The world around us
2010 Summer Highlights
Visit the CARE Maternal Health Learning Tour website to learn how CARE is using first hand experience and in the field learning to improve maternal and newborn health at the local, national and global levels.
July - Global Washington releases “Global Development through Aid, Partnerships, Trade and Education: Recommendations from Global Washington”, a policy paper featuring a fresh perspective and recommendations to improve U.S. global development policy.
2010 Spring Highlights
May 25 - ONE released the 2010 DATA Report with topline findings that (1) led by U.S., collective commitments yield real results, but stronger focus on accountability needed going forward, and (2) bold new development strategy needed from September 2010 Millennium Development Goals Summit, putting good governance and fair economic growth at the core.
May 19 - Ben Affleck appeared on NBC Nightly News’ “Making a Difference” series, where he spoke about the situation in eastern Congo and the severity of the crisis in the region. Watch the segment to learn how the Eastern Congo Initiative is partnering with the people of eastern Congo to raise awareness about the ongoing challenges in the region, and increase the quantity and quality of public and private funding that supports the communities and citizens of eastern Congo.
May 17 – USAID announced the Obama Administration’s new global hunger and food security initiative, Feed the Future. The plan will concentrate on long-term, large-scale investments in a small number of partner countries, and includes support for women as agricultural producers. For more information read the Feed the Future Guide.
March 22 - Actor, director and advocate Ben Affleck announced the launch of the Eastern Congo Initiative (ECI), a new advocacy and grant-making initiative with the mission of supporting the Congolese people through local, community-based approaches to create a sustainable and successful society in the long-troubled region of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. williamsworks is honored to have partnered with Ben over the last three years in the design and launch of ECI. As the organization embarks rapidly on its work, Whitney Williams will continue to serve as the Managing Director. For more information, visit www.easterncongo.org.
March 22 - Water Advocates and the National Geographic Society co-hosted an event in D.C. to mark World Water Day, which was established in 1992 by the UN to focus attention on the world’s water crises, and the solutions to address it. The gathering, entitled “World Water Day 2010: Uniting for Safe Drinking Water and Sanitation” highlighted new commitments in water and sanitation by the US government, philanthropic foundations, corporations, NGOs, civic organizations, faith-based organizations and universities. Click here to view the keynote address by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
2009 Winter Highlights
Global Washington’s first annual conference, ‘A Blueprint for Action,’ was held in Seattle on December 7-8th. As one participant, Akhtar Badshah of Microsoft, wrote in an Op-Ed to The Huffington Post, “The Global Washington event showcased the vibrancy, energy and innovation taking place across the State on addressing global development.” Ambassador Elizabeth Bagley of the Global Partnerships Initiative at the U.S. Department of State and Nick Kristof of the New York Times were keynote speakers at the event, which was attended by 300 members of the Washington business and non-profit community. Learn more about Global Washington’s work to convene, strengthen and advocate for the global development sector in Washington by visiting globalwa.org.
2009 Fall Highlights
Melinda Gates shares a guest post for ONE.org titled Why I Am an Impatient Optimist. She wrote to say ‘thank you’ to those who have been a part of the U.S. government’s tremendous leadership in improving global health, to recount the many successes that have resulted, and underscore the challenges that remain.
The October 1, The Oprah Winfrey show focused on the importance of educating and empowering women around the world. The program showcased “Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide”, the New York Times bestselling book by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn that tells the stories of women around the world who have overcome poverty, slavery, and violence. One segment of the show was devoted to the issue of violence against women in the Democratic Republic of Congo and highlighted Ben Affleck’s visits to the region and his conversations with survivors.
You can watch the program here and learn more about what organizations are doing in Congo and how you can help.
The U.S. Department of State recently released a video, narrated by Matt Damon, about the importance of investing in global agricultural production.
The Living Proof Project is a multimedia initiative intended to highlight successes of U.S.-funded global health initiatives. By reporting success stories back to the people who funded them - American taxpayers and their representatives - we hope to reframe the current global health conversation. Millions of lives have already been transformed and saved with effective, affordable solutions. We have the knowledge, innovative technologies and proven tools to do much more. Read more at The Living Proof Project.
New York Times Magazine recently published a piece by Nick Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn on women and poverty. The article, based on their upcoming book, highlights the increasing awareness, "that focusing on women and girls is the most effective way to fight global poverty and extremism." The Women's Crusade details why attention to women's rights is critical, and how groups such as CARE and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation are organizing around this issue to maximize outcomes from aid.