Imagine using trash to fight poverty. Well, that’s exactly what Vik Muniz, a Brazilian artist based in Brooklyn, accomplished when he traveled to Jardim Gramacho, one of the largest garbage dumps in Brazil, and made art using the waste he found. His creations tell the remarkable story of turning nothing into something and, in this case, that “something” helped a huge group of people. Muniz ended up selling his creations for a whopping $50,000 and donated the proceeds back to the amazing people he met at the garbage dump.
Right now, Human Rights Watch (HRW) — a leading organization that defends the Universal Declaration of Human Rights — is hosting their annual International Film Festival in New York City. Although their films span across all genres, they have one thing in common: they all tell the story of the global struggle for human, political and social rights.
Visit CNN.com today? Well if you haven’t, stop, drop and click because that’s right -– ONE’s brand new original documentary, “Voodoo and Vaccines in Benin, Africa” is featured on the CNN.com homepage! Yes, homepage. With placement on the website’s most trafficked page and within the Opinion section of the CNN.com, ONE couldn’t be more proud to share our new documentary, accompanied by a gripping article crafted by Michael Gerson, ONE fellow, nationally syndicated columnist and former head of speech writing for President George W. Bush.
By now, I’m sure most of you are aware that ONE members around the globe are raising their voices to help save four million children’s lives in the next five years, in part by vaccinating against the top two disease killers of children in poor countries: diarrhea and pneumonia. Each year, more children die from these two diseases than from HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined. But together as ONE we’re doing something about it.
Recently, I wrote a piece about Nollywood, Nigeria’s booming movie industry that has become the 2nd largest in the world. If that piqued your interest, then you’ve got to watch the 2008 documentary “Nollywood Babylon.” This quirky little film, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, gives an insider’s glimpse into how and why the Nigerian movie-making business has boomed.
The documentary focuses mainly on celebrity filmmaker Lancelot Oduwa Imasuen’s techniques as he films yet another Nigerian hit. Lancelot’s intensity, pride and charisma come through and make “Nollywood Bablyon” a fun watch.
The way Nollywood operates is certainly interesting — most filmmakers in the biz depend heavily on their faith to encourage and foster productivity. In the trailer, Lancelot preps his actor by invoking Jesus Christ and asserting that they will “function above capacity.” This inside look at how Lancelot encourages his actor teaches the audience about Nollywood and its importance to the Nigerian people. After all, this industry has become the No. 1 employer of native people after the government.
Cancel your plans tomorrow night, because ONE is hosting a great event and we want you to be there. We’re premiering our new short documentary, “Voodoo and Vaccines in Benin, Africa,” on Facebook, Thursday, June 2 at 9PM ET.
Over the weekend, CNN featured ONE’s Michael Gerson in a piece on the fight against HIV/AIDS and the success of programs like PEPFAR and the Global Fund. In honor of the 30th anniversary of the discovery of HIV this week, the CNN piece also features “The Lazarus Effect,” a film by our sister organization (RED) in conjunction with HBO.
Churches across the country highlighted this film on ONE’s Lazarus Sunday, a nationwide faith event to help raise awareness around HIV/AIDS this past April. We’re about to enter into another tough budget battle in Washington, D.C., and Gerson, who played an instrumental part in these historic programs, rightly points out how many lives are at stake. Check out the clip here:
Right now, some of the world's biggest oil companies are fighting to keep some of their deals with foreign governments secret. Let's tell big oil we won't be bullied.
Cuts to poverty-fighting programs won't balance the budget, but they will set back progress on Canada's development priorities and risk jeopardizing existing investments.
2011 marks 30 years since the first cases of AIDS were documented. Take a closer look at the specific, achievable goals we must hit by 2015 to make this year the beginning of the end of AIDS.
