Blog
Being a mom to Molly and Frankie is the most challenging role I’ve taken on. Two years ago, my youngest daughter, Molly, contracted whooping cough. As any parent can relate, it’s scary when your kids get sick, especially when the doctor isn’t sure what’s wrong. Just after we found out that she had whooping cough, I learned that Molly was part of the largest outbreak in decades…
As the United States, indeed the world, prepares for the eventual departure of Hillary Rodham Clinton as Secretary of State, I want to draw your attention to a new, in-depth New York Times Magazine profile of this ‘rock star’ diplomat. The opening paragraphs are about her commitment to clean cookstoves!
Imagine being forced to leave your home and everything you know to seek protection in a refugee camp. Now imagine having to start over in a new country where the language, the people and the culture are foreign to you. A group of awesome refugee girls who came to the United States from several different countries will be discussing some of these challenges and more with our Teen Advisors tomorrow, June 27 from 11 a.m. CT/12 p.m. ET.
The United Nations Foundation’s energy and public affairs team, led by UN Foundation President Timothy E. Wirth, have been in Brazil the past week for the Rio+20 summit. There has been a buzz in the halls about energy, touching two points: There’s a BIG and urgent need to enable everyone in the world to have access to electricity and modern fuels, and that creates a market opportunity.
After months of hard work and planning, I took my seat Tuesday morning in the Rio+Social audience, plugged in my computer, my phone, and my other phone, opened up all of my social media channels, and waited anxiously for the program to begin. As others took their seats and plugged in, I witnessed first-hand a connection between those in the room and the thousands of tweets that began to stream in with the hashtag #RioPlusSocial.
Ten years ago today, the continent of Europe was certified polio-free. This was a critical landmark and helped to accelerate efforts to stamp out the disease everywhere.
During today’s Rio+Social event coinciding with Rio+20, the historic UN conference on sustainability, world leaders are convening to address the earth’s biggest sustainability challenges. But you don’t have to be a world leader to join this important discussion about the future we want.
Right now, world leaders are gathering in Rio de Janeiro for the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, Rio+20, to define pathways to a more sustainable future for our world. Known as Rio+20 because it marks 20 years since the first Earth Summit held in Rio, the conference will bring together governments, businesses and groups from around the world to shape how we can reduce poverty, advance social equity, and ensure environmental protection to get to the future we want.
Every year, more than 7 million children die from preventable diseases before their fifth birthday. With so many statistics like this, it becomes hard to wrap our minds around what that means. It means that every day, not one, but thousands, of mothers lose a child to a disease that existing, simple solutions could prevent. A bed net could protect a child from malaria, a vaccine could protect him or her from pneumonia or measles.
Frontline health workers, including nurses, midwives and community health workers, are the first and often the only link to health care for millions of people living in the developing world. These invaluable figures in communities throughout the world are critical in settings where overall primary health care systems are weak or inaccessible.