June 26th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
We’re thisclose to our goal of 100,000 signers on our Water for the World petition, but we need your help to get there before next week. If you haven’t already, please sign the petition, here. And if you’ve already signed, please share it with your friends through a friendly email or posting the link on Facebook, Twitter or another social networking website.
More than 90,000 ONE members from across the country have signed our petition calling on senators to cosponsor the Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2009. This critical legislation will put American ingenuity and resources behind the global effort to bring clean water to the 884 million people who struggle to survive without access to this most basic resource.
But just as dirty water is a major obstacle to ending global poverty, a lack of Senate cosponsors is the biggest obstacle to passing the Water for the World Act. The bill is currently stuck in the Foreign Relations committee and needs more cosponsors to get the attention of senate leaders. Our campaign has already helped convince one senator to cosponsor the Water for the World Act — just imagine how many more will jump on board when we show up to deliver a call to action from thousands of their constituents.
Next week, ONE staff and volunteers are going to deliver this petition directly to Senate offices on Capitol Hill. That means we only have a few more days to spread the word about this important campaign. Please help by signing the petition if you haven’t already, and sharing it with your friends if you have.
It’s going to take at least 100 thousand of us to help bring first-time, sustainable access to clean water and sanitation to 100 million of the world’s poorest people in 2015. Together, I know we can do it.
-Emily Stivers
June 10th, 2009 at 10:00 am
Pooja Gupta is interning with the ONE Global Policy Team this summer, and today writes about an exciting new tool to spur youth involvement in combating hunger.
The World Food Program (WFP) recently launched a web platform aimed to educate and inspire youth to get involved in the fight against global hunger which, according to WFP reports, has afflicted an additional 115 million people in the past two years alone. On their newly-updated website, WFP has created a section dedicated entirely to students and teachers that includes information and games for students, as well as ideas and activities for teachers. By designating a section entirely to education, WFP hopes to provide teachers with the tools necessary to fully integrate issues of global hunger into the everyday school curriculum, making it a staple in primary and secondary school education.
WFP notes that youth are deeply interested in the fight against global hunger. In their news release, WFP’s Director of Communications and Public Policy, Nancy Roman explained, “Today’s youth are hungry to know more about the problems which are causing food shortages across the globe — like conflict in Pakistan, high food prices, climate change and the global financial crisis.” To satisfy their curiosity, WFP offers a variety of web tools targeted at students and their teachers, hoping to engage both while inspiring them to take action on their own; the site even provides ideas for activities that students can host within their local communities. The hope is, with this education and awareness, participating youth will be poised to become future leaders in the fight against global hunger and poverty.
WFP hopes the site will be a “one-stop shop,” for students and their teachers. Notable educators around the world, including Cape Breton University, Auburn University, and 4-H Alabama, made contributions to the platform, which includes a blog, a list of resources and websites that educate about issues of hunger, classroom activities, and a section for interactive “fun and games.” The site also features WFP tools already popular, like numerous interactive games such as FreeRice.com and Food-Force.com. These games, in addition to entertaining, also educate students about the difficulties of providing hunger relief, as well as motivate them to take action themselves.
WFP’s “Students and Teachers,” platform hopes to enlist youth in the global campaign to end hunger by engaging them throughout their schooling. The “Students and Teachers,” site joins other successful, youth-oriented WFP initiatives such as the “Universities Fighting World Hunger,” and the “Really Good School Dinner” campaign, which promote youth engagement through awareness, education, and action. If you haven’t yet checked out the new site, you can do so here.
-Pooja Gupta
June 4th, 2009 at 1:43 pm
Senators Durbin and Corker have introduced S. 624, The Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2009, a bipartisan bill to provide 100 million people with access to clean water. But with only five cosponsors, the bill isn’t getting the attention it needs for further action by Senate leaders. It must have at least 20 cosponsors to move forward.
Now is the time to follow through on Obama’s inaugural pledge to “let clean waters flow”. Ask your senators to cosponsor S. 624 now.
By working together, ONE members everywhere have an opportunity to make a big difference for millions of people. This bill would also help establish the capacity and momentum we need to meet the Millennium Development Goal on increasing access to water and sanitation by 2015. Please encourage your family and friends to sign the petition here.
Thank you for doing your part,
-Emily Stivers
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