Social Action + Cinema Videos of the Day:
1) Burma: It Can’t Wait- Myanmar Celebrity Campaign PSA Montage
For the Cinema YouTube Video of the Day, Click here >>>
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*U.S. Corn Crop Could Decrease by 10% Further Fueling the Great Ethanol Debate
*Uganda ‘happy’ about food crisis. Why? Because the president hopes the food crisis will prompt the removal of trade barriers, allowing countries like Uganda to profit from food surpluses.
* Tomatoes become scarce among local businesses in the US
* In the UK, Tories argue that Govt making world food price crisis worse “As food shortages take hold across the world we should be looking to optimise domestic production and relieve pressure on world markets,” says agriculture minister Jim Paice.
* The World Bank Group announced today it would support global efforts to overcome the global food crisis with a new $1.2 billion rapid financing facility to address immediate needs, including $200 million in grants targeted at the vulnerable in the world’s poorest countries.
*S. Korea looks to fresh start after beef crisis
*Cyclone-hit Myanmar has enough rice to feed its people, the ruling junta said on Wednesday, accusing foreign aid agencies of presenting a false picture of the devastation in the Irrawaddy delta rice bowl.
*The famine in Ethiopia this year is the worst to hit the country since 2003. Officials estimate Ethiopia needs 300,000 tonnes of food supplies to last until the next harvest, due in September. They are warning that tens of thousands of children could die unless help arrives soon. The World Food Programme says about £73 million is needed to feed children at risk of starvation.
takepart and lean what you can do with Oxfam America.
Related:
Social Action and Cinema YouTube Videos of the Day:
1) Jennifer Aniston & Woody Harrelson Burma: It Can’t Wait
For the Cinema YouTube Video of the Day, Click here >>>
Read the rest of this entry »
It’s so easy nowadays to get caught up in “world issues”. By this I mean stories so dynamic they instantaneously traverse the globe through media. Burma is big and surely Cyclone Nargis victims need the world’s help (TakePart), but Myanmar also makes for great copy. An hour ago Associated Press carried its ruling junta lashing out at aid donors over all the chocolate.
But, what about less pithy or vogue causes, ones which do not shake the globe with their very mention? Do juicy/event-driven stories cause us to overlook smaller/more generic, but less urgent causes?
Cue “Sex and the City” moment: at this point I couldn’t help but ponder. Should we also spend time doing good in mundane ways?
How about sending Blind or Autistic children to Summer camp? It’s not life or death, but it sure seemed to matter to the children profiled in two very similar articles published in the L.A. Times California Local section this week. Credit the Times for shamelessly plugging their cause in the guise of newsworthy articles, and I mean that.
Donations to their L.A. Times Family Fund help give low-income children a summer to remember. The McCormick Foundation matches 50% of every dollar donated to the Summer Camp Campaign.
You may also wish to check out the American Camp Association, a non-profit with the mission of “enriching the lives of children, youth and adults through the camp experience”.
Mundane, yes. Good, also yes. Just some food for thought for all who TakePart in this sort of thing.
It’s May 16th, I’m Gina Telaroli and this is TakePart.com’s look at the week in social action…
Join TakePart's community today!
Filed under:
Events • Film • Lead • Learn • New Media • Renew • Technology • Video • podcast
Nicole Richie and husband Joel Madden made this video supporting the UNICEF campaign to raise funds for 8 million children affected by the Myanmar cyclone.
by getting involved at http://www.unicef.org.
Related links:
The TakePart Top 10 Weekly Roundup is a compilation of the week’s most notable stories from our entertainment-meets-social-action blogging network. Mother’s Day is this Sunday (don’t forget!), so be sure to take a look at some of the great posts we’ve put together in celebration of moms everywhere! Check out some of our most popular stories of the week, as well as a few TakePart blogger favorites!
Katie Halper:
Hillary Andrews Will Not Lick Bob Stokes’ Swizzle Stick
* * *
Nicole Hughes:
Top 10 Green Gift Wrap Ideas For Mothers Day
* * *
Andy Kondrat:
Tornado Devestated Town Rebuilds As Green Model Community
Radiohead Attempts An Eco-Friendly World Tour
* * *
Jon Popham:
Nepalese Art Photography: Rubin Museum of Art
America’s First Wind-Powered City
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Giulia Rozzi:
Women For Women International Celebrates Mothers Day
Even More on the Kentucky Derby
* * *
Gina Telaroli:
Join TakePart's community today!
Filed under:
Culture • Environment • Fairness • Health • Human rights • Peace • Responsibility
Join TakePart's community today!
Filed under:
Culture • Environment • Fairness • Health • Human rights • Peace • Responsibility
Doctors Without Borders has a great list of the top 10 most underreported humanitarian stories of 2007. The list includes Displaced Fleeing War in Somalia Face Humanitarian Crisis, Political and Economic Turmoil Sparks Health-Care Crisis in Zimbabwe, and Humanitarian Aid Restricted in Myanmar. Read the full report at http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/
Sometimes it feels easier to ignore the many issues hurting the world because acknowledging them is depressing and frustrating. However there is hope and ways to help. For example you can by donating to UNCIEF at http://www.unicefusa.org/. UNICEF is one of the few humanitarian organizations that has a permanent presence in Myanmar and emergency assistance is already underway. Today, UNICEF has deployed five teams to the worst affected regions of Myanmar to get an accurate assessment of survivors’ immediate needs.
The devastating cyclone that hit Myanmar on Saturday May 3rd has left over 22,000 people dead and over 40,000 missing. Here are 10 places you can donate to support the disaster relief:
1) American Red Cross- The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies has also released an initial $189,000 and shipped shelter kits, made up of tarps, ropes and hammers, to support the relief effort in Myanmar. Additionally, the American Red Cross is prepared to respond with financial aid, estimated at $100,000, to aid cyclone survivors.
2) Oxfam International - Oxfam has committed more than $725,000 in aid to the Myanmar delta region.
3) Doctors Without Borders - DWB teams are bringing immediate assistance to Myanmar while additional staff and relief materials are ready to be sent.
