In February the United Nations officially declared a famine in South Sudan. What is most disheartening about this most recent famine in the world’s youngest country is it’s largely man-made. Constant infighting among South Sudanese opposition forces and the government makes growing crops nearly impossible. And, the instability in the country continues to drive up food costs. 100,000 people are directly suffering from famine, and … Continue reading 5 Organizations to Support During South Sudan’s Famine
UNICEF announced its largest fundraising appeal in history, $3.1 billion, to provide assistance to 62 million children who are victims of armed conflicts, natural disasters, and infectious diseases. This latest appeal is a $1 billion increase over UNICEF’s 2014 appeal.
“A staggering 1 in 10 of the world’s children – or more than 230 million – currently live in countries and areas affected by armed conflicts. Children have the right to grow up happy and safe, and should not have to fear that they will be targeted by combatants,” said Caryl Stern President and CEO of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. “I have seen firsthand the devastating impact that living in a conflict zone – without protection or access to water, medicine, food and school – can have on children.”
Annual fundraising appeals routinely rely heavily on the private sector, corporate partnerships and large philanthropic organizations to provide critical funding to help the world’s poorest. Today, 1 in 10 children are living in countries with armed conflicts including Syria, Central African Republic, South Sudan, Nigeria and Iraq. These conflicts cause children to be deprived of basic necessities like food, water, an education, and shelter. While UNICEF works in 190 countries and territories, there are certain hotspots where children need added assistance.
There were really powerful and poignant Vine videos that were published by NGOs, foundations, and nonprofits this year. Even though adding Vine into their social media repertoire hasn’t hit a tipping point within the nonprofit community yet, we still believe Vine is an effective medium to convey short, but impactful messages. Here are our seven favorite Vine videos of the year — in no particular order. Gates … Continue reading Our 7 Favorite #NGO Vine Videos of the Year
Effective video making is a powerful form of storytelling. Videos, when done well, get to the heart of the matter quickly and leave people wanting to know more, do more, and donate more. These videos encompass all of those things and also made us want to delve more into not only their messages, but also spread the word. Here are our top 10 NGO video … Continue reading Our Top 10 Recommended NGO Videos of 2014
Last month, a United Nations team travelled to Western Equitoria, Central Equatoria, and Western Bahr El Ghazal in South Sudan to assess road conditions, an important task when famine looms in a region that is mostly agrarian. Without passable roads it is impossible for lifesaving, critical health supplies, health workers, aid agencies, and most importantly food to reach remote areas that are cut off from main city … Continue reading Logistics Team Visits South Sudan to Assess Road Conditions Amid Looming Famine
There is a long tradition of newborn and child healthcare in the United States and around the world for that matter. See photos below. From 1900 – 1997 the child mortality rate decreased more than 90% in the United States – a laudable national health achievement. Now there is an accelerated global move to save more newborn lives around the world given the knowledge and interventions … Continue reading [Photos in B&W] Historical Look at Child and Newborn Health in the US
Today UNICEF released its annual State of the World’s Children report and this year they have placed a heavy emphasis on the data. In its report UNICEF says that when children are counted they automatically matter. We share their sentiments wholeheartedly. When children are counted then programs can be created and implemented to help them stay alive and healthy. Take into consideration, for example, that … Continue reading Can Data Keep Children Alive?
During the weekend we read global news articles worth reading from media outlets ranging from the New York Times to the Guardian. If you would like to bookmark some of these articles we recommend using Instapaper or Evernote for future reading. The New York Times published a heartbreaking video about the malnutrition crisis that is ongoing in Afghanistan in Afghanistan’s Unexplained Hunger Crisis. Peace talks have officially begun between the … Continue reading Monday Morning Reads
I have been told enough harrowing personal stories and have read enough reports to understand contracting malaria isn’t a cakewalk. And for children (especially those under the age of five) and expectant mothers malaria can be deadly. Fortunately with rapid diagnosis and malaria treatments children as well as adults can experience speedy recoveries from a disease that is both debilitating and potentially fatal. While in … Continue reading [Photos] Inside a Malaria Treatment Center
Dar es Saalam, Tanzania – Throughout my travels in Tanzania for the past ten days every time I saw a mother and her baby I smiled inside. And I was even more happy to see mothers breastfeeding their babies as breastfeeding has been proven to be a key intervention to keep more children under the age of five alive in developing countries. Tanzania, unfortunately, is … Continue reading [Photos] Motherhood in Tanzania #IRPTZ
Last week Melinda Gates, the Co-Chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, wrote on Impatient Optimists that the most important statistic in the world is the rate of child survival. It is one of the only health statistics that improves year after year. 300,000 more children are alive this year than last and you can be assured that based on 50 years of research, even more … Continue reading Why Child Survival Rates Continue to Improve
Amid news of a poison chemical attack right outside of Damascus last week and the sniper attack on a UN convoy today, UNICEF also had harrowing news of its own to announce last Friday. They have recorded the one millionth child refugee who has escaped the war in Syria. “This one millionth child refugee is not just another number,” said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake. … Continue reading One Million Children are Now Syrian Refugees
Photo: Ramadan in Somalia: Men pray at a mosque in Mogadishu, Somalia, during the holy month of Ramadan. UN Photo/Ilyas A Abukar Even though there was much fanfare and optimism coming out of Somalia a year ago as a new government was put in place and a new constitution was ushered in , the Horn of Africa country is now mired in an internal fight between the government … Continue reading Somalia: A Country in Flux
During World Breastfeeding Week UNICEF shared knowledgeable breastfeeding infographics along with beautiful photos of breastfeeding mothers on Facebook. Whenever I travel to low or middle income countries I always see scores of breastfeeding mothers and their children, but those numbers could be greater in order to save more babies. Simply breastfeeding gives babies an increased chance of survival and thriving. A lack of trained health … Continue reading UNICEF Features Fantastic Breastfeeding Images
On Thursday, August 1, Unicef USA conducted a webinar with Cara E. Yar Khan, UNICEF Haiti Disability Focal Point and Mark Engman is currently the Director of Public Policy and Advocacy for the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. From UNICEF The issue of disability is not new to UNICEF, however the agency has moved from just focusing on the protection of children with disabilities (CWD) to … Continue reading Unicef USA’s Children With Disabilities Webinar
Social Good Moms 