By Jordie Hannum, Executive Director of the Better World Campaign  With Election Day behind us, a group of newly elected Members of Congress will begin their preparations to take office on January 3, 2015. Before they start, we’d like to make sure they’re aware of the American public’s overwhelming support for the United Nations. This new Congress will face some complex global challenges like Ebola, terrorism, and climate change. These threats, plus many others, will be […]

The energy access gap Energy access remains a significant challenge for many developing countries. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) over 1.2 billion people today don’t have electricity. A billion more have power only intermittently. Lack of access to electricity limits critical aspects of education, health care and income generation. Reaching universal energy access by 2030, one of three global objectives within the UN Secretary-General’s Sustainable Energy for All initiative, will be challenging, but is

By Zoe Fox and Lauren Bohn Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world and is rarely mentioned in the news. In the country that’s roughly the size of Pennsylvania, three-quarters of the population live below the poverty line. Less than 25% of girls finish primary school – even though it’s free. Among those, just 13% will enroll in secondary school. And only 5% of them will finish. We visited Malawi last year

Today is World Pneumonia Day and the United Nations and partners are rallying to raise awareness and to step up global efforts against this deadly disease. Here are two important points to know about the fight to protect children against pneumonia: 1. Pneumonia is a leading cause of death for children under 5. According to research recently published in The Lancet, pneumonia accounted for more than 900,000 deaths of children under 5 in 2013, the second leading

Parents around the world want their children to have the chance to lead healthy, productive lives. The measles vaccine is an essential public health tool to protect children from this deadly disease so they can make their dreams a reality. Yet today, the World Health Organization warned that the progress toward reaching measles elimination goals has stalled. New data shows that we are at a turning point in the fight against measles – governments and

By Stephen Sobhani and Rebecca Fishman On this year’s World Toilet Day on November 19, 2.5 billion people around the world still lack access to sanitation and 1.1 billion people poop in the open. Sanitation is an oft neglected and taboo topic closely linked to infant and child mortality, undernutrition, and poverty. The good news It is a solvable problem and everyone – including children – can be part of the solution. As the world’s largest informal

By Rachel Henderson Last minute holiday shopping. We’ve all been there – one week before the holidays you’re scrambling to find the perfect gift. According to data from Deloitte, gift cards are the most popular holiday gift, purchased by 43% of Americans. You may not want to give a gift card though, and this is the year to give something special! Black Friday and Cyber Monday are still more than 10 days away, and there’s

It’s World Toilet Day and still more than one-third of the world’s population – 2.5 billion people – do not have access to proper toilets, and 1 billion people practice open defecation. Toilets may not be a popular topic of daily conversation, but it’s a crucial issue we need to talk about in order to create a healthier and safer world. Why? The facts are shocking. According to the UN: Every year, hundreds of thousands

While there have been some signs of progress in the global effort to stop the Ebola outbreak, the crisis is still extremely serious and demands greater resources. Simply put: We can’t let up now or we risk losing the gains we have made. That’s why some of the world’s top soccer players have teamed up with FIFA, the Confederation of African Football, and leading health experts, including from the World Health Organization, to raise awareness