CBB NEWS

President Barack Obama, Aung San Suu Kyi, and Archbishop Desmond M. Tutu Joined President Clinton for Second Day of the 2011 Annual Meeting

September 21, 2011

Today’s sessions focused on sustainable consumption, change in the Middle East and North Africa, and sports as a tool for good

New commitments announced will develop green buildings worldwide, combat non-communicable diseases, create jobs, and provide programs to end violence against women

New York, NY – Today, President Bill Clinton welcomed Aung San Suu Kyi, Nobel Prize laureate, peacebuilder, and general secretary of the National League for Democracy via satellite and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, chairman of the Elders in a first-time conversation between the two visionary leaders. Suu Kyi spoke about her own struggles for human rights, democratic governance, and ethic reconciliation, while Archbishop Tutu discussed his recent work to end child marriage. The highlight of the conversation was the overwhelming admiration Tutu and Suu Kyi expressed for each other’s efforts to promote world peace and democracy.

“The lives and accomplishments of Aung San Suu Kyi and Archibishop Desmond Tutu are an inspiring testament to the tremendous good than can be achieved by a boundless reserve of courage, humility, and conviction,” said President Clinton. “Suu Kyi and Archibishop Tutu exemplify the positive work of CGI members – who have made 194 new commitments this year, valued at $6.2 billion that will positively impact more than 100 million people.”

President Clinton introduced President Barack Obama, who made remarks regarding job creation in the U.S., including infrastructure building and supporting education. President Obama also thanked CGI members for their commitments to address some of the world’s greatest challenges.

The “Sustainable Consumption: Redefining Business As Usual” panel focused on the role of corporate responsibility in business and was hosted by Gro Harlem Brundtland, former prime minister of the Kingdom of Norway and included heads of major corporations including Bob Diamond, chief executive, Barclays; Indra Nooyi, chairman and CEO, PepsiCo; and Paul Polman, chief executive officer, Unilever. Panelists discussed how corporations are creating shared value by addressing critical issues around the world, such as food security and global health, which also directly support their core business strategy.

Her Royal Highness Princess Ghida Talal announced new commitments by Care with Love, Johnson and Johnson, Mayo Clinic, the American Cancer Society, GBCHealth, and OVG that will build a home and healthcare facility for rural children with cancer in Egypt, promote and obtain smokefree worksite policies for major companies with global supply chains, and raise and distribute $1 billion during the next five years to develop green buildings around the globe.

General Wesley Clark also announced new commitments by Applied Environmental Research Foundation, Amazon Watch, Basecamp Foundation, Rural Action, Darden Restaurants, Arison Investments, Wetlands International, Applied Materials, Standard Chartered Bank, and Harvard John F. Kennedy School of Government that will promote the prosperity and preserve the biodiversity of local landscapes and marshal the talents of the next generation of international leaders.

For descriptions of all the commitments announced today, please see below. A complete list of all CGI commitments is available here: http://www.clintonglobalinitiative.org/commitments.

All open-press sessions – plenaries, breakout sessions, special sessions, and keynotes – can be viewed live at http://live.clintonglobalinitiative.org.

On Thursday, CGI will host two press conferences, the first will highlight the important work of CGI members to support the crisis in the Horn of Africa at 11:00 a.m. and the second will convene the U.S. Department of State, MTV, the Body Shop and Julia Ormond to discuss combating human trafficking and slavery at 1:45 p.m.

The following progress reports were announced today:

Environmental Entrepreneurship & Women Waste Pickers (2010)

Commitment by: Stree Mukti Sanghatana

Summary: In 2010, Stree Mukti Sanghatana and its partner agencies committed to provide Mumbai’s women waste-pickers with the training necessary for them to begin dry-waste sorting, composting, and using waste to produce bio-gas. Trainees will earn more income and achieve the dignity they deserve for their labor, while also improving the environment. SMS is involved in ongoing negotiations with the city government of Mumbai to incorporate waste-pickers into the city’s official garbage collection plan.

Expansion of P.A.C.E

Commitment by: Gap Inc.

Summary: In 2009, Gap Inc. committed to expand the “Personal Advancement and Career Enhancement Program,” or P.A.C.E., which it launched in India in 2007 to provide female garment workers with the technical training and life-skills education. More than 7,500 women have received training through the P.A.C.E. program. In 2009, the program expanded to Cambodia, and has since launched in China, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam. The program is scheduled to launch in Bangladesh in October 2011 and in Indonesia in April 2012.

Building Constituency for Equality in the Middle East (CGI 2009)

Commitment by: Karama

Summary: In 2009, Karama made a three-year, $3.38-million commitment to provide support to women’s groups in the Middle East and North Africa to end violence against women, and influence policies and political processes. To date, Karama and its partners have implemented 10 action plans in Egypt and Jordan addressing violence against women and its cultural, economic, educational, legal, media, political, and social causes and effects. It also held an emergency regional meeting earlier this year in response to the Arab Spring to make action plans to increase female political participation and influence in the constitutional reform processes.

The following new commitments were announced today:

Reinventing Education Through Technology

Commitment by: Khan Academy

Summary: Khan Academy commits to add curriculum in physics, biology, and chemistry to its successful online courses. The program breaks down these sometimes complex subjects into self-guided lessons that are easy to understand. Courses, which will be translated into ten world languages, can be used to supplement traditional classroom learning or as a stand-alone training program.

Maiyet in Partnership with Nest

Commitment by: Maiyet

Summary: Maiyet and Nest commit to connecting craftspeople in the developing world with buyers of luxury goods based on traditional handicrafts, enabling them to expand their market access. Maiyet and Nest will provide training and critical market access to eighteen traditional craft businesses and 2,600 artisans. Over the next three years, Maiyet will purchase a minimum of $3 million in goods from program participants, setting an example for other companies.

A Billion Acts of Green

Commitment by: Earth Day Network

Summary: The Earth Day Network commits to inform and facilitate an increase in energy efficiency and renewable energy usage. The network will encourage individuals and corporations to purchase renewable energy credits and technology. It will provide governments with information on alternative energy and energy efficiency policy, while also providing tools to calculate and reduce a business or individual’s carbon footprint. Ultimately, the Network will work to prevent one million pounds of new carbon emissions before the United Nations Earth Summit convenes in Rio de Janeiro.

GAIN Future Fortified Campaign

Commitment by: Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition

Summary: The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition and its partners will commit to launch Future Fortified, a three-pronged program to fight hunger among women and children. Future Fortified will increase awareness about sustainable solutions to malnutrition and educate communities on ways to maximize micronutrient consumption, and distribute essential nutrients to 50 million people by 2015. As a kickoff to this four-year project, Herbalife and Royal DSM will donate 20 million sachets of micronutrient powder to thousands in the drought-ravaged Horn of Africa.

Improving Africa’s Neglected Food Crops

Commitment by: New Partnership for Africa’s Development

Summary: A consortium of partners, led by Mars, World Wildlife Fund, IBM, and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, will work to improve Africa’s ‘orphan’ crops. The consortium will genetically sequence two dozen genomes of neglected food crop species and introduce this information into the public domain. They will also establish a plant breeding academy based in Ghana that will train 750 African scientists and technicians in improving the quality of native crops.

REACH: Rural Entrepreneurs for Agricultural Cooperation in Haiti

Commitment by: Heifer Project International

Summary: Heifer Project International commits to provide livestock, as well as animal husbandry and business training to more than 20,000 households in Haiti. Their five-year program scales up the work they’ve done in Haiti for twelve years. Heifer’s market-based approach to crop and livestock development will focus on improving the agricultural skills of women, engaging youth, preserving environmental resources, and developing natural disaster preparedness.

Restoration of Solar Home Systems in Rural Thailand

Committed by: Border Green Energy Team

Summary: Border Green Energy Team commits to restore solar systems on the Thai-Burmese border. In 2004, the Thai government installed 300,000 solar systems for off-the-grid homes, but the UNDP estimates that 80 percent of these systems have stopped working due to lack of a long-term maintenance plan. BGET will restore 100 of these systems by providing micro-loans to finance repairs, and will train a corps of local technicians who can continue maintenance in the long term.

Improved Water Quality for Vulnerable Families in Tonga

Committed by: Tonga Community Development Trust

Summary: The Tonga Community Development Trust will improve access to safe drinking water by supporting the repair and maintenance of 300 household rainwater-harvesting tanks. In this community-designed program, the Trust will cover the cost of repair materials while participants will provide labor.

MaxWest Technology: Reducing Need for Landfills in US and China

Commitment by: MaxWest Environmental Systems

Summary: MaxWest commits to construct two facilities that process biosolids by sustainable gasification in Plymouth, Maine and Guangdong Province, China. This treatment method will capture and recycle energy, reducing the need for fossil fuels. MaxWest will recycle the water in biosolids waste to yield a phosphate-rich fertilizer additive. This technology will reduce landfilling by 100,000 tons per year.

Tunisian and Egyptian Scholarships

Committed by: The Mohamad S. Farsi Foundation

Summary: The Mohamed S. Farsi Foundation, Middle East commits to provide scholarships in the next five years to two university students from Egypt and Tunisia to attend the Washington Semester Program at American University in Washington, D.C during their junior year. Students will participate in seminars with working professionals, internships, and academic courses, such as “American Politics,” “Islam and World Affairs,” and “Peace and Conflict Resolution.”

Promoting Self-Employment Among Youth in Tunisia

Committed by: Enda Inter-Arabe

Summary: Enda Inter-Arabe commits to launch an entrepreneurship program in Tunisia to train at least 40,000 youth and finance 20,000 new ventures, for which it will provide case studies, business training, mentorship, and capital. Enda has been a leader in microfinance in Tunisia for 17 years and currently serves 170,000 low-income micro-entrepreneurs.

Employment Through Youth Entrepreneurship in MENA

Committed by: The Prince of Wales Youth Business International; The Centennial Fund

Summary: The Prince of Wales Youth Business International currently offers underserved young people in thirty-four Middle Eastern and North African countries training, seed money, and mentoring to start their own businesses. Over the next three years, Youth Business International will partner with The Centennial Fund to extend programming to six new countries in the region to train 28,000 young people, launch 7,000 businesses, and create 22,800 jobs.

Construction of Professional Soccer Stadium in Haiti

Committed by: Delos Living; Fondation L’Athletique D’Haiti

Summary: In partnership with Fondation L’Athletique D’Haiti (FLADH), Delos Living commits to co-develop, construct, and manage Haiti’s first-ever professional soccer stadium in Cite Soleil. FLADH has a long record in Haiti, having trained and provided a safe haven to more than 6,000 adolescents through their after-school athletic program. The construction of this soccer stadium will establish a new industry built around professional soccer.

Girls Got Skillz

Committed by: Grassroot Soccer

Summary: Since 2002, Grassroot Soccer has been conducting programs for boys and girls in southern Africa that combine soccer with HIV prevention and a life skills curriculum. Building on this success, GRS now commits to conduct a girl-centered program in six countries. Led by 250 GRS community role models, Skillz Street will provide a safe space for 12,500 girls to play non-competitive soccer, access vital gender-specific conversations about HIV, and take action in their community.

Seeing is Believing – A Renewed Commitment

Commitment by: Standard Chartered Bank

Summary: In 2008, Standard Chartered Bank committed to secure $20 million to fund vision care for 20 million of the urban poor around the world. In addition to reaching this fundraising goal ahead of schedule, the company’s Seeing is Believing Project has already impacted five million lives by providing a range of services from simple eye exams and glasses to specialized surgeries. Standard Chartered now commits to expand its existing program and the range of services it offers by raising an additional $63 million to fund the completion of 35 comprehensive eye care projects in at least 25 countries.

Leadership Matters

Commitment by: Hellenic Republic, Harvard University Kennedy School of Government

Summary: Ambassador Gianna Angelopoulos commits to establish the Angelopoulos International Public Leaders Program to help former public officials use their experience to do good in the world. At the Kennedy School, she is creating the Angelopoulos Fund to create opportunities each year for up to five different public officials to spend time at Harvard after completing their terms of office.

Safeguarding Forests & Biodiversity in Western Ghats

Commitment by: Applied Environmental Research Foundation

Summary: The Applied Environmental Research Foundation commits to protect fragile forests and sacred groves in India by providing agroforestry training to local landowners in exchange for conservation easements, creating an alternative to selling or farming forestland

Naboisho Community Conservancy, Masai Mara, Kenya

Commitment by: Basecamp Foundation

Summary: Through Basecamp’s program in Kenya’s Masai Mara local tribesmen will manage their lands for long-term ecosystem protection, while partnering with the sustainable tourism industry.

Appalachian Ohio Zero Waste Initiative

Commitment by: Rural Action

Summary: Rural Action commits to bring together private, university, and foundation partners to assist entrepreneurs in Central Appalachia in creating a new system for managing and re-purposing waste.

Catalyzing Industry to Rebuild World Fisheries

Commitment by: Darden Restaurants

Summary: Darden Restaurants commits to work with fishermen and buyers to restore overexploited fisheries through data collection and by providing market incentives to encourage fishermen to switch to sustainable practices.

Public-Private Funding Vehicle-Water Efficiency Project

Commitment by: Arison Investments

Summary: Arison Investments commits to creating a public-private equity fund, enabling much-needed financing for water efficiency projects around the world. Every year, more than one-third of the world’s drinking water supply is lost as a result of old infrastructure.

Securing Wetland Carbon Stores for Climate

Commitment by: Wetlands International

Summary: Wetlands International commits to use microcredit help communities protect 2 million acres of peat swamps, which are valuable carbon sinks.

Electrifying Villages and Schools in India

Commitment by: Applied Materials

Summary: Applied Materials commits to provide microcredit opportunities and solar panels to 1,000 homes and 10 schools in rural India. The solar panels will replace kerosene lamps and other carbon-intensive fuels.

Health and Hope Oasis: Support for Children with Cancer

Commitment by: Care With Love

Summary: Care with Love commits to establish a home and health center in Cairo, Egypt where rural children with cancer—and their families—can live while they are in the city for treatment. As part of their housing, these families will be given the nutritious meals, medication, and health education necessary to beat cancer.

Global Smokefree Worksite Challenge

Commitment by: Johnson & Johnson, Mayo Clinic, American Cancer Society, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, GBCHealth

Summary: A group of public and private-sector partners commit to launch the Global Smokefree Worksite Challenge, pledging to make their workplaces around the globe completely smoke-free. Those whose workplaces are already smoke-free will share best practices. For major employers with global supply chains, this is an opportunity to inject progressive tobacco policies in regions where smoking is on the rise. As new partners join the Challenge, this program has the potential to make workplaces healthier for millions of employees.

Global Climate Change Real Estate Fund for C40-Cities

Commitment by: OVG

Summary: In 2007, OVG, a leader in European real estate, committed to invest $1 billion to develop sustainable buildings in the Netherlands. These buildings use 60 percent less energy, and reduce carbon emissions. OVG completed its commitment two years ahead of schedule, and its buildings will reduce carbon emissions by one million tons over the course of their lifetimes. OVG now commits to launch the Global Climate Change Real Estate Fund, which will raise and distribute an additional $1 billion during the next five years, to develop green buildings around the globe, including both new construction projects and energy-efficiency retrofits.

What:
2011 CGI Annual Meeting (www.clintonglobalinitiative.org)

Where:
Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers
811 7th Avenue at 52nd Street
New York, NY 10019

When:
September 20-22, 2011

Applying for Credentials: To apply for a press credential to the 2011 CGI Annual Meeting, please complete the online form at http://bit.ly/pressreg2011.

Location: Unless otherwise noted, all events will take place at the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers located at 811 7th Avenue. Press entrance and registration is on 52nd Street between 6th and 7th Avenues in the Executive Conference Center at the Sheraton.

CGI Media Center and Workspace: The Press Center is located in the Executive Conference Center in the lower lobby of the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers. Wired and wireless Internet access will be provided. Phones will not be provided. There will also be video and audio feeds of most events available in the Press Center.

Interview Locations: There will be stand-up camera locations available that broadcast outlets can reserve in advance. In addition, there will be rooms available press can reserve for interviews. To reserve a time, please contact Seth Belaff at seth@tuckerproductions.com.

Wireless Microphones: Please do NOT bring or use wireless microphones on site, as they will interfere with the wireless PA systems.

Plenary sessions and selected press conferences: Plenary sessions will be sent out via fiber, free and unrestricted, on the following loop numbers: Ascent Media Loop #4461 (HD signal) & #4462 (SD signal)

Mult Box: Output specifics are: XLR for audio and BNC connection for video.

Sat Truck Parking: There are a limited amount of satellite and microwave truck parking spaces available. Please email Seth Bellaff at seth@tuckerproduction.com with a request or call at 917-414-5618.

Live Webcast: All CGI sessions open to the press will be webcast at http://bit.ly/cgilive.

Twitter: The event hashtag is #CGI2011.

Photos: Photos from the meeting will be available on CGI’s Flickr account at http://flickr.com/cgiphotos.

Facebook: Highlights, news, and photos from CGI will be shared on the CGI Facebook page: www.facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.

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About the Clinton Global Initiative

Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) convenes global leaders to devise and implement innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges. Since 2005, CGI Annual Meetings have brought together nearly 150 current and former heads of state, 18 Nobel Prize laureates, hundreds of leading CEOs, heads of foundations, major philanthropists, directors of the most effective nongovernmental organizations, and prominent members of the media. These CGI members have made more than 2,000 commitments, which have already improved the lives of 300 million people in more than 180 countries. When fully funded and implemented, these commitments will be valued in excess of $63 billion. The 2011 Annual Meeting will take place Sept. 20-22 in New York City.

This year, CGI also convened CGI America, a meeting focused on developing ideas for driving economic growth in the United States. The CGI community also includes CGI U, which hosts an annual meeting for undergraduate and graduate students, and CGI Lead, which engages a select group of young CGI members for leadership development and collective commitment-making. For more information, visit www.clintonglobalinitiative.org.