Recently, the White House hosted an online Q&A session on innovation for global development. Since the subject is a passion of mine, I was immediately prompted to submit a question to USAID Administrator Dr. Raj Shah.

Listen to Joe’s question here:

I try to do all that I can to mobilize faith-based institutions with congregations in Africa to get involved in serving their communities through development. I have seen examples of this on a small scale in Kenya, where one particular church denomination is utilizing local congregations to teach and train Kenyan nationals in areas such as agriculture and nutrition.

A highly organized network of 4,000 national churches is already in place, with property available to use for development education and training. The facilities could also be used as food distribution centers and medical clinics. The possibilities are endless.

This passion of mine led me to ask the question, “How can faith-based organizations with congregations in Africa be used as training facilities for the latest in development technology?” I was thrilled that my question was chosen, but even more encouraging was the response from Dr. Shah and Gayle Smith, special assistant to the President and senior director of the National Security Council.

In short, Dr. Shah explained that faith-based organizations currently play an important role in the developing world, citing an example of one congregation, Saddleback Church, which has sent more than 14,000 workers on development and health-oriented missions to Africa. If one congregation is capable of this, what could we do collectively as people of faith? Dr. Shah added that right now in Nairobi, Kenya, people living in extreme poverty are most likely already getting their healthcare and education from an institution of faith.

Gayle Smith added that networks of churches and other religious institutions are extremely valuable not only as providers of bed nets for malaria prevention, but also as educators on the proper use of these life-saving tools.

In summary, I was greatly encouraged to hear that these types of community partnerships are highly successful, and it further ignited my passion to mobilize congregations to get engaged in development projects overseas. What can we do as people of faith, moving forward, to make a profound impact on our world? As you can see, the possibilities are endless.

Last Saturday, the town of Dexter, Mich., came together to celebrate Airplane Day, a unique advocacy event that commemorates the life and legacy of Laurence Carolin, a Dexter teen who passed away due to brain cancer two years ago.

Laurence was a truly incredible and selfless individual who was passionately involved with ONE and committed to raising awareness about the fight against poverty and disease. He even dedicated the last year of his life to this cause and donated all of his Make-A-Wish Foundation money to the United Nations Foundation, one of ONE’s partners. Laurence’s compassion was so inspiring that he was not only invited to meet Bono (a co-founder of ONE), but even inspired his family and friends to commit to carrying on his legacy of activism. Airplane Day is the culmination of this promise on the date that marks Laurence’s arrival in the US after he was adopted from his birth country of South Korea.

This year’s Airplane Day was an amazing experience and a true testament to the ability of just one voice to motivate and mobilize an entire community. In fact, the event was largely organized by a new ONE chapter at Dexter High School that was founded by a group of Laurence’s friends. Our University of Michigan ONE chapter was also empowered by Laurence’s story, so some of our leaders have been working closely with this group to help establish and run the organization. Through the combined efforts of Laurence’s friends, family and both ONE chapters, the event was a huge success, filled with great music, inspirational speeches and advocacy of all forms.

Furthermore, this event brought together people of all ages to learn about Laurence’s passions and ONE. Thus, throughout the event, both ONE groups were able to engage participants in conversations about ONE’s mission and inspire them to get involved. By the end of the night, we had signed up around 50 new members. We also generated 32 petition signatures for Feed the Future, 35 photo petitions to President Obama, and more than 40 letters to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Furthermore, the event inspired many more to pledge to hold their national leaders accountable in the fight to end extreme poverty and disease as well as to donate money to the United Nations Foundation.

Observing the ripple effects of Laurence’s compassion on Saturday was extremely moving. Though Laurence may no longer be with us, I truly believe his legacy will never die and his selfless dedication to ending extreme poverty will continue to empower all of us until one day his dream becomes a reality.

-Chelsea Davis, ONE member, Michigan

Saturday morning was incredible. Braving construction chaos and downtown parking, a group of 25 interested (and interesting) everyday citizens of Washington State converged in Tacoma to attend a ONE Faith workshop with Jonathan Young, our regional field director and Adam Phillips, manager of faith advocacy at ONE.

We learned about initiatives for global health and poverty relief, and how these things relate to our faith communities. Our goal for the morning? To come away with at least one practical thing a faith community could do to make a difference in the life of one of the 1.5 billion people living in extreme poverty.

People of faith across the nation gather weekly, in our various communities of faith, to worship and to learn more about loving God and loving our neighbors. Working for the end of poverty, and its catastrophic effects, is a powerful way of showing love and reaching out to our neighbors all over the world… thankfully ONE provides a great channel for this expression.

With ideas ranging from participation in ONE Sabbath, congressional letter writing campaigns, partnering with other like-minded organizations, and engaging with local political leaders, we came away with practical tools to strengthen our advocacy skills and great new friendships.

As part of our advocacy training, we discussed the 2012 budget process. Many of us were amazed to learn that our local representative, Congressman Norm Dicks, (WA-6), is a leader on the powerful House Committee on Appropriations. This committee essentially cashes the president’s check for the entire US budget. We were thrilled to learn that he is a longtime champion of fighting poverty, especially saving the lives of mothers and young children.

Gratitude is a very important part of faith, so we were delighted to write letters expressing our appreciation to Congressman Dicks, celebrating his heroic work ensuring that life-saving development assistance programs were not gutted in the final FY12 appropriations bill.

We are especially thankful for his work to help save the Global Fund’s allocation, to enable it continue to provide lifesaving treatment for millions of HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis patients, provide bed nets to prevent malaria, and develop health systems in poor nations that serve those in need. We are proud of the work our Congressman is doing and glad to give our support!

It was an incredible morning. It is an incredible mission. Join us as we love our neighbors by working to make poverty history. Join ONE and make a difference.

-ONE member Heather James, Washington

Tabetha John left her home in Sierra Leone to live in the United States at age six. Ten years later, she continues to stay connected to her home country donating clothes, books and more to Africa.

Born in Freetown, Tabetha grew up around tropical beaches and had a great family. But on a recent trip to Sierra Leone, Tabetha said she witnessed poverty at a whole other level. After Sierra Leone’s civil war, many people lost their homes, and even more than that.

“A lot of people on the streets are missing limbs. I’ve seen homeless people missing their arms, or missing part of their leg,” she says. “A lot of [people] have scars on their faces too.”

Seeing these extreme cases of poverty motivated her. On the other side of the world, Tabetha gives back to Sierra Leone by donating clothes, shoes and books to the homeless.

As a co-leader for her school’s branch of the African Library Project, an organization that mobilizes US volunteers to organize book drives, Tabetha helps the Project build libraries in rural parts of Africa by collecting and sorting books.

“It’s my way of giving back even though I can’t be there,” says Tabetha.

Overall, the African Library Project as a whole has donated a total of 748,000 books. As a result, 701 libraries have been built in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Cameroon, Lesotho, Nigeria, Botswana, Swaziland, Malawi and Ghana.

“After the war, people not only lost their homes, but they didn’t have the opportunity to pursue an education. Building these libraries in rural parts of Africa is important because it gets people one step closer to a better future.”

Tabetha also helps fight poverty by donating used clothes and shoes to homeless children in Sierra Leone.
“My grandma and I would fill up those big barrel containers with my old clothes, shoes and stuff I don’t use. We ship them to my family in Sierra Leone who then give them out to the poor,” she says.

Tabetha hopes to continue these projects to not only fight poverty in Sierra Leone, but in all of Africa.
For more information on the African Library Project, visit their website here.

The cold and snowy weather didn’t stop ONE Peoria from giving our first presentation to members of Rotary Club of Peoria Downtown about ONE’s official collaboration with Rotary International. We shared information about ONE’s mission and highlighted the Living Proof successes and detailed several key issues of focus for ONE, including childhood vaccines that Rotarians could help support with their advocacy, and projects to help further eradicate extreme poverty. We also highlighted area ONE volunteer engagement with members of Congress and made a call to action for the club and individual members to join ONE. Twenty members signed up on the spot! A great beginning.

The campaign trail is an exciting place to work, especially when you are out talking about the fight against extreme poverty with voters, campaigns, and candidates. It is an immensely rewarding experience, though on some days, plenty of coffee is needed to make it through!

1. The alarm buzzes too early sometimes, but when you have a chance to get your ONE shirt on TV, sometimes you have to wake up before the chickens.

2. And it’s worth it when you get to be behind the scenes on a show like “Morning Joe”

3. Especially when guests like the one and only Stephen Colbert are on the show!

4. You are always looking for a chance to talk with people, and photo Ops are great too! Me and ONE staffer Kim Smith with Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski:

5. You might run into press conferences with Tony Perkins from the Family Research Council and get to talk with him about ONE…

6. Or you might see a former presidential candidate’s tour bus.

7. You’ve always got to be ready to talk to candidates and elected officials, like the Governor of South Carolina, Nikki Haley

8. Patience is the name of the game, waiting in line is always a good time to chat with folks, and of course check up on the Twitter feed

9. You never know when and where a candidate might arrive, but it is fun to camp out with folks while you wait.

10. You meet some unexpected folks, like Jim Bob Duggar stumping for Rick Santorum.

11. Sometimes the toughest choices aren’t political. Don’t forget to eat in all of the excitement!

12. After a long day it’s always worth it when you know you got to show the candidates that ONE members across the country care about these issues.

13. And sometimes the work can get you into some cool places.

When you finally make it home exhausted you know you may dread how early the alarm clock might buzz in the morning, but you know that when it does, you will be back out there making a difference for people around the world.

Keep up with Charlie’s adventures by following @Charlie_at_ONE on Twitter.

-Charlie Harris, ONE Vote 2012 Organizer, South Carolina

Monday, we went to the convention center, where the debate was to be held that night, and spent the time talking with campaign staff and South Carolina elected officials before the big night. We ran into several of our great ONE Vote 2012 ambassadors, including Representative Joe Wilson, who is always so helpful and kind to ONE members here. We also spoke to Senator Lindsey Graham who was fresh off his congressional delegation trip to Africa. We had a great time being a part of the political process at the debate.

Then on Tuesday, ONE was able to be a part of an event with the US Global Leadership Coalition, where ONE Vote 2012 Co-chair Governor Mike Huckabee was the featured speaker. We also had a chance to speak to Speaker Newt Gingrich who addressed the crowd for a few minutes. Governor Huckabee spoke on the importance of smart investments in foreign assistance programs and all of the benefits that it brings to American security and the economy. We have a great voice in Governor Huckabee as a passionate advocate for these programs who has seen American programs working on the ground in Africa.

We have been having a great week here in South Carolina making sure the candidates know how important these issues are and that Americans care about them. More updates from the trail soon!

-Charlie Harris, South Carolina field organizer, ONE Vote 2012. Follow him on Twitter at @Charlie_at_ONE

Follow Maura on Twitter at @Maura_at_ONE and say hello using #sundance.

Keynote speakers were Daniel Yohannes, CEO of the Millennium Challenge Corporation, and Dr. Rajiv Shah, administrator of USAID. Mr. Yohannes explained that MCC works with countries who want to help themselves and the importance of long-term economic growth for the poorest countries. MCC only works with countries that can show transparency and good governance. He noted that a grant received by Mali was used to expand their airport, improving infrastructure and trade opportunities. He stated, “Africa is open for business!”

Dr. Shah explained the role of USAID, not only as providing immediate aid, but also investing in long term, sustainable growth in the world’s poorest countries. He also gave a huge shout out to ONE, which prompted the audience to erupt in applause!

Workshops throughout the event included “Economic Opportunity: Introduction to Doing Business in Africa,” “Sustainable Development and Food Security: Preventing the Next Famine,” “Human Rights Challenges: War and Reconciliation, Trafficking and Child Labor,” and “Global Health and a Healthier Future for Africa,” which included ONE’s own US Policy Director, Dr. Pearl Alice Marsh.

It was a fantastic event and we learned so much! It was also a ONE-derful opportunity to network with like-mined people and share with them how we, as ONE members, use our voices to help the voiceless.

Can’t wait for next year’s conference!

-Barb Barrar, ONE congressional district leader

The ONE T-shirt had been a common sight on the campaign trail throughout 2011. As the excitement moved on from Iowa to New Hampshire, the candidates kicked it up a notch in the Granite State. Most of the presidential hopefuls were hosting multiple events across the state every day leading up to the primary. ONE members were right there with them every step of the way!

While the days started early and the nights ran long, ONE members only had to think about why we do what we do to find the energy to continue. Knowing that one of the candidates visiting historic theaters or high school gymnasiums could become the next president of the United States meant that we wanted to ensure support for solutions that save millions of lives, create a safe and more stable world and uphold a proud American legacy, all for less than 1 percent of the federal budget.

While the New Hampshire Primary may now be behind us, there is still work to do. We will continue to fight extreme poverty and preventable diseases with elected officials, community groups, students, faith groups and others, working together as ONE!

Be sure to connect with other ONE members in New Hampshire on Facebook and Twitter.