlier this spring. Because the obligation of government is to empower individuals, not to impede them.”
“The diversity in this room makes clear – no one country has all the answers, but all of us must answer to our own people. In all parts of the world, we see the promise of innovation to make government more open and accountable. Now, we must build on that progress. And when we gather back here next year, we should bring specific commitments to promote transparency; to fight corruption; to energize civic engagement; and to leverage new technologies so that we strengthen the foundation of freedom in our own countries, while living up to ideals that can light the world.”
|
Sep 23rd, 2010 8:03 AM UTC
By Kara Arsenault
|
Looking for a smart, helpful video to kick off your day? Then check out this conversation with Laura Bush and Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren over at Clinton Global Initiative. They talk malaria, the fight against AIDS, Africa and no more aid. It’s a great interview.
Malaka and I will be actually be over at CGI later this afternoon, so check back in to read the latest. Off to get some breakfast!
|
Sep 22nd, 2010 5:40 PM UTC
By Kara Arsenault
|
I just finished listening to President Obama’s speech at the UN MDG Summit. Those 15 minutes sure went by fast – and a lot of big things were said. Two highlights for me? Hearing our President say that the US would strengthen its commitment to the Global Fund, and witnessing the live announcement of the very first US Global Development Policy.
But what are other folks saying? Below find the reaction from ONE’s CEO David Lane. And our policy team will be posting their thoughts in a matter of minutes. So check back soon. And don’t forget that we want to hear from you, too. What did you think of President Obama’s speech?
“We applaud the President for embracing the MDGs and announcing our nation’s new results-oriented development policy. The President is right to broaden the scope of development — while continuing to make aid more effective — with a focus on sustainable economic growth, good governance, and mutual accountability on the part of wealthy and developing nations alike.
Fighting global poverty is rooted in America’s tradition of helping the most vulnerable people and a strategic understanding that increasing the stability of poor countries improves our nation’s security.
During the past decade, we’ve learned a lot about what works. This new development policy represents a scaling up of what we know works and innovative new thinking.
Today, the President has set the policy, but now the hard work begins to turn it into reality. The first test will come in just 12 days when the Administration has the opportunity to bolster one of the most effective tools in global health, the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.”
|
|
