As the world’s business, political and media elite made their annual trek to the Swiss town of Davos -– blanketed in more snow than I have seen there for a decade -– conventional wisdom had it they should have all the lightheartedness of a gray, winter, Alpine sky. The Eurozone crisis, the difficulty of getting tough political decisions in the United States, and worries in some of the champions among emerging markets – the chance of a property crash in China, for example, or of runaway inflation in India –- were all said to contribute to a note of pessimism among Davos devotees.
In this guest post, Bill Gates discusses the themes of his annual letter, which looks back on progress made and lessons learned in the fight against extreme poverty. Originally published on Impatient Optimists, blog of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
My job is to learn about global health and development — and to travel to poor countries to meet farmers who can’t grow enough food, mothers who can’t keep children healthy, and heroes in the field who are doing something about those emergencies. Very few people can devote the time to really understand these complex problems. Even fewer can actually meet the people who are struggling to overcome them. That is why I write an annual letter every year.
I want people to know about the amazing progress we’ve made. I also want them to see how much more progress it will take before we live in a truly equitable world.
Friday the 13th is a day known for superstition, fear, and bad luck. But today, the global health community in India attained a milestone that will ensure that we remember this Friday the 13th as a day of progress and hope. As of today, India has gone an entire year without a case of polio. In technical-speak, this means that India has officially interrupted transmission of the virus and is no longer considered an endemic country, leaving only three countries (Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Nigeria) remaining in the world with endemic status.
Experts have long considered India to be one of the toughest places in the world to fight and eradicate polio. After all, India is neither a small nor homogenous place, and just two years ago, India had 741 cases of polio—the most in the world. How did they achieve this milestone?
Erin Hohlfelder is out in Seattle, Wash., this week covering the Gates Foundation’s 2011 Malaria Forum. She’ll be sending out blogs posts and tweets throughout the week, so follow this space!
Photo credit: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
After spending the first day at the Gates Foundation’s Malaria Forum, I can report without question that Seattle is — excuse the pun — buzzing with excitement over the work that’s been done to fight this deadly disease. Hundreds of the world’s foremost malaria scientists and advocates have gathered, #endmalaria is trending on twitter here, and dozens of panels and videos have highlighted the remarkable progress we’ve made in the malaria agenda.
Bill and Melinda Gates have always approached the fight against hunger, poverty and disease a little differently — instead of focusing on the problem, they focus on the solution and narrow in on what’s working to get things done. This positive spirit is embodied in their foundation’s new and aptly named blog, Impatient Optimists.
The goal is to get readers engaged in a dialogue about solutions to worldwide and domestic problems, reflect the values of inspiration and urgency, and create an entire community of impatient optimists around the world.
Poop. Yep, you read that right. Today’s blog post is about poop, a topic I’m pretty sure no one wants to discuss. But before I begin, take a look at this hilarious and informative video compiled by the Gates Foundation to get the conversation going about a not-so-appetizing, but very important issue.
Malaria, a disease which causes death, severe anemia, miscarriages, low birth weights and increased risk for mother-to-child HIV transmission was eliminated from the United States and Europe in 1970. Today, the disease remains endemic in 106 nations, with 90 percent of malaria deaths occurring in Africa. Yeah, you read that right — a disease that was eliminated decades ago in the West is still killing an estimated three-quarters of a million people each year. To be exact, malaria kills a child in Africa every 45 seconds.
ONE is campaigning to ensure that the Congressional budget does not cut foreign assistance programs like Feed the Future that help people break the cycle of poverty and hunger.
The Horn of Africa is experiencing its worst drought in 60 years. More than 11 million people, mostly nomadic pastoralists and farmers in south-central Somalia, north-eastern Kenya, and south-eastern Ethiopia, are severely lacking access to food.
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.
As aid agencies warn more than 9 million people could be affected by a food crisis in East Africa, world leaders are failing to keep their 2009 promises to tackle the causes of chronic hunger and support farmers in the world's poorest countries.
Friday the 13th is a day known for superstition, fear, and bad luck. But today, the global health community in India attained a milestone that will ensure that we remember this Friday the 13th as a day of progress and hope. As of today, India has gone an entire year without a case of polio. In technical-speak, this means that India has officially interrupted transmission of the virus and is no longer considered an endemic country, leaving only three countries (Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Nigeria) remaining in the world with endemic status.
Photo credit: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
