According to today’s report in The New York Times, a growing movement of parents, educators and philanthropists has banded together to strengthen the education system for poor and working-class students in South Africa. As a result, new private schools like Leap are “springing up” to serve this niche market.
The Leap schools — which, according to the Times, function a bit like charter schools — have adjusted the curriculum to fit the students’ needs. The school offers extra support for national matriculation exams, instill a fierce work ethic and provide a “life orientation” class to help students air out their personal problems.
These “charter” schools are just one part of South Africa’s up-and-coming education movement — but it’s good to see that concerned citizens are taking the matter into their own hands. Take a look at the story and read more about education on our issues page.
I — along with many of my colleagues at ONE — was shocked and saddened to learn that Bwalya Liteta — the 12-year-old girl featured in the recent HBO documentary “The Lazarus Effect” — passed away on August 14th.
As many of you may have seen from our sister organization (RED)‘s website, Bwalya was an HIV-positive child who had lost both her parents. (RED) first met her in May 2009 and filmed her recovery from near death to robust health with the help of antiretroviral treatment (ARVs).
Everyone who met her in the filming process was inspired by her quiet determination, and many of us at ONE felt personally compelled by the simple joy she exuded as she was finally feeling better and able to return to school with her friends.
“The Lazarus Effect” highlighted the miracle of antiretroviral drugs in restoring the health of people living with HIV/AIDS. But even when treated, AIDS can be a physically devastating disease — especially for young children.
This year, we’ve been campaigning for the full replenishment of the Global Fund. If fully funded, the Global Fund — along with other bilateral AIDS efforts — can ensure that no child is born with HIV by 2015 and make certain that little girls like Bwalya never need to become infected in the first place.
Her story should compel us — including world leaders — to be bold in our efforts to make this goal achievable.
Twilight’s Ashley Greene just sent this email to ONE members giving them a sneak peek at the brand new PSA she helped create for ONE. She stars in it alongside her Twilight costars Kellan Lutz, Nikki Reed, and Jackson Rathbone, Gossip Girl’s Leighton Meester, Jessica Szohr and Ed Westwick, Heroes’ Hayden Panettiere, High School Musical’s Corbin Bleu, 90210′s Tristan Wilds, Star Trek’s John Cho and Tropic Thunder’s Brandon T. Jackson.
The PSA will air for the first time on television during Wednesday’s Gossip Girl. Check it out. http://www.one.org/buzz.
The more people talk, the more we can accomplish. Just sharing your commitment to fighting global poverty with your friends can inspire them to make the same commitment, and start up a buzz that will build into a roar of collective action.
For World AIDS Day tomorrow, I joined some of my friends from TV and film to make a video sharing our commitment to defeating extreme poverty and preventable disease. I hope you’ll watch, and share your own commitment by passing it on to people you know:
Throughout history we’ve seen how committed people, together, can change laws, break barriers and decide elections. And together, we can defeat extreme poverty and eradicate preventable, treatable diseases including HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.
But it takes all of us working together across borders, time zones, cultures…through advocacy, action, and awareness-raising.
You can help us raise awareness about ONE and build a better future for millions of people living in poverty. Please join Kellan Lutz, Nikki Reed, Jackson Rathbone and me, Ashley Greene, from Twilight; Leighton Meester, Jessica Szohr and Ed Westwick from Gossip Girl; Corbin Bleu from High School Musical; Hayden Panettiere from Heroes; Tristan Wilds from 90210; Star Trek’s John Cho and Tropic Thunder’s Brandon T. Jackson by sharing our video to create a buzz in your community:
At the event – we’ll officially launch the ONE Campus Challenge – although we did go out of our way to leak it to our members and blog readers beforehand:)
The event’s set to start at 9 but a bunch of us ONE loyalist have been here for hours making sure to get the word about ONE out to the more than 1,000 young people attending.
In a moment I’ll post a few great shots of the crew and crowd. Even as I sit here, I see more and more people in ONE shirts walking by.
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.
Tonight, I have the pleasure of live blogging live from the Apollo theater where the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), MTV and ONE are hosting 
