Child and maternal mortality numbers both have dropped nearly 50 percent since 1990, but every day, more than 18,000 children under the age of 5 die from mostly preventable causes and nearly 800 women die from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth. The good news is that we have the tools – the vaccines, supplies, knowledge, and methods – to stop most of these deaths.  The world’s challenge and responsibility is getting solutions to the […]

The Social Good Summit continues today with exciting speakers and thought-provoking sessions. A particular highlight is Malala Yousafzai, participating in a panel about leading girls forward past adversity. Malala’s story is inspiring; it’s one of resilience, hope, and determination. In 2012, Malala, then 15, was targeted for her outspoken opinions in support of girls’ rights in Pakistan. She was shot in the head and neck, gravely wounded, but that didn’t stop her. After a rehabilitation

Editor’s Note: this post is from Better World Campaign Director Jordie Hannum. Good news: Earlier today, Secretary of State John Kerry signed the United Nation’s International Arms Trade Treaty. This treaty will make the world a safer place, plain and simple. By establishing the first-ever global framework to regulate the international arms trade, it will help keep illegal weapons out of the hands of war criminals and human rights abusers. Plus, despite misinformation spread by

Every minute at least one woman dies from complications related to pregnancy or childbirth, and every year 8.8 million children die before the age of five. We know what interventions make a difference on maternal and infant mortality. We now know that 1 billion women in low to middle-income countries own a mobile phone – a tool that can be used to engage, educate, and empower mothers. In order for mobile to be scaled to

Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the Globe and Mail. If global development targets followed a National Football League format, we would be approaching the two-minute warning. December 31, 2015, marks the final deadline for the Millennium Development Goals, the global anti-poverty targets that have mobilized an unprecedented generational success in tackling extreme poverty around the world, most notably the burdens of disease in the poorest countries. We are now facing the final moment

By Sarah Parkes, International Telecommunication Union In today’s increasingly interconnected world, all of the world’s citizens are going to need access to broadband. Broadband already affects every sector of human activity and endeavor, and is a key driver for development – both in the developed and developing world. But new research coming out of the UN Broadband Commission for Digital Development this week indicates that the key to our online future may well be wireless. Broadband delivers