Wednesday, June 29, 2011

MEDIA ADVISORY: Secretary of Energy Steven Chu To Announce Better Buildings Challenge Commitment at CGI America

June 30, 2011 (CHICAGO) – During the final day of the CGI America meeting, the Obama administration will commit to the launch, leadership, and support of the Better Buildings Challenge. The announcement will be made at a press conference at 3 p.m. CT, which will be webcast live at http://live.cgiamerica.org.

The Better Buildings Challenge is a White House-convened, Department of Energy-supported leadership initiative that is co-led by former President Bill Clinton and the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness. It directly engages business executives, state and local elected officials and leaders from other non-governmental organizations; recognizes the organizations they lead for making actionable commitments to improve energy efficiency in America’s buildings; and supports their efforts with technical assistance and policy support.

Through the Administration’s efforts in conjunction with former President Clinton and the Jobs Council, three major American cities – Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Seattle – have signed onto the Challenge, committing to take necessary policy steps to accelerate the energy efficiency market in their respective cities.

More than 700 leaders from businesses, nonprofits, and all levels of government are participating in the two-day CGI America meeting, which is the first Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) event to focus exclusively on driving job creation and economic growth in the United States.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

President Clinton to Open CGI America Meeting in Chicago on Wednesday, June 29

June 28, 2011, CHICAGO — President Bill Clinton will open CGI America on Wednesday, June 29. More than 700 leaders from businesses, nonprofits, and all levels of government will participate in the two-day meeting, which is the first Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) event to focus exclusively on driving job creation and economic growth in the United States.

Featured participants include: U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Haley Barbour, governor of Mississippi, Stephanie Burns, chairman of Dow Corning, Mitch Daniels, governor of Indiana, Rahm Emanuel, mayor of Chicago, Roger W. Ferguson, Jr., president and CEO of TIAA-CREF, Jennifer Granholm, former governor of Michigan, John Hickenlooper, governor of Colorado, Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, Bob McCann, CEO of UBS Wealth Management Americas, Pete Peterson, founder of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, Michael Porter, professor at Harvard Business School, J.B. Pritzker, managing partner, the Pritzker Group, Judith Rodin, president of the Rockefeller Foundation, James E. Rogers, chairman, president, and CEO of Duke Energy, and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack.

All plenary sessions are open press and will be webcast at http://live.cgiamerica.org.

What: CGI America (www.cgiamerica.org)

Where: Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers, 301 East North Water Street Chicago, IL 60611
When: June 29-30, 2011

Opening Plenary Session: Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

12:00 p.m. -1:30 p.m., Sheraton Ballroom

Press set time: 11:30 a.m.

Participants:

President Bill Clinton, Founding Chairman, Clinton Global Initiative

Haley Barbour, Governor, State of Mississippi
Simonida Cvejic, Founder and CEO, Bay Area Medical Academy
Rahm Emanuel, Mayor, City of Chicago
Peter G. Peterson, Founder and Chairman, Peter G. Peterson Foundation
Michael L. Thurmond, Former Georgia Labor Commissioner, Georgia Department of Labor
Laura Tyson, S.K. and Angela Chan Professor of Global Management, Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley

Press Conferences To Discuss New Commitments

American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO):

Investment and Training for American Infrastructure

1:45 p.m.- 2:15 p.m., Press Room, Exhibit Hall B, First Floor

Participants:

Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers

Mark H. Ayers, president of the Building and Construction Trades Department, AFL-CIO

Toyota Motor North America

Toyota Helps Nonprofits Maximize Their Impact

3:15 p.m. – 3: 45 p.m., Press Exhibit Hall B, First Floor

Participants:

Pat Pineda, Group Vice President, National Philanthropy and The Toyota USA Foundation Toyota Motor North America

Brian Bichey, Manager, Toyota Production System Support Center

Zack Rosenburg, Founder and CEO, St. Bernard Project

Plenary Session: Education in America: Regaining Our Edge

4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m., Sheraton Ballroom.

Press set-time: 3:30 p.m.

Participants:

Stephanie A. Burns, Chairman, Dow Corning Corporation
Adam Davidson, Co-founder and Co-host, Planet Money, National Public Radio
James Heckman, Professor of Economics, University of Chicago
Kaya Henderson, Chancellor, D.C. Public Schools
Roger W. Ferguson, Jr., President and CEO, TIAA-CREF
Amy Rosen, President and CEO, Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

CGI Work In Africa

Harvest season has arrived in Rwanda and Malawi. It's a time of year that inspires hope -- but can also lead to worry.

You see, the quality of a single harvest can mean the difference between hunger and a meal on the table. It can leave families without a secure income or it can help them access health care, running water, and a decent education.

I'm proud that our work with local farmers to ensure more consistent crops, higher prices for their yields, and a better quality of life is starting to pay off.

When I visited these communities five years ago, I met countless farmers who regularly faced food shortages and many others who feared having to emigrate to other countries for jobs. Now the 19,000 farmers in our programs are able to satisfy the basic needs of their families and help their communities thrive.

We're ready to build on these successes and ensure that these transformations take hold permanently -- for farmers, for their families, and for their communities at large.

Make a gift by June 28 to help transform lives in Malawi, Rwanda, and around the world, and I will personally match it dollar for dollar.

This is an amazing chance to double your impact and make sure farmers in Malawi and Rwanda get the most out of their crops this season and the next.

As with all of our work, our programs in these countries began with clear objectives -- creating economic growth and providing individuals with the tools that will allow them to transform their communities with each passing year.

Now, our various programs in Africa help nearly 19,000 farmers and include:
Working with more than 3,700 soybean farmers to continuously improve the soil quality so they can get more from the land available to them;
Negotiating lower fertilizer prices to ensure farmers can afford to nourish their crops and teaching them how to apply those fertilizers to obtain the best yield;
Supplying farmers with disease-resistant maize and bean seeds and providing 1,100 farmers with high-yield fruit trees;
Setting up a coffee cooperative that has grown to 7,000 farmers; and more.
In the coming weeks, these 19,000 families will complete their harvest, sell their surplus at market, and make life-changing investments in housing, education, and future yields.

But our work isn't done yet. Nearly 90% of the people living in these areas are smallholder farmers. If we can reach a broader set of that population, we'll be providing stability, security, and empowerment to entire communities.

Knowing what a difference food security and a stable income can make in an entire country's future, I am profoundly moved by our results so far. I hope you're as motivated as I am to dig a little deeper to extend these programs.

If you can make a gift in the next 7 days, your donation will go twice as far and help transform twice as many lives during this dollar-for-dollar match.

I started this Foundation with the belief that everybody can make a real difference, and at this crucial moment for farmers in Africa and around the world, it couldn't be truer.

Thank you for doing your part to help us realize our shared vision of a more peaceful, prosperous world.

CONTRIBUTE

Sincerely,
Bill Clinton

Monday, June 13, 2011

President Bill Clinton to Recognize 275 U.S. Schools for Fighting Childhood Obesity
Little Rock, Ark. – On Monday, June 13, 2011, the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, founded by the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation, will recognize 275 schools for transforming their campuses into healthier places for students and staff. President Bill Clinton and Dwayne Proctor, director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s childhood obesity team, will honor the award-winning schools at an event at the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock, Ark.

The 275 schools come from 37 different states. The following cities boast multiple awardees: Atlanta; Boston; Dallas; Elizabeth, N.J.; Los Angeles; Miami; Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; San Antonio; Washington D.C. Each school has distinguished itself with healthy eating and physical activity programs and policies that meet or exceed stringent standards set by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation's Healthy Schools Program.

Launched in 2006 with 231 schools in 13 states, the Healthy Schools Program now works with supports more than 12,000 schools across the country to help transform them into healthier places where physical activity and healthier foods are available before, during and after school. The program is supported by grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and other funders.