California
Nov 8th, 2010 5:00 PM UTC
By Field
To help farmers around the world earn their own way out of poverty, ONE members in San Diego County participated in the 6th Annual Vista Area CROP Hunger Walk. Locals gathered at the New Community Church in Vista, California to walk 1.5 miles to illustrate how far it takes families to travel for clean water and food.
CROP Walks are a local response to the presence of poverty and hunger locally and across the globe. CROP Walks are sponsored by community groups and the Church World Service. Funds raised at CROP Walks target sustainable self-help and development, disaster relief and refugee assistance at home and worldwide. One-quarter of the money raised will stay in Vista and help support Operation Hope, Vista’s cold-weather homeless shelter, which serves single women and families.
While walking, we passed a multitude of food options, from our favorite burger place and coffee shops to fully stocked grocery stores, ready to cater to our needs and wants. I thought, what if we didn’t have all of this available to us? I thought about all the mothers, fathers and children in the world who spend the majority of their day just seeking clean and drinkable water.
This month, our focus is to make food security and agriculture in the developing world a priority to ensure that no one is forced to go hungry in a world of plenty. Tell Congress to help farmers around the world earn their way out of poverty for the long term by committing $1.3 billion to smart agriculture programs.
-Sue Lowe, ONE member, California
Come November 3rd, our elected California senator will represent the largest single-state constituency of ONE members around the world. And since we enjoy an international stage here in the Golden State, quite often our conversations don’t reflect on whether, but rather how we tackle extreme poverty and preventable disease around the world.
Whether you live in NorCal or SoCal, or identify yourself as a progressive or conservative, the facts remain the same. In less than a decade, support for the Global Fund has helped save 5.7 million lives, while 2.7 million lives have been spared from HIV/AIDS because of the U.S. initiative known as the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
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Oct 15th, 2010 3:22 PM UTC
By Field
Sunday I joined ONE member Brian Davis and Pasadena residents at a coffee event hosted by our Congressman Adam Schiff who represents California’s 29th district.
We were able to personally thank Representative Schiff for co-sponsoring the Roadmap Act to promote global agricultural development and the Newborn, Child and Mother Survival Act to reduce maternal and child mortality. We also recognized that his position on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations puts him in a powerful position to help ensure that necessary increases for critical development programs are provided.
We urged him to put the fight to end extreme global poverty high on his agenda as he seeks re-election this fall. We need Members of Congress like Rep. Schiff on our side and look forward to greater engagement with him in the near future.
-Joel Griffith, ONE Member Pasadena
Sep 28th, 2010 5:03 PM UTC
By Field
ONE members at Balboa Park
Things were off and running early Sunday morning for the San Diego AIDS Walk & Run in beautiful Balboa Park.
I had a great time with ONE members at the 5K event while supporting San Diego-area efforts to raise awareness in our community.
The 2010 San Diego AIDS Walk and Run raised nearly $400,000 and brought together more than 500 Californians to raise awareness and help provide prevention and care programs to thousands of men, women, and children living with HIV/AIDS.
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ONE pm on Friday would have been a typical foggy, drizzly afternoon in San Francisco. But citizens took to the street during their lunch hour, under the backdrop of City Hall to Stand Up Against Poverty. Hosted by San Francisco Supervisor David Campos, community leaders and partners spoke at this annual event about the MDGs and the importance of supporting a full replenishment of the Global Fund this year!
In October President Obama will announce the US contribution levels to the Global Fund for the next three years. Across the country local leaders and members of Congress are urging the President to show bold American leadership for the Global Fund. Today in San Francisco, constituents stood up and spoke in support for this replenishment. As The Global Fund continues to play a key role in stabilizing communities with unprecedented health results, the time is now to secure our commitment to this smart mechanism. Once again San Francisco influencers join together in the fight against extreme poverty. Extraordinary!
Sep 15th, 2010 10:45 AM UTC
By Field
Cameron’s team smiles at success
The aroma of grilled food, the sounds of a jazz and rock ensemble and the adrenaline-addled voices of students, staff and parents greeting one another after three months apart permeated the air, adding to the afternoon’s high spirits. We were at the New Roads High School annual back-to-school picnic, where our New Roads ONE chapter had a table.
Our goals for the afternoon were to obtain signatures from students and staff in support of a petition to city council members, asking them to declare Santa Monica a ONE City. Additionally, we needed student signatures to make New Roads a ONE high school, and we hoped to raise awareness about the causes ONE supports, like the Global Fund. We hoped to recruit more New Roads ONE chapter troopers to boot.
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![IMG_3476[1]](http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4089/4990407733_2675a9ce01_m.jpg)
CARE’s panel discussion
Standing on the corner of Fillmore St. and Geary Blvd. in San Francisco, you can just feel the history around you. The Fillmore Theatre has provided a stage for artists and causes for over four decades — and last Friday, the majestic space once again hosted artists, activists, humanitarians and Bay Area constituents as we ignited the weekend with a festival of peace and action.
CARE’s second annual Power to the Peaceful Global Action Forum & Celebration kicked off with two short films: one on Michael Franti’s recent visit to CARE programs in East Timor and the second, an excerpt from “A Powerful Noise,” a documentary depicting a Malian girls’ education crusader who beat insurmountable odds to stand up for the rights of powerless girls in her community.
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