Puget Sound Millennium Goals Project

63RD ANNUAL UNITED NATIONS DAY

Friday, October 24, 7-9 pm
University Temple United Methodist Church Fireplace Room (lower level)
Corner of 15th Avenue NE & NE 43rd Street, University District, Seattle

Theme: Achieving the Millennium Development Goals - How we can encourage the next US Administration and Congress to increase efforts to end extreme poverty, hunger, and disease, and enhance stability and sustainable development around the globe.

Speaker: J. Mark Brinkmoeller is Director, US NGO Partnerships & Faith Relations at The ONE Campaign. He has worked several years as a department head at ONE, and has been on many delegations to Africa. Mark is involved in efforts to pass congressional initiatives that seek to advance the MDGs.

The ONE Campaign: “ONE is Americans of all beliefs and every walk of life - united as ONE - to help make poverty history. We are a campaign of over 2.4 million people and growing from all 50 states and over 100 of America's most well-known and respected non-profit, advocacy and humanitarian organizations.” http://one.org/ ONE's coalition members include The United Nations Foundation, UNICEF, The Millennium Campaign, as well as advocacy groups with local activities: Bread for the World, Seattle RESULTS, Seattle ONE, Lutheran Peace Fellowship, and Jubilee USA.

Sponsors: United Nations Association of Seattle, Puget Sound Millennium Goals Project (PSMGP), UNA Young Professionals for International Cooperation (YPIC), SeattleONE

Co-sponsors: Jubilee NW Coalition, Oikocredit Northwest SA (Support Association), Seattle RESULTS, Western Washington Fellowship of Reconciliation

U.N. Millennium Development Goals and Microcredit: How Small Loans Support Sustainable Development

Thursday, May 29, 2008, 6:30 – 9:00 p.m., Kane Hall 220, Campus of the University of Washington

How citizens can help eliminate global poverty through micro loans was the focus of a public event organized by the Puget Sound Millennium Goals Project. Co-sponsors included: The Center for Global Studies, Jackson School, University of Washington; Oikocredit Support NW, RESULTS, ONE, and Jeff Keenan, co-author of "Our Day to End Poverty".

The program, featured exhibits from a range of local microcredit organizations and a panel of experts representing leading Microfinance practitioners and organizations devoted to alleviating poverty in regions around the world. Panelists were: Rick Beckett, CEO of Global Partnerships, a Seattle-based Microcredit lender; Peter Bladin, VP of Grameen Foundation and Director of Grameen Technology, also based in Seattle; Terry Provance, Executive Director of Oikocredit USA, an ecumenical cooperative lender to be initiated soon in Seattle; and Carol Welch, former US Coordinator of the UN Millennium Campaign. The discussion was moderated by KIRO TV news anchor and reporter, Penny LeGate. Due to time limitations, the panel was unable to answer all of the excellent questions posed by audience members. Several of these, answered by Rick Beckett, are addressed in reading more.

Seattle Town Hall
Saturday February 2, 2008

Panel featuring: U.S. Representative Adam Smith, 9th District, WA, Samuel Worthington, President of InterAction, and Craig Nakagawa, Acting President of VillageReach. Dave Ross, KIRO Radio, moderated the panel. Congressman Smith is sponsor of the 2007 Global Poverty Act. InterAction is the largest alliance of relief and development non-governmental organizations working overseas. VillageReach is brings essential health services to Mozambique and others.

The forum addressed how the U.S. government has supported the Millennium Development Goals, and the need for improvements if the Goals are to be achieved by 2015.

Stand Up Against Poverty broke the Guinness World Record in 2007! On October 16th & 17th, more than 43 million people took part in the annual international event to bring global poverty to the attention of political leaders. By exceeding the 2006 total of 23 million participants, it is apparent that the importance and significance of the Millennium Development Goals is increasing around the globe. The Puget Sound Millennium Goals Project is focused on capturing this growing significance both locally and nationally, and increasing the United States' participation in achieving the MDGs by raising public awareness of poverty reduction.

Several Stand Up! events were held in the Puget Sound Region, including an event organized by SeattleONE (see photo). Be sure to take part in Stand Up Against Poverty this year to set a new world record!