Global Weekly Update October 11, 2010

Currency Transaction Levy: An Innovative Opportunity

The global economic crisis created a $65 billion “fiscal hole” in the budgets of the world’s 56 poorest countries.  As the economic crisis persists, we need innovative sources of financing for pressing global development needs.  Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA), a senior member of the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee, has introduced legislation that would levy a tiny tax on foreign currency trading by big banks and businesses – a market with $4 trillion in daily activity that is completely untaxed. The revenue would be directed to global health, climate change, and child care for low income families in the U.S.  Learn more and ask your representative to cosponsor the Investing in our Future Act of 2010 (H.R. 5783). Check out our CTL page on our website as you get acquainted with this new, big idea, and watch for an action sheet coming soon.

Current Cosponsors (as of October 7, 2010):

Rep. Filner, Bob [CA-51] – 9/14/2010

Rep. Grijalva, Raul M. [AZ-7] – 7/27/2010

Rep. Jackson, Jesse L., Jr. [IL-2] – 7/27/2010

Rep. Kucinich, Dennis J. [OH-10] – 7/30/2010

Rep. Lee, Barbara [CA-9] – 7/27/2010

Rep. Moore, Dennis [KS-3] – 9/14/2010

Rep. Schakowsky, Janice D. [IL-9] – 9/22/2010

Two Excellent Training Opportunities on Wednesday: Share Widely!

1. New Activist Orientation, October 13 at 9 pm ET. (This is the second call in a four-call series.) Don’t worry if you missed the first call; we’ll catch you up. This is a great series for people who are fairly new to RESULTS. It will help newcomers through that initial, sometimes overwhelming phase when we are learning new information and skills. The series is key for moving from wanting to be a powerful change agent to becoming one. The call-in number is (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. Be in front of your computer if possible so we can familiarize participants with our online tools.

2. Pre-election Birddogging Training, October 13 at 9 pm ET. Learn how to make the most of the election season and public candidate events. Birddogging is an organizing tactic that helps you make the most of public events to educate decision makers and the community as well as to get your decision makers to articulate anti-poverty platforms. Expert Kaytee Riek of Health Gap will lead the call along with Crickett Nicovich. Kaytee will give you excellent training on preparing for events, placing yourselves at the event, asking questions, engaging the decision makers directly, and engaging the media. Call (712) 432-3100, passcode 887871. See the birddogging information on our website before or after the call.

Special note: We want to capture all the fantastic work you have been doing as trained advocates. Be sure to report your advocacy activity to your group leader as soon as possible. We are creating a third quarter report so we can celebrate and strategize for the final quarter of the year and beyond.

Fall Fundraising Update

Thanks to all who have decided to roll up your sleeves and participate in fall fundraising! Whether you are hosting an event, conducting a local “Friends and Family Campaign,” or both, we are deeply grateful for your commitment to changing and saving lives. (You may be inspired by knowing that your own global regional coordinators have personally pledged to raise at least $8450!)

Please read our blog post to learn more about our efforts this fall and how you can participate.

Again, thank you so much for keeping RESULTS strong!

Bring Your TB Advocacy to the Next Level — Apply for a World AIDS Day Mini-Grant!

World AIDS Day (WAD) is December 1. To help highlight the deadly synergy between TB and HIV, RESULTS Educational Fund (REF) is offering RESULTS grassroots groups the opportunity to undertake TB advocacy activities for WAD 2010 and beyond that might not be possible without support funding. Activities can fall between September 1 and December 31, 2010. We are making funds available, through a competitive grant application process, for WAD events, and TB awareness building in your communities. These mini-grants are funded through REF’s ACTION project.

Visit our 2010 World AIDS Day page for a link to the application.

Ideas Types of Activities — Be Creative!

• Organize a community panel discussion on TB-HIV co-infection and invite the media, community members, and members of Congress.
• Reach out to local HIV/AIDS groups to build coalition support around events that could highlight TB-HIV.
• Organize a conference call for journalists with local or state TB experts (e.g. a state TB controller).
• Hold a screening and discussion of a TB-HIV related film.
• Research the history of TB in your community and do a public art show, display, discussion or other community event to bring attention to it and the current state of affairs of TB in the world.
• Work with your local opera on their production of La Boheme or La Traviata and make the connection to TB.
• Organize a book club around an appropriate TB related book.
• Identify and work with one or more TB patients to help them become advocates. Find opportunities for them to write and be published, speak out publicly, speak anonymously (on a radio program for example).
• Create an event — a rally, a walk, a candlelight vigil — that brings media attention to TB.

             The real credit should go to great grassroots advocates such as yourself, Sandra! We couldn’t be bigger fans of Results.org and stand ready to work with you on anything and everything moving forward.

             — From Rep. Jim Himes’ (D-CT) foreign policy aide Lex Paulson, responding to a RESULTS-generated letter to the editor published in the Connecticut Post which praised the congressman and others’ recent efforts as related to our campaigns.

October: Congressional recess

October 13: Pre-election Birddogging Training Call: Getting Our Issues on the Radar, 9 pm ET. (712) 432-3100, passcode 887871. Kaytee Riek of HealthGap will be with us to talk about great techniques, useful as you attend town hall meetings and seek to get our issues talked about in the run-up to the election!

October 13, 27; Nov. 3 (date correction): New Activist Orientation. (712) 432-3100, passcode: 761262. Contact Ken Patterson or Lisa Marchal for more details.

October–December: Fall fundraising campaign.

December 1: World AIDS Day. Interested in an event to raise awareness about TB-HIV coinfection? Think of all the possibilities, and then apply for a mini-grant to help your event take off!

Upcoming Fall Fundraisers

• October 12: RESULTS Des Moines
• October 16: RESULTS Santa Fe
• November 7: RESULTS Columbus
• December 5: RESULTS Chicago
• December 9: RESULTS in DC

Other Dates

September–November: We’ll be working to identify U.S. TB patient advocates who can speak powerfully about their experience with TB to make it real for our communities.

January 2010: Media training for TB Controllers and grassroots activists.

June 19–21: RESULTS International Conference in Washington, D.C.