Saturday, December 22, 2012
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Support the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act
The Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act will be coming to a vote in the House either today or tomorrow. The Senate will vote on the bill before they adjourn. This legislation will establish uniform guidelines with measurable goals, performance metrics and monitoring and evaluation plans across all U.S. foreign assistance programs, and make detailed information regarding U.S. foreign assistance publicly available and regularly updated.
Please help me support this bill by calling your members of Congress and Senate to ask for support of HR 3159 and Senate 3310.
Here is what you can say:
To Members of Congress: The Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act (HR 3159) introduced by Rep Ted Poe (R-TX) was cleared for the House suspension calendar and is scheduled for a vote this week. It is a sensible, bipartisan bill with broad support in both the House and Senate that will make a real impact on the success of U.S. development programs throughout the world. I am a voting constituent of Congressman (woman) X and would like to see this legislation supported.
To Members of the Senate: In the next week, the Senate will be voting on the Foreign Aid Transparency Accountability Act (S3310) co-sponsored by Senators John Kerry and Dick Lugar. It is a sensible, bipartisan bill with broad support in both the House and Senate that will make a real impact on the success of U.S. development programs. I am a voting constituent of Senator X and I ask that he/she will support this important legislation when it comes to a vote to give your colleague Senator Dick Lugar a fitting farewell.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Letter from Senator Bob Corker
Dear Ms. Voorhees,
Thank you for taking the time to contact my office concerning the provision of U.S. foreign assistance. Your input is important to me and I appreciate the time you took to share your thoughts.
Like you, I believe that it is in the national security interest of the United States to carefully and strategically provide funding for selected humanitarian, peacekeeping, and diplomatic initiatives around the world.
That being said, I am deeply concerned about the future financial stability of our government due to our overwhelming national debt. Regardless of the party, administration, or Congress in charge, our federal government has spent well beyond its means for many, many years. I am committed to fiscal responsibility, and lately our government has been anything but fiscally responsible.
As I suggested before, we need to ensure that our foreign assistance is directed to programs which are critical to our national security interests. The insight you have provided in your letter will certainly help my staff and me more effectively consider this issue as we debate future foreign assistance spending levels, and I thank you for your input.
Thank you again for your letter. I hope you will continue to share your thoughts with me as I serve you in the United States Senate.
Sincerely,
Bob Corker
United States Senator
Monday, December 17, 2012
Education is Empowerment
I sent this letter to my representative to advocate for education for women around the world.
As your constituent, I know you are faced with difficult decisions every day about how to make the most of limited U.S. funding. And while these choices are tough, U.S. investments in global development must remain a priority. One of the single best development investments we can make is in girls' education -- when girls are educated, they can literally change the world. I urge you to co-sponsor the Education for All Act of 2011 (H.R. 2705), introduced by Reps. Nita Lowey and Dave Reichert. Education for All is a smart investment in the lives of girls, their families and their communities.
Currently, an estimated 67 million children around the world are out of school -- the majority of them are girls. CARE, a humanitarian organization with decades of education experience on the ground, has learned that an investment in girls' education is one of the single best investments made to help communities lift their people out of poverty. Research shows that every additional year a girl spends in school raises her income by 10 to 20 percent. And when girls are educated, they choose to delay marriage and raise fewer, healthier children. Together, this leads to more productive, stable communities.
In March 2011, more than 1,000 CARE advocates from nearly every state in the union went to Capitol Hill to ask their representatives to support the Education for All Act. I'm following up with you today to ask for your support of this important bill.
On behalf of CARE and the millions of girls educated and empowered to bring change to their communities, please co-sponsor H.R.2705. To co-sponsor, please contact Talia Dubovi in Rep. Lowey's office (Talia.Dubovi@mail.house.gov) or Ashley Johnson in Rep. Reichert's office (Ashley.Johnson@mail.house.gov).
Thank you for your consideration.
Contact your Representative:
Stand Up for Education for All: Thank You, Tell-a-Friend - CARE : Defending Dignity - Fighting Poverty
As your constituent, I know you are faced with difficult decisions every day about how to make the most of limited U.S. funding. And while these choices are tough, U.S. investments in global development must remain a priority. One of the single best development investments we can make is in girls' education -- when girls are educated, they can literally change the world. I urge you to co-sponsor the Education for All Act of 2011 (H.R. 2705), introduced by Reps. Nita Lowey and Dave Reichert. Education for All is a smart investment in the lives of girls, their families and their communities.
Currently, an estimated 67 million children around the world are out of school -- the majority of them are girls. CARE, a humanitarian organization with decades of education experience on the ground, has learned that an investment in girls' education is one of the single best investments made to help communities lift their people out of poverty. Research shows that every additional year a girl spends in school raises her income by 10 to 20 percent. And when girls are educated, they choose to delay marriage and raise fewer, healthier children. Together, this leads to more productive, stable communities.
In March 2011, more than 1,000 CARE advocates from nearly every state in the union went to Capitol Hill to ask their representatives to support the Education for All Act. I'm following up with you today to ask for your support of this important bill.
On behalf of CARE and the millions of girls educated and empowered to bring change to their communities, please co-sponsor H.R.2705. To co-sponsor, please contact Talia Dubovi in Rep. Lowey's office (Talia.Dubovi@mail.house.gov) or Ashley Johnson in Rep. Reichert's office (Ashley.Johnson@mail.house.gov).
Thank you for your consideration.
Contact your Representative:
Stand Up for Education for All: Thank You, Tell-a-Friend - CARE : Defending Dignity - Fighting Poverty
Enough Food to Feed the Hungry
Read this informative Huffington Post article to learn more about why millions of people are starving everyday, but lack of food is not the issue.
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Give the Gift of Life Saving Food/Water
Unicef offers a variety of gifts to give to loved ones in the form a donation to provide life saving clean water and nutrient packed food. Right now if you buy a unifec gift each dollar you spend will matched.
Donate now, before December 12th to have your gift matched $1-$1.
A food survival kit is just one of the life changing gifts you can purchase.
Every Child Survival Food Pack contains some of the most miraculous treatments UNICEF distributes to children in dire need, including:
Miracle Milk – At least that's what I call it, because therapeutic milk isn't regular milk. It's made especially for malnourished children whose bodies have begun to shut down. Even the sickest child can easily absorb the nutrients in this fortified formula.
Read-to-Eat Nut Paste – This comes in small foil packets easy enough for a child to hold and to eat on her own. I have seen achingly hungry children devour this paste, the look on their face, sheer joy. Each bite of this sweet, fortified paste rushes lifesaving calories straight to the tiny organs and muscles of a child.
High-Energy Biscuits and Micronutrient Powder – Once a child has been pulled back from the brink of starvation and death, these biscuits and the micronutrient powder packets make sure malnourished children fully recover.
Donate now, before December 12th to have your gift matched $1-$1.
A food survival kit is just one of the life changing gifts you can purchase.
Every Child Survival Food Pack contains some of the most miraculous treatments UNICEF distributes to children in dire need, including:
Miracle Milk – At least that's what I call it, because therapeutic milk isn't regular milk. It's made especially for malnourished children whose bodies have begun to shut down. Even the sickest child can easily absorb the nutrients in this fortified formula.
Read-to-Eat Nut Paste – This comes in small foil packets easy enough for a child to hold and to eat on her own. I have seen achingly hungry children devour this paste, the look on their face, sheer joy. Each bite of this sweet, fortified paste rushes lifesaving calories straight to the tiny organs and muscles of a child.
High-Energy Biscuits and Micronutrient Powder – Once a child has been pulled back from the brink of starvation and death, these biscuits and the micronutrient powder packets make sure malnourished children fully recover.
Monday, December 3, 2012
Why the Borgen Project?
This past summer I had the opportunity to work with children who were at risk or rescued from human trafficking in northern Thailand. I worked at the Half Day School with the Development and Education Program for Daughters and Communities (DEPDC). Working with the children helped to open my eyes to the continuing need of developing nations abroad.
I stumbled across the Borgen Project campaign and fell in love with the idea of actually doing something about the vast need of those in poverty. People often feel let down by our government, but I strongly believe that our government falls short of our expectations because we neglect our duty as citizens to stay involved and informed.
My hope is that once other Americans recognize that we have the power to drastically affect the lives of those who suffer everyday due to poverty, human trafficking, and corruption, they will be motivated to take action. Clean water, education, vaccinations, and other simple programs have made incredible strides in downsizing poverty, but America can do so much more. It is time we start taking responsibility as a global leader and we start doing more to end poverty.
There was a time when we thought slavery and segregation were impossible to avoid. Another revolution is beginning, will you be sleeping?
"Can we in America stand idly by and not be concerned?" And an answer came,"Oh no! because the destiny of the United States is tied up with the destiny of India and every other nation." I started thinking about the fact that we spend millions of dollars a day in our country to store surplus food, and I said to myself, "I know where we can store that food free of charge - in the wrinkled stomachs of the millions of God's children in Asia and Africa, in South America, and in our own nation who go to bed hungry at night."
I stumbled across the Borgen Project campaign and fell in love with the idea of actually doing something about the vast need of those in poverty. People often feel let down by our government, but I strongly believe that our government falls short of our expectations because we neglect our duty as citizens to stay involved and informed.
My hope is that once other Americans recognize that we have the power to drastically affect the lives of those who suffer everyday due to poverty, human trafficking, and corruption, they will be motivated to take action. Clean water, education, vaccinations, and other simple programs have made incredible strides in downsizing poverty, but America can do so much more. It is time we start taking responsibility as a global leader and we start doing more to end poverty.
There was a time when we thought slavery and segregation were impossible to avoid. Another revolution is beginning, will you be sleeping?
Martin Luther King Jr. said:
"Can we in America stand idly by and not be concerned?" And an answer came,"Oh no! because the destiny of the United States is tied up with the destiny of India and every other nation." I started thinking about the fact that we spend millions of dollars a day in our country to store surplus food, and I said to myself, "I know where we can store that food free of charge - in the wrinkled stomachs of the millions of God's children in Asia and Africa, in South America, and in our own nation who go to bed hungry at night."
What is the Borgen Project?
The Borgen Project is a national campaign focused on mobilizing Americans to reach out to their congress representatives in order to pass legislation that helps to downsize poverty. The Borgen Project was founded by a humble man named Clint Borgen.
In 1999, while working as a young volunteer in refugee camps during the Kosovo War and genocide, Clint Borgen recognized the need for an organization that could bring U.S. political attention to issues of severe poverty.
In 2003, after graduating from Washington State University and interning at the United Nations, Borgen began developing his project. In need of startup funding, Borgen took a job living on a fishing vessel docked in Dutch Harbor, Alaska (the same location as “The Deadliest Catch”). From humble beginnings in one of Earth’s most remote locations, The Borgen Project was born.
Now headquartered in Seattle, The Borgen Project has become an influential campaign platform aimed at reducing global poverty through public mobilization and political advocacy, and serves as a testament that one man and a laptop can change the world.
The fishing dock where the project began serves as the background of this blog.
In 1999, while working as a young volunteer in refugee camps during the Kosovo War and genocide, Clint Borgen recognized the need for an organization that could bring U.S. political attention to issues of severe poverty.
In 2003, after graduating from Washington State University and interning at the United Nations, Borgen began developing his project. In need of startup funding, Borgen took a job living on a fishing vessel docked in Dutch Harbor, Alaska (the same location as “The Deadliest Catch”). From humble beginnings in one of Earth’s most remote locations, The Borgen Project was born.
Now headquartered in Seattle, The Borgen Project has become an influential campaign platform aimed at reducing global poverty through public mobilization and political advocacy, and serves as a testament that one man and a laptop can change the world.
The fishing dock where the project began serves as the background of this blog.
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