Global Weekly Update September 30, 2013
Global Fund: Oct. 3 (Thursday!) Webinar, New Action Sheet, Oct. 12 Conference Call, and Education & Action Meeting Guide
Join us on October 3 at 9 pm ET for a Global Fund Replenishment Webinar: What’s Ahead for Our Advocacy? The meeting URL is http://fuze.me/21467367, and the dial-in phone number is +1 (347) 817-7654, pin 0. Grassroots will hear from Legislative Director John Fawcett on the upcoming Global Fund replenishment conference. What does it mean that the US will host the conference? What are our opportunities for helping make the replenishment conference successful?
Generating Media on the Global Fund: Our top action for October will be to generate media on the Global Fund replenishment. The October Action Sheet (in Word) focuses on getting a letter to the editor placed. And a full editorial packet on the Global Fund is here! (News that the U.S. is hosting the Global Fund replenishment conference will be a good hook for editors!)
The October 12 National Conference Call. Global Fund replenishment will be the theme of our call. We will welcome special guest, RESULTS ally Carol Nyirenda, Executive Director of CITAM+ of Zambia. Dial (888) 409-6709 at 2 pm ET on October 12 to join, and invite others to join as well using this customizable flyer!
Want to Hold an Education and Action Meeting in Your Community? Adapt our "meeting in a box" sample agenda and build your own powerful E&A meeting in support of the Global Fund, a meeting that will also showcase RESULTS in your town!
Top Actions: Request Bipartisan Cosponsorship for the Education For All Act & the Child Nutrition Resolution
Educating and nourishing children is something all should get behind. The Education for All Act of 2013 (H.R. 2780) and the Child Nutrition Resolution (H.Res. 254) will improve how we spend existing foreign aid resources. In order for these measures to receive serious consideration, though, we need to generate a significant number of cosponsorships from both parties. Our goal is to get 100 cosponsors for each of the two measures with a good bipartisan balance, and we are at 32 cosponsors for the Education for All Act and 38 cosponsors for the nutrition resolution. Here’s what you can do today:
1. Five-Minute Action: Send letters to your rep. requesting he/she cosponsor the Education For All Act and the Child Nutrition Resolution. Remember to personalize your letters with a brief statement of why you care about these issues.
2. Ten-Minute Action: Use the Education for All laser talk or the child nutrition laser talk to call the foreign policy aide in your representative’s office and request cosponsorship. Find the name and contact information of your representative's aides through our website or call the office using the Capitol Switchboard number ((202) 224-3121). When you call, ask for your congressperson first, then the foreign policy aide. Use your laser talk to make the request.
Not sure if your representative has cosponsored either piece of legislation yet? Find the Education for All Act and Child Nutrition Resolution cosponsorship lists through another handy online tool (scroll to the Cosponsor Search at the bottom).
In other global education news, the Global Partnership for Education replenishment meeting was announced for 2014. During last week's United Nations General Assembly meetings and events, in the midst of resolutions on Syria and talk about diplomatic relations with Iran, the global community took stock of our progress toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and discussed where attention should be focused after the MDGs expire and a new global development framework is launched in 2015. Read a new blog post about this announcement.
Reclaiming Our Democracy Tours the Nation
Three hundred people from two countries joined together for the recent evening conference call featuring Sam Daley-Harris, founder of RESULTS, and celebrating the 20th anniversary edition of his book Reclaiming Our Democracy. Joined by Prof. Muhammad Yunus and RESULTS Executive Director Joanne Carter, this call served as a centerpiece for many of you to do strategic outreach in your communities and invite others to be part of RESULTS. Well done! Find a recording and transcript of the call on our blog.
Sam is currently touring the country to talk about his book and the power of RESULTS. Check out the most up-to-date listing of his tour stops online. And have you read the released version of Reclaiming Our Democracy? Sam would love for you to post a review on Amazon!
And don't forget that your outreach isn't complete just because the book party is finished. Make sure your guests feel welcome to your next group event or meeting with your member of Congress! Consider doing a book club discussion with Reclaiming Our Democracy.
Virtual Fundraising
How can you help raise resources for RESULTS without hosting an event? Any individual or group can host an online fundraiser! Online fundraising with RESULTS has never been easier. Here are three ways partners can engage with RESULTS fundraising this fall without changing out of your comfy clothes. Contact Cindy Levin, Grassroots Development Associate.
Celebrations: Have a birthday coming up? Consider inviting your friends to fight poverty with us by donating your celebration to RESULTS! Visit our online portal to set up your own custom online donation page and ask friends to donate to RESULTS instead of shopping for a present this year.
Run/Walk Challenge: October is the last month to register for the LOTR Virtual Villains Challenge – a virtual walk/run to benefit RESULTS. Register here to earn real, shiny medals for completing a 5K, 10K, or 13.1 mile challenge on your own, anytime and anywhere. Spread the word!
Thanksgiving: For the month of November, we will create a webpage for a "Virtual Thanksgiving Feast." You can invite your friends to donate online in to help those who suffer from hunger during this time of feasting and plenty. You can hold an actual feast with your friends or just treat it as an online way for people to engage with us. Check the weekly updates for more info in the coming weeks.
The main point of the book is to confront and offer alternatives to the mistaken belief that our lives don’t matter.
— Sam Daley-Harris, describing his book Reclaiming Our Democracy, now available in a 20th Anniversary edition
1. October 3, 9 pm ET. Global Fund Replenishment Webinar: What’s Ahead for Our Advocacy?
The meeting URL is http://fuze.me/21467367, and the dial-in phone number is +1 (347) 817-7654, pin 0. Grassroots will hear from Legislative Director John Fawcett on the upcoming Global Fund replenishment conference. What does it mean that the US will host the conference? What are our opportunities for helping make the replenishment conference successful?
2. October 5. World Teacher Day.
3. October 9, 9 pm ET. RESULTS Introductory Call. Heard of RESULTS and want to know more? Join us for this 30-minute introductory call. Contact us with any questions and RSVP for the call. Dial (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262 to join.
4. October 12, 2 pm ET. RESULTS National Grassroots Conference Call for Global Poverty Campaigns. Theme: Generating Global Fund Media for the Replenishment. Special guest: Carol Nyirenda, Executive Director of CITAM+ of Zambia. Dial (888) 409-6709 to join!
5. October 15, 8 pm ET. Media Support Call. Want to be part of the on-going support that’s available to help you reach your media goals? Then this is the call for you! Join monthly for inspiration and ideas to keep you going. The Cameron Duncan Media Award is given to a deserving journalist at the annual International Conference, and we want to create professional media champions worthy of this award! Dial (218) 862-1300, passcode 682494 to join this call.
6. October 16. World Food Day. Contact Carly Pildis, Outreach and Advocacy Associate, if you want to plan an event for friends, colleagues, your chapter, or local school.
7. October 21, 8 pm ET. Next RESULTS Free Agents call for global poverty advocates. Dial (218) 486-1611, passcode 7378587 (RESULTS). Are you a RESULTS activist with our global poverty campaigns, living in a town with no RESULTS group? You are alone no more! Contact Lisa Marchal, Senior Global Grassroots Associate, for more information on this monthly group call.
8. October 25, 1 pm ET. RESULTS Introductory Call. Heard of RESULTS and want to know more? Join us for this 30-minute introductory call. Contact us with any questions and RSVP for the call. Dial (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262 to join.
9.October 28, 8 pm ET. Building Bipartisan Champions Cohort Call. Dial (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262 to join. This cohort meets every other month to brainstorm ways to move the needle on our issues in more challenging Congressional contexts.