UN – United Nations

Yesterday, Family Planning 2020 launched Partnership in Progress, a report on global efforts to fulfill the ambitious goal set at the 2012 London Summit on Family Planning: deliver life-saving contraception to an additional 120 million women and girls living in the world’s poorest countries by the year 2020. When women are able to decide for themselves whether and when to have children, everyone benefits: Women are healthier, more prosperous, and have greater opportunities to pursue education and […]

We are exactly four weeks away from #GivingTuesday, a global day of giving. What I love about #GivingTuesday is the incredible sense of community the day inspires – a community of giving reflecting a community of people who know that a simple donation can make a world of difference. On December 2, Shot@Life supporters will be gathering in communities across the country to call on their friends and family to stand up for childhood and

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