At the White House Summit on Global Development
Pictured above, President Obama working the crowd after his speech at the Summit on Global Development.
"...today, we reaffirm our belief that in the 21st century, no child should go to bed hungry, and no child should die from a mosquito bite, and no one should be denied opportunity because of where they’re born or what gender or religion they are, or the color of their skin or who they love. All of us are born equal and we’re all connected. And if a schoolhouse door is closed to a young girl, then we’re all diminished. And when a mother can’t buy medicine for her sick child, or a family flees violence whether in Syria or El Salvador, in a sense that makes us all poorer and all less secure. That’s what we believe, and that’s what brings us here together." -President Obama
Last week, U.S. Fund for UNICEF's Senior Vice President of Programs Lynn Stratford, and Director for Public Policy and Advocacy Mark Engman had the honor of attending the White House Summit on Global Development in Washington, DC. The summit featured a series of panels with government, corporate, and youth leaders from around the world; capped by a speech from the President!
It was a great learning and networking experience. But most of all, it was a reminder of the importance of our work; and a reaffirmation that what we do matters to kids around the world.
The President noted that we are inundated by horrible headlines, and it can be hard to remember the progress that we helped create of the past quarter-century: cutting child mortality in half, cutting in half the number of children not in primary school, lifting a billion people out of extreme poverty. Of course, we still have a long way to go, with extreme challenges due to inequity, conflict, disaster, climate change. The Summit was a call to action to continue to work together to address these challenges and save children’s lives.
HOW TO HELP
There are many ways to make a difference
War, famine, poverty, natural disasters — threats to the world's children keep coming. But UNICEF won't stop working to keep children healthy and safe.
UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories — more places than any other children's organization. UNICEF has the world's largest humanitarian warehouse and, when disaster strikes, can get supplies almost anywhere within 72 hours. Constantly innovating, always advocating for a better world for children, UNICEF works to ensure that every child can grow up healthy, educated, protected and respected.
Would you like to help give all children the opportunity to reach their full potential? There are many ways to get involved.
