Global Weekly Update: October 27, 2014

Top Action: Ask Your Reps & Senators to Act on Gavi

In January 2015 Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, will try to raise $7.5 billion to vaccinate 300 million children, which will save over 5 million lives. This won't happen without a bold US pledge. We need the help of Congress and the media to encourage the President to deliver.

Got 2 Minutes? Ask your representative to cosponsor House Resolution 688 on Gavi and child vaccines.

Got 10 Minutes? Use our Gavi Laser Talk to call your representative's or senators' offices, ask for the foreign policy aide, and request that they write to the Presdident on Gavi.

Got 15 Minutes? Watch a short video from the bottom of our Gavi Resource page to inspire yourself, then write a letter to the editor highlighting the need to invest in child vaccinations and healthcare system strengthening. Call on your representative and senators (by name if you can) in your letter to act.

Join the International Gavi Webinar on November 8 at 11:30 am EST

Our advocacy efforts to ensure that Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, has the resources it needs to vaccinate 300 million children is not a solo effort. We are working with NGO partners and other RESULTS affiliates. Join us on November 8 at 11:30 am EST for an Interntaional Webinar (in place of the monthly national conference call) with RESULTS UK, RESULTS Canada, RESULTS Korea, and RESULTS Australia. Our guest speaker is Geoff Adlide, ‎Director of Advocacy and Public Policy at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

Here is how to connect to the webinar online or by phone:

• Webinar connection to see the speakers: http://fuze.me/26310650. Please test a few days before the webinar. You can join via your web browser or enhance the experience by downloading the Fuze application.
• Three ways to connect to audio: 1) Start the audio on your computer when you join the webinar, 2) Dial the toll number (201) 479-4595 and enter meeting number 26310650#, or 3) dial toll-free number (885) 346-3893 and enter the meeting number 26310650#. 

This is a great opportunity to invite people from your community to learn about the big RESULTS and our efforts on Gavi. Use our Gavi Outreach Guide for ideas and to request funds for Gavi outreach activities.

Send the New Gavi Editorial Packet to Your Editors

Election season is coming to an end and your papers will need something new to write about. Help them out. The new Gavi Editorial Packet (pdf version) connects the current concerns about global health (Ebola) with the need to implement known solutions to save lives and improve healthcare systems. Contact your editor using one of our media tips.

This is also a good time to prepare an oped that your paper can print after elections. Use the editorial packet to craft your own powerful media piece to send to your paper.

Grassroots News & Opportunities

Amazing Fundraisers. Congratulations to Columbus, OH, Inland Empire, CA, and Dallas, TX for hosting successful fundraising events this past week, and for Houston for raising their goal to $100,000 for their upcoming event. Upcoming fundraising events include Santa Fe (11/9), Detroit (11/16), Houston (11/21), and Austin (11/22). Consider organizing your own Virtual Thanksgiving Feast fundraiser or Friends & Family Campaign.

Introductory Calls. Do you know anyone who'd like to hear a bit more about RESULTS? Encourage them to register for a 30-minute Introduction to RESULTS call and move them along the ladder of engagement. Next call is on October 31 at 1 pm EDT (it won't be scary).

Are You Our Next Regional Coordinator? Regional Coordinators are the backbone of the RESULTS grassroots support structure that makes us so powerful and effective. If you are ready for a leadership experience that empowers other people and changes the world, consider applying to become a Regional Coordinator.

A Path Appears. Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn have co-written an inspiring book called A Path Appears which examines what it takes to create real change in the world around us, and RESULTS is humbled to be included in the book. Are Kristof and WuDunn coming to your town on their book tour? Perhaps you could thank them in person! Check out their book's website and contact Ken Patterson for a guide on how to make the most of the event.

"We would never tolerate such shortsightedness in private behavior. If a roof leaks, we fix it before a home is ruined. If we buy a car, we add oil to keep the engine going. Yet in public policy — from education to global health — we routinely refuse to invest at the front end and have to pay far more at the back end…

Vaccines are a bargain. Since 1990, vaccines and other simple interventions (such as treatments for diarrhea) have saved nearly 100 million children’s lives, according to Unicef. Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, is now in the middle of trying to raise an additional $7.5 billion to subsidize vaccinations of 300 million additional children around the world…Such an investment should be a no-brainer. In the 21st century, we have the resources to fight more than one fire at a time."

Nicholas Kristof on The Ebola Fiasco

October 30, 8 pm ET. Finding and Connecting with the Grasstops. Dial in to (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. If you are new to RESULTS or just having a hard time finding or getting your grasstops champions (community influencers) to be in action with your group, this 30-minute call is for you! Join us as we learn how to discover grasstops champions; connect our global campaigns with local concerns; make your first introduction(s) successful; and utilize both active listening and good follow-up tactics.

October 31, 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.

November 8, 11:30 am ET. Special International Webinar (note time). In lieu of our normal monthly national grassroots conference call, we'll join with advocates worldwide for a enlightening webinar related to our Gavi campaign. We'll welcome Geoff Adlide, Director of Advocacy and Public Policy at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. Find information on how to connect in this Weekly Update.

November 12, 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.

November 17, 8 pm ET. RESULTS Free Agents Call for Global Poverty Advocates. Dial (605) 475-6777, passcode 7378587. 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.