Champagne: A quick-and-dirty buying guide

Since there are few questions more frequently asked than what my favorite Champagnes are, it's a worthwhile time to revisit some guideposts.

Champagne seems to bring out the sort of brand loyalty -- and hence fear of change -- you find only in jeans and cars. Don't take my Levis, my Acura or my Bollinger, dammit. So with that in mind, here's a quick-and-dirty guide to the labels I look for. You may not find some of your familiar names here, but at least a few of these should appear on any good wine store's shelves.

If you're wondering why some very popular names aren't here, the answer is simple: I drink enough Champagne to be a complete tightwad about it, and many (but not all) big-name houses make wines that are too simple and too sweet for the money. If you're paying the premium to drink real Champagne, it should be a complex and compelling treat.

OK, first to the negociants: I'm unabashedly a fan of the British taste in Champagne: lots of flavors of toast, pastry, nuts and Sherry, typically from exposing the wines to a bit more oxygen and using more of the aged reserve wines in the blend -- hence why, in raised-nose company, I'd call it an oxidative style. The epitome of this style is beloved Bollinger, with Pol Roger doing admirable duty too. Less extreme, and to my taste often a bit more elegant for it, is the smaller Gosset, one of Champagne's most storied houses. If you're stepping up a bit, the lavish and leesy profile of Ruinart speaks to a certain opulence. These are all somewhat big wines, meant for heartier food and certainly ample in structure to last through a meal.

Now let's dial back the nuts and Sherry a bit -- if you prefer your bubbles not to resemble a tapas bar, that is -- to a more fruit-driven, precise style. There are many Heidsiecks in the realm, all with solid quality. I waver between two -- Charles Heidsieck and Heidsieck Monopole (the first owned by spirits firm Remy Cointreau, which also owns Piper-Heidsieck, the latter by Champagne firm Vranken, which also owns the very solid Pommery label, notable for its eloquent Cuvee Louise and its single-serve Pop) -- Charles a bit more flashy, though with gorgeous expression in vintage wines like its 1995 Blanc des Millenaires, Monopole somewhat stoic but so very fresh in its blue and yellow package. Both great. Along those lines, keep an eye out for the recently reinvigorated Ayala, now owned by none other than Bollinger, especially its laser-precise Zero Dosage. Ayala gets extra points for putting disgorgement dates on the bottle, which may bust the impression of all-bottlings-created-equal, but allows those of us forking over the cash to make more reasoned buying decisions. Also notably restrained in its style is Taittinger, which has won it its share of fans over time.

For just a bit more flash (but just a bit), the nonvintage wines of Louis Roederer continue to deliver in their subtle, nuanced style with just a hint of yeasty wildness lurking. Of course the vintage wines and, ahem, Cristal follow in that somewhat timeless mold. (If only the nonvintage was disgorgement-dated.) Henriot follows a similar path, though with somewhat more focus on Chardonnay. In that style, but with a bit more overt fruit to its nonvintage bottling thanks to about one-third Pinot Meunier, is Deutz. The nonvintage can benefit from a couple years of proper aging, and vintage Deutz -- especially the Blanc de Blancs and the top-end Cuvee William Deutz -- have tremendous cellar potential. Not that you needed that for New Year's.

To me, Jacquesson falls nicely in that on-the-road-to-opulent category too, though almost as a bridge to the grower realm; the Chiquet brothers' commitment to specific vintage expressions is really a treat. And as I've noted before, the Philipponnat label finds just the right balance between lean red-fruit precision and toasty opulence that, when I encounter the Royale Reserve nowadays, makes me always think of a poor man's Krug, to say nothing of Philipponnat's extraordinarily age-worthy Clos des Goisses. There is, of course, Krug, for those with the means. And Salon takes the opulence even further without losing precision, though at nearly $300 a bottle, it had better outperform.

Now to those indispensible grower folks. There is no shortage of love for the heavy hitters of the category, Egly-Ouriet (imported straight through Berkeley) and Pierre Peters (a superstar in Terry Theise's portfolio, along with Pierre Gimmonet). Certainly I have no quibble there, though I don't get to taste either as much as I'd like. Given their relative scarcity on shelves, you may have about the same luck. If you find a bottle of Egly's Vignes de Vrigny, all from Pinot Meunier, it's a unique wine worth experiencing, showing an austere side of that usually fruity grape.

But there are so many others. Aside from Leclerc Briant, our house Champagne is usually the NV Blanc de Blancs from Franck Bonville, in magnum when we can. (Both are imported through K&L, and available locally, when in stock.) The Larmandier-Bernier label is exceptional, including its Terre de Vertus bottling, undosed and a stoic expression of terroir from that Cote des Blancs village. Two other growers imported locally (through Martine's Wines) are Diebolt-Vallois and Gonet-Medeville, both consistently excellent and worthy of cellar time (especially the Diebolt, which can be a bit subdued when young.) The same is true of Agrapart, the Avize-based Chardonnay specialist.

Gaston Chiquet (cousins of the owners of Jacquesson) is on my hot list with a bullet. Chiquet took a while to leave an impression, but repeated encounters with its vintage Special Club effort (a series of top cuvees made by a close-knit group of growers) keeps convincing me to buy more and tuck them away. The 1998 was as fresh and focused (especially for that vintage) as the 1999 is opulent and monumental. Along those lines, another name encountered in our recent recommendations, but equally notable for their consistently good Cuvee Ste Anne, is Chartogne-Taillet, like Chiquet a player in the Theise book. (Those of us fortunate enough to keep tasting the full range of the Theise-imported wines get to play favorites. The Aubry and Jean Milan are also fantastic, if less my thing. Aubry's Campanae Veteres Vites, from now-obscure other Champagne varieties like Arbanne, is always fascinating, if primarily an intellectual thrill.)

Of course, there's Vilmart, the powerful, typically oak-aged Champagnes from Rilly-la-Montagne. I was a late convert to Vilmart's style, but the rounded texture it can show when young is lost like baby fat as precision and complexity take over. I'll pretty much buy Vilmart whenever I see it, if only because of its rarity and depth. (This is how some people feel about the utterly cultish Jacques Selosse, but we don't see much Selosse in these parts.) One of Vilmart's lesser known stars is its nonvintage rosé, the Cuvee Rubis, our New Year's Eve Champagne from last year. The nonvintage Rubis brings a fruitier edge and intensity to the subtle house style, like strawberries through a fiber optic cable.

And that brings us to the smile-inducing topic of Rosé Champagne. The big discovery this year was Mandois, a small house in Pierry that takes a similar oak-minded approach as Vilmart, though with sometimes different results. Its Brut Rosé Grande Reserve is an extraordinary wine, made from a blend of white Champagne, saignée pink wine and red wine. The irresistible earth notes of Pinot come shining through. Other excellent, if lesser known names in Rosé include Louis de Sacy, and of course the utterly beloved Billecart-Salmon, though I find Billecart's pink wine too soft-edged, even though I adore the regular Brut and the vintage wines. (To ponder imponderables: Would Billecart's rosé have caught on so well if the name didn't include "Salmon"?)

OK, now I'm thirsty, so I'll stop there. Now's your turn. What names do you look for when you're in the Champagne aisle?

Clinton Global Initiative Year End Report

For Immediate Release Contact: Clinton Foundation Press Office
December 22, 2008 212.348.0360

Clinton Global Initiative Commitments to Action extend their reach in 2008, impacting millions around the world.

“We know we cannot do this alone… We have to partner with other NGOs… We have to partner with corporations… We also have to work with governments.”
Lance Armstrong, Founder and Chairman of the Board, Lance Armstrong Foundation,
speaking at the 2008 CGI Annual Meeting

“That’s the power of the Clinton Global Initiative, to change lives. You change lives, one life, one hope, at a time.”
Prime Minister Gordon Brown, United Kingdom, 2008 CGI Annual Meeting

The non-partisan Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) is a platform to bring together global leaders in business, government, non-profit organizations, and students to address some of the most pressing global challenges including poverty alleviation, climate change, global health, and education. Each CGI member is asked to make a Commitment to Action. Commitments vary in duration and reflect investments of time, expertise, and/or resources in the form of grants, commercial or social investments, program expenditures, and in-kind contributions. Members come together at CGI’s Annual Meeting in New York to continue the dialogue, make new commitments, and report on the progress of past commitments.
CGI is not a grant-making organization and Commitments to Action are funded and implemented directly by commitment makers. CGI staff provides advice and monitoring to ensure progress is made.
CGI’s Work to Date
President Clinton launched the Clinton Global Initiative in 2005. To date:
• Over 1,200 Commitments to Action valued at $46 billion have touched more than 200 million lives in 150 countries.
• As a result of CGI Commitments to Action, since 2005:
? 8 million children were able to attend school
? 34 million people gained access to treatment of neglected tropical diseases
? 40 million metric tons of CO2 emissions were cut
? 3 million entrepreneurs were empowered with access to microfinance.
• In 2008, CGI members pledged:
? Enough clean energy to power 110 million homes in India
? One billion liters of safe drinking water to those in need
? To raise $375 million to develop new vaccines and pursue medical research
? To provide healthy school lunches to 20 million children
• MyCommitment.org is an online network that offers everyone the opportunity to make a commitment. Since the launch, people from 181 countries have collectively pledged to volunteer more than 92,000 hours and donate more than 40,000 items to improve the world.

2008 CGI Accomplishments
In 2008 alone, CGI accomplished the following:
• CGI’s 2008 Annual Meeting brought together attendees including President-elect Barack Obama, Prime Minister Gordon Brown, President Hamid Karzai, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Queen Rania, Former President George H.W. Bush, Senator John McCain, Bill Gates, Bono, Wangari Maathai, Muhammad Yunus, Lance Armstrong and nearly 60 current and former heads of state.
• CGI’s Commitments to Action from the 2008 Annual Meeting are expected to impact almost 160 million people.
• The launch of Clinton Global University, which brought together more than 600 students from nearly every state and 15 countries to Tulane University in New Orleans to formulate ways to take action on campuses, in communities, and across continents. Nearly 1,000 Commitments to Action were generated at the inaugural CGI U meeting.
• This month, CGI Asia convened leaders in Hong Kong to address local, regional, and global challenges focusing on education, health, and climate change. 67 Commitments to Action valued at nearly $200 million and projected to affect 10 million lives occurred at CGI Asia.
In 2009, CGI will continue to inspire action across different audiences. The 2009 CGI University meeting will take place from February 13-15 at the University of Texas at Austin, bringing together hundreds of students, university presidents, and national youth organizations to make commitments. MyCommitment.org will continue to provide opportunities for any citizen from any country to find opportunities to take action. And finally, a very special Fifth Anniversary Meeting will take place in New York City from September 22-25.

Learn more at www.clintonfoundation.org.

Inaugural Kick Off to be Held on the Steps of the Lincoln Memorial

Friday, December 19, 2008

INAUGURAL KICK OFF TO BE HELD ON THE STEPS OF THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL

INAUGURAL EVE TO FEATURE CONCERT FOR AMERICA’S CHILDREN

WASHINGTON - The Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC) will host a welcome event to kick off the 56th Presidential Inauguration at the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday, January 18th. The PIC also plans to hold a youth concert on the evening of Monday, January 19th, at the Verizon Center in downtown Washington. Sunday’s welcome event and Monday’s concert will continue President-elect Obama and Vice President-elect Biden’s commitment to hold an Inauguration that is open, accessible and reflects a spirit of unity for Americans of all ages.

The afternoon welcome event, to be held on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial at the west end of the National Mall, will be free and open to the public. Dedicated to the memory of America’s 16th President, the Lincoln Memorial has been the site of many Presidential Inauguration activities in recent years.

President Clinton held a free concert on the grounds in 1993 that included performances by Aretha Franklin, Tony Bennett, and Bob Dylan. In 2001, President-elect Bush kicked off his inaugural festivities at the site with performances by Ricky Martin, Charlotte Church, and Andrew Lloyd Webber.

The PIC is also pleased to announce that a concert for America’s children will be held the night before the Inauguration, Monday, January 19th. The concert will be free, but tickets will be required. Further details of the welcome event, concert and other inaugural activities will be made available in the coming weeks.

For the latest information on the 2009 Presidential Inauguration, please visit www.pic2009.org.

Festive Beverage Boasts a Bubbly History

Sunday, Dec. 07, 2008
Tom and Jo Chesworth

From the Wine Cellar

It’s the time of year again to order up several bouquets of black-and-silver balloons, let out the tuxedo, take the salwar kameez out of mothballs and air it out, and order the champagne. To be champagne, the wine must be made in the Champagne appellation of France.

The invention of sparkling wine is generally attributed to a monk — Dom Perignon. He made a systematic study of champagne and published his findings. In his homeland in the north of France, the protowine was bottled when it stopped fermenting. Although the wine was not finished, it stopped fermenting in late fall because it got too cold for the yeast, which went into hybernation.

In the spring, when it got warmer, the yeast woke up and went back to work. During the primary fermentation, the wine was in a container from which the carbon dioxide that had formed could escape. The gas could not escape from the corked bottle. Inside the bottle the pressure built up.

Sometimes the wine fermented to dryness before bottling and there was no excess pressure. Sometimes there was only slight pressure in the bottle when the yeast ate the last of the sugar. (As an example of these fizzy wines, try Cavit Lunetta Prosecco at $12 a bottle.)

But often there was considerable gas due to the fermentation. In Perignon’s time, glass bottles were not strong enough for champagne and they exploded in the cellars. Bottles were expensive and most monasteries were poor.

Perignon’s job was to find out how to prevent the secondary fermentation, thus saving the bottles so they could be reused. He decided to perfect the process of blowing up bottles so that he could avoid the procedures that destroyed them. He had, in the process, recorded the method of reliably making sparkling wine — champagne — because that’s what destroyed the bottles. Next, glassmaking got better, and bottles which could withstand the pressure became available.

The problem with the sparkling wines was that the lees (yeast carcasses) were inside the bottle and the wine looked like the water in a mud puddle. Not very appetizing. Before sparkling wine was a viable product, a way of getting the lees out of the wine while leaving the bubbles had to be devised.

A woman named Veuve Nicole Clicquot, a widow (veuve) who inherited and ran her husband’s winery, solved the problem. She developed a procedure called riddling. The bottles were placed in a rack she had designed and then were carefully turned a bit by hand each day. After a complete revolution, each bottle was tipped slightly and placed in the next slot. The process was repeated again and again until the bottles were upsidedown with the lees in the neck. This process takes weeks or months.

The next step is to freeze the lees into slush and chill the wine. The bottle is then opened and some of the gas in the wine blows the slush out of the neck. Because the wine is chilled, most of the gas remains dissolved in the wine.

The widow began marketing the first modern champagne. Her winery is still in the business and you can taste the product, Clicquot Yellow Label Brut, at $47 a bottle. G. H. Mumm Cart Classique is a less expensive champagne at $36 a bottle.

At the end of the 20th century, the gyro-pallet replaced the riddling rack and the labor cost decreased. The price of quality sparkling wine dropped. But champagne, of course, maintained its cost because of its reputation.

However, you can get comparable wine at less cost. A California-made Mumm Napa Brut Prestige costs $20, and a New York-made Korbel costs $15. A cava from Spain, Freixenet Cordon Negro Brut, costs $12. An Italian Spumante Elmo Pio Asti costs $11.

All these wines are almost identical, so if you want to serve a sparkling wine but are not interested in paying a premium for the reputation of the winery or the place where the wine was made, you can have your festive bubbly at reasonable cost.

If you find that you don’t care for the austere brut wines, you can get a sweeter, more fruity demi-sec or semisweet wine. We won’t tell anyone you’re drinking a slightly sweet wine. We like them too. Happy holidays.

Jo and Tom Chesworth are both AWS-certified wine judges and can be found in the winecellar@7ms.com.

Holiday Wine Tips From Korbel

The Easy, Economical Guide to Holiday Entertaining With Wine

SONOMA, Calif., Dec 04, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- With the holidays almost here, 'tis the season to entertain. Whether your holiday plans include a party, a casual get-together, guests dropping by or simply a toast to the New Year, wine is always in fashion. Fortunately, it's easy to have wine at the ready for every holiday eventuality and still make every dollar count by following these helpful tips.
December is the best month of the year to buy wine and Heck Estates has some tips on selecting the perfect wine for any occasion. For supermarkets and wine shops, this is when they offer their lowest prices. Because so many raise a glass of bubbly to toast the New Year, champagne often is an especially good deal. For example, Korbel Brut often can be found for less than $10 a bottle; a super price for a premium California methode champenoise champagne. Add discounts for quantity purchases and the holiday season becomes a buying opportunity hard to resist.
For a large party, choose wines with broad appeal and keep it simple by offering one white, one red and a sparkler.
-- For the casual wine drinker, two versatile choices are Kenwood
Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc and Merlot.
-- If your guests are wine savvy, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon from
Kenwood Vineyards can be served with confidence.
-- Korbel Natural is perfect with hors d'oeuvres, while Korbel Extra Dry
pairs beautifully with dinner party desserts.

Wine can add spark to a casual holiday get-together, so take the opportunity to be adventurous with your selections.
-- Choose wines from small producers like Lake Sonoma Winery or Valley of
the Moon Winery.
-- Try something unusual like Pinot Gris or Sangiovese.
-- If bubbly is the beverage of choice, serve Korbel Blanc de Noirs, a
scrumptious sparkler with just a hint of blush color.

Be prepared as people often drop by with little or no notice during the holidays.
-- Since it's usually only one or two couples, one bottle of wine will
often suffice. A standard 750ml bottle contains six glasses. For a
simple toast, one bottle of champagne will serve six.
-- A "mini-cellar" consisting of one bottle of white, one red and a
champagne, assures you'll have the right wine to please your guests.
-- Keep the white wine and the champagne in the refrigerator and the red
wine at room temperature in a nearby kitchen cabinet.
-- Again, choose wines with broad appeal, such as Valley of the Moon
Unoaked Chardonnay, Kenwood Pinot Noir, Lake Sonoma Zinfandel and
Korbel Brut.
-- Having a bottle of Korbel California Brandy or V.S.O.P. on hand is
also a good idea; it's great for making brandy alexanders and brandy
eggnog, or to enjoy neat as a warming after-dinner drink.

For that toast to the New Year a Blanc de Noirs champagne sets a romantic mood, Brut and Natural champagnes go well with a midnight snack, and Extra Dry champagne is slightly sweet and very seductive. Whichever you choose, chill the bottle thoroughly, open it carefully by grasping the cork firmly and easing it out while slowly rotating the bottle and enjoy.
Last, but not least, please always celebrate responsibly. Happy Holidays!
SOURCE Heck Estates
http://www.korbel.com

Clinton Global Initiative Asia Meeting Results

For Immediate Release
December 3, 2008
Contact: Clinton Foundation Press Office - 212.348.0360

Former President Clinton Concludes CGI Asia Meeting and Announces Impact of Commitments
Commitments unveiled at CGI Asia have estimated value of US$185 million, to impact more than 10 million lives

Hong Kong – Former President Clinton concluded the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Asia meeting today, highlighting examples of CGI members’ Commitments to Action that will positively impact lives across the globe.

“I am truly impressed by our Clinton Global Initiative members and the new commitments announced this week that will bring real, measurable change to millions lives in Asia and across the world,” said President Clinton. “CGI Asia members have made commitments worth an estimated total value of US$185 million, to positively impact more than 10 million lives.”

Examples of the impact CGI Asia commitments will have once fully implemented include:

An estimated 715,000 children will benefit from better education opportunities.
Over 260,000 adults will learn new job skills.
Of these, nearly 26,000 are teachers and 8,000 are health care workers who will benefit from new training.
Over 250,000 girls and women will be empowered with better opportunities for sustainable livelihoods.
Nearly 24,000 hectares of forest land will be protected by empowering local residents to manage their own natural resources.
The equivalent of more than 40,000 tons of CO2 emissions will be cut.
Over 700,000 people will better learn to cope with environmental stress and natural disasters.
More than 3.5 million people will gain greater access to health services.
Half a million people will now have safe drinking water, and 400,000 children will benefit from better nutrition.

Following the successful conclusion of the first day of the CGI Asia meeting, President Clinton was joined at a Gala Dinner by the Honorable Donald Tsang, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, internationally acclaimed actor Michelle Yeoh, Jet Li, founder of the ONE Foundation, and other CGI Asia members for a special evening of music and conversation to celebrate giving and inspire Commitments to Action.

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd addressed the CGI Asia meeting by video.

“We need new ideas to confront and solve the myriad of challenges which lie ahead of us this century,” said Prime Minister Rudd. “I look forward to working with all those gathered at the Clinton Global Initiative meeting to move our world forward towards a new chapter in human history.”

CGI participants focused on the three main CGI Asia topics: education, energy & climate change and public health. The program also acknowledged the current economic climate with a plenary session on coping with the financial crisis.

Established in 2005 as a project of the non-partisan William J. Clinton Foundation, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) convenes global leaders to devise and implement innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges. The CGI community includes: CGI University, a forum to engage college students in global citizenship; CGI Asia, the first in a series of regional CGI meetings; and, MyCommitment.org, an online portal where anyone can commit to helping improve lives.
Information on the Clinton Global Initiative and all CGI member commitments can be found at www.clintonglobalinitiative.org.
Commitments announced on the concluding day of CGI Asia are attached.

The World Food Programme and a diverse group of commitment-makers came together to improve nutrition in Asia. This far-reaching ‘mega-commitment’ includes 6 different CGI commitments involving 8 countries and is valued at US$20 million dollars. It will focus on feeding more people with better food, targeting vulnerable groups in emergency and post-disaster situations and long-term food security.

Partners in this commitment include:

• The World Food Programme commits US$15 million to help 1 million vulnerable children and their parents access improved, locally fortified and processed food products in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, and Timor Leste. This will have a positive direct impact on their nutrition and their future.

• Mr. Jang Dong Kun—one of South Korea's most popular and respected celebrities—is announcing for the first time a commitment to become the newest Ambassador Against Hunger for the World Food Programme. He will help build innovative and creative partnerships in South Korea and across the region.

• Dompet Dhuafa (DU-AF-A) Republika Foundation will conduct a fundraising campaign for the WFP Indonesia school feeding program to create a healthy learning environment and improve the health and nutrition of 11,000 school children and teachers.

• Over the next year, Boeing will provide almost 10,000 pregnant and lactating mothers and their children in the Philippines and Indonesia with nutritious food.

• Credit Suisse will partner with the World Food Programme to create a healthy learning environment and improve the health and nutrition situation of over 9,000 school children and 384 teachers in one of the most vulnerable school districts in Indonesia.

• Philippine actress and model KC Concepcion—the Ambassador Against Hunger in the Philippines—will expand her commitment to raise awareness and support for the World Food Programme and positively impact over 71,000 pupils from 426 schools.

Other commitments include:

The WWF is committing US$200,000 over three and a half years to provide access to finance, education, and training to excluded and marginalized women and children living in the slums and rural villages of Southern India, and identify potential NGOs who could replicate this program in Northern India.

The AWECA Foundation commits US$2.8 million over five years to provide vocational training to 2,000 out-of-school and displaced youths, and to integrate a practical training component in 250 rural, public elementary schools.

Digital Divide Data and its partners are committing US$5 million over three years to provide training, job opportunities, and access to higher education for 1,000 disadvantaged youth in South and Southeast Asia, including young people with disabilities.

The Wu Zhi Qiao Charitable Foundation, along with its partners, is committing US$420,000 over two years to work with universities in Hong Kong and mainland China to construct six "footbridges" and "green" houses in various rural villages of the Gansu and Sichuan provinces of China; in an effort to improve the livelihoods and well-being of 5,200 poor villagers.

The BAIF Development Research Foundation, along with its partners, is committing US$30,700 over two years to integrate an educational program on climate change in 10,000 rural schools in Northern India and 5,000 in Maharashtra state; reaching 500,000 children over the span of two years.

Mlup Baitong, along with its partners, is committing US$110,000 over three years to reduce the current degradation of natural resources in Cambodia by coordinating and implementing a Community Based Forestry Management (CBFM) project in Kampong Thom province.

AIDS Care China, along with its partners, is committing US$450,000 over three years to enhance access to critical health services for 3,000 people suffering from HIV/AIDS in the rural, Yunnan province of China by establishing a pilot clinic that will offer affordable medical services and help initiate new reforms in healthcare delivery.

Yale University, in partnership with the Indian Nursing Council, is committing US$1.26 million over five years to develop a post-graduate curriculum for the Indian Institute of Advanced Nursing (IIAN). This includes developing short-courses for undergraduate nursing faculty and nurses working in specialized HIV clinics, as well as one year post-graduate diploma courses focusing on the development of HIV/AIDS patient management skills.
LRBT is committing US$600,000 over five years to reduce the prevalence of blindness and impaired vision by building a hospital to enhance access to free, quality eye care to disadvantaged populations in the earthquake-struck areas of Pakistan.
KGMF commits US$390,000 over six years to improve health standards among disadvantaged rural communities in India by organizing a series of easily accessible one-day medical camps that will bring healthcare to local villages, reaching an estimated 25,000 people.

The VinaCapital Foundation and its partners commit US$312,000 over 1 year to enhance access to quality healthcare services for underserved children suffering from cardiac disease in Asia. They will train doctors throughout Asia to improve health care for poor children with heart conditions through the use of tele-conferencing.

Nsha and the Queen Sirikit Centre for Breast Cancer commit US$90,000 over 5 years to fight breast cancer in Thailand. A start-up women's clothing company called "Burn Baby" will donate 5% of annual revenues for five years to the Queen Sirikit Centre for Breast Cancer. Breast cancer is the second most common form of cancer among Thai women, and if caught early, has a 95% cure rate.

51-Sim.org and its partners announced a commits US$1 million over 2 years to host China's first ever "Green Car Show" which will be carbon-neutral, and to hold a climate change competition to encourage environmentally-friendly behavior.

The Peter KK Lee Care for Life Foundation, Suicide Prevention Services, Tsinghua University, University of Hong Kong, Youth League of Sichuan and the All Women's Federation of Sichuan commit US$4.4 million over 3 years to help prevent suicides by adding new services that include Mental Aid Social Work teams, new hotlines, and proven suicide prevention strategies.

The Adidas Group, Right to Play and China's Ministry of Education announced their commitment to provide long-term sports-based psychological assistance to children affected by the Sichuan earthquake that left more than 20,000 physically disabled and more than 1,000 orphaned.

The Shri Ram School, Shri Ram Foundation, and Save the Children Bal Raksha Bharat commit US$300,000 over two years to launch a comprehensive disaster risk mitigation program to train teachers, children and families to better prepare for and address natural disasters. This commitment will help 7,500 children in vulnerable communities in India better respond when disasters take place.

GeoHazards International, India's National Disaster Management Authority, GeoHazards Society, ProVention Consortium, EHDD Architecture, University of New Mexico, Rutherford & Chekene Structural Engineering, Stanford University Chapter of Engineers for a Sustainable World, and the National Centre for Peoples' Action in Disaster Preparedness commit US$5 million over 5 years to improve the earthquake-resistance and energy efficiency of schools and health clinics in Northern India and other Asian countries.

The Lifeline Express Hong Kong Foundation, the Chinese Ministry of Health, and the International Council of Ophthalmology commit US$7 million over 1 year to reduce blindness in rural China by providing more than 100,000 people with free cataract surgery and training 6,000 doctors.

Empowering Women of Nepal commits US$300,000 over 3 years to build an Adventure Training Center for Women in Pokhara, Nepal which will provide practical skills-based training to 600 rural women in Western Nepal to enhance their access to gainful employment in the trekking industry, where women have typically been excluded.

Laureate Education, Inc. commits US$10 million over 4 years to improve the quality of teaching and learning in 12 countries by providing 1,000 teachers with scholarships to obtain advanced degrees. Over the next 15 years, scholarships provided by Laureate will positively impact more than 500,000 students around the world.