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.

During the event, he’ll answer your top-voted questions live from the White House. Help us keep HIV/AIDS on President Obama’s radar by voting on this question from ONE member Liz:

As a student at University of Florida and a ONE member, I was excited to hear you chart a path toward the beginning of the end of AIDS on World AIDS Day. What steps will your administration take this year to make sure other donors follow your lead?

To vote, follow these four easy steps:

1. Go to President Obama’s YouTube page and make sure you’re signed in
2. Type “World AIDS Day” in the search box on the right-hand column
3. Look for Liz’ video in the search results.
4. Click the thumbs up icon to vote for her question

In case you’re not familiar with Google+ Hangouts, it’s a way to video chat with multiple people at the same time. On Monday, you’ll be able to watch a live stream of it, so stay tuned to President Obama’s Google+ page for more details.

We here at ONE New York were proud to have the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) join us in our visit to Washington, D.C., for lobby day and for a special leadership briefing at the White House.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has been a strong advocate for children’s health domestically and globally. Their new alliance with ONE has strengthened the cause to ensure that voices of children in need worldwide are heard loud and clear.

Our joint DC visit started on Thursday, Dec 8th with our diverse ONE member delegation of Dr. Louis Cooper, former president of AAP and professor emeritus at Columbia University; Dr. Tom McInerny, president-elect of AAP; and Alexandra Tung, Alexia Mascall and Steve Gallucci of the Truman National Security Project.

We spoke with staff from the offices of Rep. Nita Lowey, who has been a long-time supporter of ONE, Rep. Louis Slaughter, Rep. Carolyn Maloney, Rep. Yvette Clark, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, and Sen. Charles Schumer.

We thanked each Congress member for being an active supporter of ONE issues, but urged them to continue their support for protecting the less than 1 percent allocated from the GDP for foreign aid in the coming years. We asked them to specifically support:

1. GAVI’s vaccination program for pneumonia and diarrhea which has killed more children than HIV/AIDS/Malaria combined,
2. Long term investment of agricultural development programs via Feed the Future, and
3. Global Fund and PEPFAR to ensure no child is born with HIV/AIDS by 2015.

On Friday, Dec 9th, we had the chance to see the White House in its holiday form. Each room and hallway was beautifully decorated for the season. We were fortunate this year the White House allowed us the rare opportunity to bring cameras to capture our memories.

After the tour at the White House, we went to the Eisenhower Executive Building to hear informative briefings from our government leaders such as Jon Carson, deputy assistant to the president and director at the Office of Public Engagement; Aaron Williams, director of the Peace Corps; Gayle Smith, senior director for Development and Democracy, National Security Staff; Paul Weisenfeld, assistant to the administrator, Bureau for Food Security; Tom Gavin, White House Communications cabinet member, Media Relations and former ONE staffer.

Each speaker went over valuable educational points related to their respective agencies and thanked our efforts in working persistently and consistently on protecting foreign aid.

Thank you to the White House and ONE staff for making this memorable opportunity possible!

ONE regional field directors, Congressional District leaders and campus leaders were given a very great opportunity to make some loud noise in Washington D.C. on Capitol Hill last week. We were invited to the White House for the White House Leadership Briefing. This was a joint effort with ONE and two other groups: the Truman National Security Project and the American Academy of Pediatrics. In all, we had more than 120 people directly lobbying to their government officials to ensure they do not cut foreign aid and sustain the current budget to keep the health and well-being of the world’s poorest intact. I went as the campus leader to Illinois State University.

On December 8, ONE members made their way to Capitol Hill to speak directly to the members of Congress and senators of their state. I was lucky enough to have a few other Illinois ONE members with me to visit Senator Dick Durbin, Senator Mark Kirk, Rep. Adam Kinzinger, Rep. Robert Dold and Rep. Judy Biggert’s offices from Illinois. We were one of 22 other states that were able to use their voice for the world’s poorest to our leaders on Capitol Hill. The meetings lasted a short time, only about 30 minutes, but the majority of leaders are very appreciative and understand the large effect a small amount of aid has. The leaders we met all seem to be very much on board with our cause and the fighting we do to further it; in some places we were known very well. In Mark Kirk’s office, we needed to thank him instead of lobby because he is 100 percent on board with us and we have ONE members coming to his office nearly twice a minth. Our lobbying this time was on three of ONE’s major points: vaccines, AIDS and agriculture.

The next day we were able to do our White House tour of the East Wing, which was one of the coolest experiences I have ever had, and then we made our way to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Here we met and were given talks from Peace Corps Director Aaron Williams, Senior Director for Development and Democracy Gayle Smith, Assistant to the Administrator of USAID Paul Weisenfeld and Deputy Assistant to the President Jon Carson. All the speakers spoke very highly of the work we do for the administration to ensure national security and work toward the end of global poverty. Although all the speakers were great, my personal favorite was Director Williams due to my hope to be in the Peace Corps one day. Again during this day, all the leaders spoke very highly of ONE and our work we do, and it really was a place to directly witness the appreciation that the administration gives us.

We then had a quick break and reconvened with one final speaker of our choice. I chose to listen to Bruce Wharton, the deputy assistant secretary of the State Bureau of African Affairs. Deputy Assistant Wharton spoke to us on the growing issue of the famine in the Horn of Africa, and how aid is trying to get to Somalia but the government is still having difficulties and is looking for other ways to go about getting the aid.

After a great few days in Washington D.C., speaking on behalf of the worlds poorest, national security through the use of foreign aid, and being praised by the administration for the hard work we do to ensure the worlds poorest have a voice, it is not hard to say that ONE did indeed “rock D.C.”

-James Watt, Illinois State University campus leader

Submit your questions on their Facebook page, Twitter using the hashtag #WHChat, or on their webform. You can watch it in the player below (the screen will go live near the event time) or on the White House’s live page.

Elisa Morgan dances with a group of Village Reporters in Lwak, Kenya. Photo credit: Morgana Wingard

A family living in a mud hut at the end of a dusty trail in east Africa has less than you would ever imagine. No television. No toys. No running water. Certainly not a refrigerator filled with fresh food. Mom probably sleeps on a small rickety cot with a pile of brothers and sisters. Dad sleeps on the ground.

They might live near a polluted river where they bathe and collect drinking water. Or maybe mom rises at 4 a.m. to walk eight miles to a spigot where she can wait in line for two hours to fill their bucket. They grow their own food, maybe corn and sweet potatoes. They don’t have an irrigation system so they’re entirely dependent on rain, and when the rains don’t come there’s no food or water.

How does a family like this survive when droughts and famine sweep across their country? Often they receive some assistance from nonprofits, churches and the United States government. A little extra food and water is the difference between life and death for a family faced with drought and famine.

And right now, these people in East Africa are struggling through the worst drought in 60 years, the worst famine in 20 years and ongoing violence.

The ONE Moms and I were able to discuss this issue recently with Dr. Jill Biden, USAID Administrator Raj Shah and National Security Council Senior Director Gayle Smith at a round table at the White House. We talked about our recent trips to Kenya, our ongoing work on global development and voiced our support for US-funded programs that save lives in poverty-stricken Africa.

“It’s so bad. It’s worse than you can ever imagine,” Dr. Jill Biden told us.

Over the summer, Dr. Biden visited East Africa and consoled women and children in a Somalia refugee camp, the largest in the world. Originally built to accommodate 90,000 people, it’s now overflowing with nearly half a million impoverished people. In Somalia, a child is dying every six minutes.

We were invited to the White House because of our trip to Kenya on a trip with ONE. We observed US investments saving lives, and now we are bringing our experience back to Washington to let lawmakers know that these programs are effective and working. We visited a hospital where doctors treat kids with malaria, watched a health care worker test a family for HIV, and brought a new mom fresh food and water.

On this trip, I realized that the United States is good at saving lives, and that’s why I feel strongly that we need to do all that we can to help these people in the Horn of Africa. Here are four more reasons why I think we should support foreign assistance:

Have a burning question for the White House about development and aid? Well, you’re in luck. You have a chance to ask your questions directly to the White House on Twitter this Friday, July 22nd at 11:30 AM EDT.

ONE is excited to help host a Twitter interview (also known as a “Twitterview”) with Gayle Smith, special assistant to the president and senior director for development and democracy with the White House. Ms. Smith will answer questions on everything from the White House’s GAVI vaccines pledge last month to the latest issues on foreign aid, global health and international development. We’re honored to have this time with Ms. Smith to ask your questions.

Here’s how you can submit your questions before Friday morning:

You might ask a question like, “What are the advantages to the US for funding #vaccines?” or “What does the @WhiteHouse think about the recent events in the #HornofAfrica?” Be creative and give us your best thoughts!

So, join us on Twitter this Friday at 11:30 AM and follow @onecampaign to follow our Twitterview with Gayle Smith.

This will be a cool way to spend a very warm Friday morning.

I just finished listening to the first White House Twitter Townhall — and guess what I heard? President Obama talk about the importance of smart aid! But don’t take it from me. Read what he had to say for yourself:

“I think it’s important for people to know that foreign aid accounts for less than 2% of our budget and if you define it narrowly as the kind of foreign aid to help feed people, and what we think of as classically as foreign aid, its probably closer to 1% so sometimes people have an exaggerated sense that we spend 25% of the federal budget on foreign aid. It’s a tiny amount that has a big impact. And I think America to be a leader in the world, to have influence, to help stabilize countries, create opportunity for people so that they don’t breed terrorists or create huge refugee populations flows Its smart for us to make a very modest investment in aid, it’s a forced multiplier and its something even in tough fiscal times its we need to do as part of our role as a global leader.”

A big thank you to everyone who submitted a tweet today. And don’t forget — tomorrow we’ve got another great chance to ask USAID Administrator Raj Shah some questions about youth and international development. We came up with a few tweets to help get the questions started (check them out below), but feel free to add your own!

@USAID how can we make our development efforts more cost-effective, sustainable?
@USAID how can we better connect African youth with American youth?
@USAID American aid has helped protect millions from AIDS, malaria, hunger. How can we share the good news?

@townhall How does economic growth in #Africa impact growth at home? #AskObama
@townhall Why does intl development matter in tough econ environment? #AskObama
@townhall How can trade, agric, health R&D for #Africa also benefit the US? #AskObama

I love to take short afternoon walks. My favorite route? A stroll down 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. There’s always lots of photo-flashing tourists, sign-waving protesters and Blackberry-carrying workers to check out in front of the White House gates.

I realize I’m a pretty lucky gal. Not everyone gets to see the White House (almost) every day — and you can literally feel the history oozing out of building. But next week, the White House is opening its doors to all corners of the country. They’re hosting two special opportunities that I know ONE members will love.

On Wednesday, July 6, President Obama will host the very first White House Twitter Townhall. The focus is on jobs and the economy, which might seem like a bit of a stretch—but there’s actually tons of great stuff we can ask. For instance, how can we make sure that areas of great investment opportunity — like Africa — don’t get overlooked in these tricky economic times?

So get your questions ready and start submitting them on twitter today. Don’t forget to use the hashtag#AskObama, and to get the latest updates, start following @townhall. Then head back here on Wednesday at 2 PM EST to see what President Obama has to say.

And if one exciting live chat weren’t enough, get ready to talk it up on Thursday with USAID Administrator Raj Shah. The theme for this discussion? Youth and International Development—totally up our alley. And they gave us some great questions to get things going, like how are young people changing the game when it comes to global poverty? And what should the role of the Obama administration be in tackling extreme poverty and disease? So start sending in your questions for this chat, too, and then tune in on July 7 at 1:30pm EST to join in the Q&A fun.

This week, First Lady Michelle Obama will make her first official state visit to Africa with her two young daughters, Sasha and Malia, and other members of her family (unfortunately, Bo the dog won’t be going). Over the next five days, they’ll be traveling to Pretoria, Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa and Gaborone, Botswana, to see the sights, engage with African leaders and of course, help strengthen our relationship with Africa.

The First Lady is focusing her trip on African youth, education, health and wellness. But don’t take it from me. Listen to the First Lady herself in her video message from the White House blog:

She will also be the keynote speaker at a US-sponsored young African women’s leadership forum in South Africa. The attendees at this forum will be accomplished female leaders in Sub-Saharan Africa who are involved in social and economic initiatives. Mrs. Obama will also take the time to reflect on the history of South Africa and its resilience at the Johannesburg Apartheid Museum and Robben Island Prison Museum in Cape Town,where Mandela (and other apartheid leaders) was once imprisoned. Mrs. Obama is also very excited to visit Botswana, a country that the Obama administration has praised for its strong governance.

Mrs. Obama’s trip is part of the White House commitment to strengthen diplomatic relations with Africa, as highlighted in President Obama’s 2009 speech in Accra, Ghana As President Obama noted, a newly globalized economy means that Africa’s development, security and health is deeply connected to our own. In the past few months, the Obama administration has bolstered its efforts to strengthen relations with Africa.

Mrs. Obama is not the only White House official to visit Africa this year -– Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is on an official trip to Africa, too. Just last week, she visited Tanzania, Zambia and Ethiopia, and became the first secretary of state to address the African Union. She shed light on the importance of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which we covered on the ONE Blog, and delivered remarks at the AGOA forum in Lusaka, Zambia.

I hope you’re as excited about these official visits as I am -– and thanks to the magic of Twitter and Facebook, you can follow along Mrs. Obama’s trip. The White House Blog will have some pretty spiffy links, photos and blog posts of the trip, so be sure to check there for updates. And don’t forget to check the #YoungAfrica hashtag on Twitter, which you can check here.

Because there has been so much focus on youth in Africa, networks like MTV and BET will be covering Mrs. Obama’s visit as well (how cool is that?). Check out BET’s video special, “Impact on Africa: On a Mission with the First Lady” and look out for updates on MTV’s website.

We’ll be following her trip all week, so stay tuned. And come back tomorrow…our policy team is putting together tweets on facts and statistics about African youth that you can share with Mrs. Obama.