STAND UP Campaign on 15-16 October 2006

STAND UP is an exciting and innovative challenge which is attempting to set an official Guinness World Record or the most number of people ever to STAND UP Against Poverty on October 15-16.

A minimum of ten thousand people must physically “STAND UP” Against poverty; and there are just 24 hours to set this record. STAND UP is a mobilisation initiative designed to coincide with global mobilisations around the International Day of Poverty Eradication and the White Band Day of the Global Call to Action against Poverty on October 17th.

STAND UP will raise awareness of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and publicly demonstrate the growing global support for the achievement of these Goals.

Celebrity Football Match

Mobilization Month of Action
I’ve been speaking to Paul Masefield and John Dykes from ESPN about a celebrity football match on either 16 Sep or 14 Oct.

They are keen to help and are about to enlist the help of the Singapore Football Association, Singapore National Team, Vivian Balakrishnan and, potentially, Robbie Williams.

The format will be either a normal football match at somewhere like Jalan Besar Stadium or a 24 hour football match on the Padang. The Padang may be difficult to get especially around the World Bank meeting but either Chia or myself can speak to the Police to get an idea if they will allow it.

Before I go too far down this route…are you keen on this idea?

In Focus

In cooperation with SUPERSEED, we are organizing a campaign to collect used eyeglasses for the needy. Volunteers at NUS have been contacting optical companies to enlist partners. A Singapore-headquartered multinational company has also expressed interest in participating.

A similar initiative in Hong Kong by Crossroads Int’l, has raised more than 40,000 pairs of glasses for eye clinics in China, Ghana and Mongolia - giving the gift of clear sight to people who could otherwise not afford glasses on their own.

White Band Day 2006

Counting down to 100,000 images of supporters in Singapore

For 2006, the Global Mobilisation was agreed as a month of action starting on 16th September and culminating in the White Band Day on October 17th. The campaign symbol remains the white band and we hope that millions of people in every country will wear it during the month of action. We also agreed a slogan ‘Together for Equality’ for use in our work as it was agreed that we will be campaigning against both Poverty and Inequality.

Whether you got your whiteband from your ONE (SINGAPORE) membership, bought it from our store or obtained it elsewhere, we invite you to send in a photo of yourself with the whiteband on your wrist for our special gallery. We want to collect 10,000 photos of people in Singapore (members and non-members) with their whiteband showing their support in the call to action to Make Poverty History.

Please send your photo to ONE GALLERY.

If your organization wants to support the cause, please get un touch with us via email and we can work something out.

To get your whiteband now, visit our store here.

To join us as a ONE (SINGAPORE) member and take concrete actions in the fight against extreme poverty, click here.

ONE by ONE, we can make a difference.

AID NIGER

ONE (SINGAPORE) raises public awareness and takes concrete actions to Make Poverty History. As part of this commitment, we have facilitated the distribution of food aid to famine victims in the West African nation of Niger.

In the best of times, Niger is one of the world’s poorest countries. But the last year has been incredibly difficult due to drought and locusts. Thanks to the generosity of XL Results Foundation and its Life Members, we have wired over S$5000 to Niger.

This money funded the purchase and distribution of six tons of millet, 1.5 tons of beans and 1.5 tons of a peanut concentrate called “kuli-kuli” and extended a lifeline to families waiting for an overdue harvest. The food was distributed in the dusty town of Malbaza, where one of ONE (SINGAPORE)’s founding members served as a Peace Corps volunteer.

For more info, please email switow@onesingapore.org

View photos of the food distribution.