Updates

By: Josh Nesbit, co-founder and executive director of FrontlineSMS:Medic

The magnitude of certain problems is fully evident and inexcusable. Each year, 350,000 women and girls die every year from pregnancy-related causes, and over 100 million lack access to family planning. My generation has had access to these staggering statistics for years. As global citizens, we must now choose to act.

I was honored to join heads of UN agencies and government officials, as well as corporate and nonprofit leaders at last week’s Women Deliver event, “Accelerating Action on the MDGs: Delivering for Women, Girls, and Babies.” The theme threading the event’s discussions was clear - low-hanging impact exists, and if we want to increase access to proven interventions, we need to get creative. Read more...

By: Jill Sheffield, President, Women Deliver; originally posted at the Huffington Post

I kicked off this week with an energizing maternal health advocacy brunch that welcomed leaders, delegates, activists, and young people to New York for the United Nations General Assembly. This week, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will come under close review. Leaders will examine where development progress has been made and why, where it has been too slow, and consider just what we need to move forward toward our goals. In short, this is a make-or-break week for many reasons. Read more...

By: Mariko Rasmussen, Program Assistant for Women Deliver; 1 of 50 Young Champions for Women at the WIE Symposium 

On September 20, 2010, I attended the inaugural Women: Inspire & Enterprise (WIE) Symposium, hosted by Sarah Brown, Arianna Huffington and Donna Karan, an event that drew powerful women in politics, philanthropy, media, fashion and the arts to New York City for a full day of speakers, panels and workshops, as well as exhibitions, performances and awards. The WIE Symposium was held to coincide with the United Nations review summit on the Millennium Development Goals and the Clinton Global Initiative, adding to the multitude of events taking place in the city this week to push world leaders to keep their promises to girls and women and to get new pledges and commitments to maternal health. Read more...