President Clinton Hosts President Barack Obama, Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, and Governor Mitt Romney on Closing Day of 2012 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting

Eighth CGI Annual Meeting Closes with over 150 new commitments made valued at more than $2 billion, expected to impact nearly 22 million people. Members have now made nearly 2,300 commitments, which will improve the lives of over 400 million people in more than 180 countries

First CGI Latin America established. CGI University, CGI America dates announced.

New York, NY – Today, President Barack Obama, Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney joined President Clinton and other international leaders on the final day of the eighth Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting. Over three days, an array of heads of state, CEOs, non-profit leaders, and other global luminaries made over 150 new commitments, expected to impact nearly 22 million lives. To close the meeting, President Clinton and Chelsea Clinton announced plans for CGI University, CGI America, and the first CGI Latin America Meeting in 2013.

“I am convinced that cooperation, not conflict, will define this century,” said President Clinton. “From the capitols of the world to the most remote villages, people everywhere understand that there are universal challenges which face us all and are beyond the power of any individual to solve alone. As the eighth CGI Annual Meeting draws to a close, I celebrate our members who have committed to working together to meet these challenges head on. Their creative and focused actions will help to bring about a stable, sustainable world in which all people have a chance to thrive.”

The day’s theme, “Designing Our Systems,” emphasized that our interconnected world requires intentional systems of governance, community welfare, and commerce in order to create economic growth and provide for the social good. In the day’s sessions, CGI members examined tools and approaches used to design systems that enable sustainable prosperity and opportunity for all. Clinton Foundation and CGI board member Chelsea Clinton moderated a session called “The Case for Optimism in the 21^st Century.”

Following President Clinton’s conversation with President Morsi, Chelsea joined President Clinton to announce details for CGI University 2013. Washington University in St. Louis will serve as next year’s site for the gathering that brings students, youth organizations, topic experts, and celebrities together to explore innovative solutions to pressing global challenges. The meeting will take place April 5-7, 2013 and convene more than 1,000 students representing approximately 300 colleges and universities around the world.

President Clinton revealed that CGI will hold CGI Latin America in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil next year in December. It marks the Clinton Global Initiative’s first overseas meeting since convening CGI Asia in Hong Kong in 2008. President Clinton also announced that CGI America, a meeting focused on collaborative solutions to economic recovery in the United States, will return to Chicago in June 2013.

Last night, President Clinton also honored this year’s recipients of the Clinton Global Citizen Award, Carlos Slim Helú, founder of Fundación Carlos Slim; Luis A. Moreno, president of Inter-American Development Bank; Denis O’Brien, chairman and founder of Digicel Group; Pepe Julian Onziema, programme director and advocacy officer of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG); The Right Reverend Christopher Senyonjo, executive director of St. Paul’s Reconciliation and Equality Centre; and Katie Stagliano, founder and chief executive gardener of Katie’s Krops.

Featured speakers on the closing day of the Annual Meeting included Barack Obama, 44^th President of the United States of America, Bill Clinton, 42^nd President of the United States of America and founding chairman of the Clinton Global Initiative, Felipe Calderón, President of Mexico, Mohamed Morsi, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Tony Blair, Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Mitt Romney, former Governor of Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Akinwumi Adesina, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Her Highness Princess Ameerah Al-Taweel, Vice Chairwoman and Secretary General, Alwaleed Bin Talal Foundations, Timothy F. Geithner, Secretary of the Treasury, U.S. Department of the Treasury, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Finance Minister, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, Founder and Chairperson of BRAC, Walter A. Bell, Chairman of the Board, Swiss Re America Holding Corporation, Deepak Chopra, Founder, The Chopra Foundation and Founder and Chairman of the Board of The Chopra Center for Wellbeing, Wesley Clark, Chairman and CEO of Wesley K. Clark & Associates, Chelsea Clinton, Board Member of the William J. Clinton Foundation and the Clinton Global Initiative, Piers Morgan, host of CNN’s Piers Morgan Tonight, Art Naqvi, Founder and Group Chief Executive of Abraaj Holdings, Clarence Otis, Jr., Chairman and CEO of Darden Restaurants, Inc., Bill Parish, President of Mosaic, Judith Rodin, President of the Rockefeller Foundation, Charlie Rose, Executive Editor and Anchor of Charlie Rose, Irene B. Rosenfeld, Chairman and CEO, Kraft Foods Incorporated, Richard Stengel, Managing Editor of TIME Magazine, Luis A. Ubiñaa, President, The Ford Foundation, and will.i.am, Founder, i.am.angel Foundation.

The 2012 CGI Annual Meeting is sponsored by Abraaj Capital, American Federation of Teachers, Ambassador Gianna Angelopoulos, APCO Worldwide, Barclays, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Booz Allen Hamilton, Cisco, CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Delos Living, Deutsche Bank, Diageo PLC, The Dow Chemical Company, Duke Energy Corporation, ExxonMobil, The Ford Foundation, Varkey GEMS Foundation, The Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing, Hewlett Packard Company, Inter-American Development Bank, InterEnergy, Jive Software, Knoll Inc, Laureate International Universities, Microsoft Corporation, NRG Energy Inc, Procter & Gamble, The Rockefeller Foundation, Shangri-La Industries, Standard Chartered Bank, Starkey Hearing Foundation, Swiss Reinsurance Company, Tom Golisano, Toyota Motors Corporation, United Postcode Lotteries, The Victor Pinchuk Foundation, and Western Union Financial Services Inc.

The full program, webcast schedule, and list of all CGI Annual Meeting commitments are available here: clintonglobalinitiative.org/2012.

The following new commitments were announced in Plenary Sessions today:

NGO 2.0 Shaping the Next Generation of Social Entrepreneurs
Commitment by: Hult International Business School
In 2012, the Hult Prize committed to help launch a new wave of student social entrepreneurs in response to a challenge made by President Clinton and building on the successes of past Hult competitions. This will be achieved by creating a start-up accelerator for social entrepreneurship designed to fund, mentor, advise and launch new social businesses. Through the continuation of its established global competition, Hult will bring together more than one thousand college and university students from over 130 countries, totaling more than 300 different colleges and universities. Working in five-person teams this spring, these students will compete at one of five global locations and online for the opportunity to spend the summer at the Hult Accelerator -- a world-class center for innovation in Boston -- and secure US$1 million in seed funding to start their businesses. Out of the hundreds of teams who will attend the regional stage of the competition, the best six teams will be selected to work at the Accelerator. Each of the six winning teams will then pitch their idea at CGI's Annual Meeting in September 2013, where President Clinton, along with CGI Meeting attendees will select and award the winning team with a $1 million prize.

Rwanda Human Resources for Health Program
Commitment by: Rwanda Ministry of Health
In 2012, the Government of Rwanda, partnering with the US government, the Global Fund, and leading health sciences universities committed $152,000,000 to create the Human Resources for Health (HRH) Program to build the health education infrastructure and workforce necessary for a high quality, sustainable healthcare system. Partnering with 7 leading medical schools, 5 nursing and midwifery schools, and 1 health management school, the program will send more than 100 faculty members to Rwanda annually to assist medical, nursing, and public health schools and teaching hospitals and to mentor educators and students.

20 x 20: To Serve 20 Million People by 2020
Commitment by: STARS Foundation
In 2012, STARS Foundation committed $70,000,000 to impact the lives of 20 million people by 2020. This commitment will expand the Impact Awards program, which provides $100,000 grants in unrestricted funding to local NGOs, into 100 countries. A new awards category for NGOs improving access to Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) will be added, with grants to be awarded to organizations that together serve 10 million people. STARS will also launch “STARS Projects,” a new operational unit that will deliver new products and solutions for ‘base of the pyramid’ markets serving an additional 10 million people.

Post Harvest Project: Reducing Waste for Food Security
Commitment by: nanoICE
In 2012, nanoICE committed $8,945,000 to launch the Post Harvest Project (PHP). This commitment will install new cold chain systems at the Port of Tema and Lake Volta that will dramatically reduce fish waste and fish shrinkage, providing more protein for Ghanaians and more income for fishers. The commitment will also install a manufacturing plant at the Port of Tema with a transportation station at Lake Volta to make organic fertilizer from fish waste to provide an environmentally safe, locally made fertilizer for 134,000 hectares.

mHealth From the Ground Up in Rural Liberia
Commitment by: Tiyatien Health
In 2012, Tiyatien Health and Medic Mobile committed $1,000,000 to build a model for community-based, mobile-enabled maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH) services in the Konobo district of Grand Gedeh, which has no mobile network and only one health facility. Through this commitment, Tiyatien Health will equip a pilot cadre of frontline health workers to deliver primary health care to all villages in the district for the first time.

Agri-Fin Mobile: Increasing Small-holder Income Through Mobile
Commitment by: Mercy Corps and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)
In 2012, Mercy Corps and SDC committed $3,800,000 to develop new business models that offer mobile agricultural and financial services to small-holder farmers in Indonesia, Uganda and Zimbabwe. The Agri-Fin Mobile program will offer farmers access to mobile-based agricultural and financial services, including farm and crop management tools, financing, micro-insurance, and access to markets for their products, to increase their income.

In Women’s Hands: Empowering the Next Generation of African Female Leaders
Commitment by: the MPULE Institute
In 2012, The MPULE Institute committed $280,000 to develop the Network of Women Investing in Africa (NEW Africa) Leadership Program. By training and empowering women to excel in leadership roles in Ethiopia, Ghana and South Africa, NEW Africa will increase young African women’s representation and participation in the global development agenda, increase investment in social services and labor-saving technologies that are most beneficial to women, and unlock new opportunities in sectors proven to lift women and their families from poverty.

Brighter Futures: Ending Child Marriage in Turkey and Abroad
Commitment by: Sabanci Foundation
In 2012 and 2013, the Sabanci Foundation committed $400,000 to financially support, and help design, a meeting to take place in Istanbul in February 2013 and organized by Girls not Brides, where participants will design advocacy and communication strategies to end child marriage. Using these strategies, the Turkish National Platform to End Child Marriage will educate 200 parliamentarians and policy makers and 500 families, religious leaders, teachers, and officials in Turkey about the negative impacts of child marriage.

Next Generation Technology for Frontline Health Workers
Commitment by: IntraHealth International
IntraHealth commits $500,000 to design a scalable e/mLearning Program in Kenya, building on initial success in its partnership with the Kenyan Medical Training College network. IntraHealth will design a scalable eLearning model that will first be applied in two training institutions, where more than 80 frontline health workers will be equipped with new a/mLearning skills. Once the model is designed and tested, IntraHealth will make it available to frontline health workers across Kenya.

A Budding Interest: Organic Farming
Commitment by: The PRASAD Project
In 2012, the PRASAD Project committed to addressing regional issues of environmental degradation, economic disempowerment, illiteracy, and food insecurity in the Tansa Valley of India by supporting local farmers and their families address these issues through the establishment and expansion of several programs, including the adoption of organic farming techniques. To address land degradation and soil erosion problems, the PRASAD Project will provide training in organic farming and horticulture to local farmers. They will aid in the implementation of an integrated watershed program for better, more sustainable water resource use and will implement soil conservation and tree planting programs. To address regional economic issues, the PRASAD Project will help farmers and their families access markets for their food and other agricultural outputs. The PRASAD Project, in conjunction with these activities, commits to providing a series of trainings to community residents which include literacy, vocational, environmental education, social health awareness, and sanitation and solid waste management programs. To support the long term impact and sustainability of these programs and initiatives, the PRASAD Project will conduct these trainings with the support of a number of Self-Help Groups (SHGs). Adopting a multifaceted approach recognizes that these issues are interrelated and inextricably linked.

Essential Capital Fund
Commitment by: Deutsche Bank Americas
In 2012, Deutsche Bank committed to structuring an innovative seven-year investment fund - the "Essential Capital Fund" - that provides crucial catalytic funds to socially responsible investment funds and enterprises that support the microfinance and social enterprise sectors. The Fund represents a pioneering effort in the impact investing field because it provides risk mitigation mechanisms for others investors. Specifically, by deferring a portion of its management fee, generating a savings reserve via a step coupon mechanism for investor returns and offering a 10 percent guarantee, the Fund promises to unlock significant capital currently reluctant to engage in unproven sectors. Slated to reach $50 million in portfolio size by 2015 and designed in collaboration with leading social impact stakeholders, the Essential Capital Fund will invest in 1) "first loss" positions of debt funds, 2) guarantees on loan syndications, 3) loans to impact investments and 4) other innovative opportunities.

United Water 'Solution': Investing in America's Water
Commitment by: United Water
In 2012, United Water committed to partner with institutional investors to form entities that will provide Nassau County, New York and the City of Bayonne, New Jersey with private capital to pay down accumulated debt and initiate capital investment in their municipal water systems. Through this five year commitment, United Water will take over operations and repairs of these water systems in exchange for resident-paid water usage fees. The municipalities, while clearing millions of dollars of accumulated debt, will maintain ownership and regulatory oversight of these systems. This unique partnership and innovative financial solution will promote job creation, create a cleaner environment, and ensure that ownership and stewardship of the water system never leaves public hands.

Establishment of the Shared Value Initiative
Commitment by: FSG Advisors
In 2012, FSG committed to establish the Shared Value Initiative (SVI), a multi-stakeholder organization that will serve as a global knowledge and learning hub for companies and other stakeholders on the shared value concept, with key corporate co-founders. The SVI will capitalize on the current momentum around shared value by driving adoption amongst companies and by improving implementation at companies that have already engaged in shared value strategies. The SVI will engage in four major activities - deepen and document knowledge, create toolkits for implementation, build communities of practice via physical and virtual engagement opportunities, and steward the concept of shared value. Within the first two years, the founding partners aim to establish the SVI by developing an interactive communications platform, developing shared value content and events, and conducting outreach to a wide-range of stakeholders by identifying and developing outreach plans for stakeholders critical to shared value adoption and implementation.

Building a Global Movement to Redefine Success in Business
Commitment By: B Lab
In 2012, B Lab committed to extend the B Corp movement globally and grow the community of B Corps by 250 businesses, with a goal of reaching 20 countries on 6 continents by December 2013. Organizations that register as B Corps are purpose-driven to create a more inclusive and sustainable economy, with legal underpinnings that allow them to produce value for society as well as shareholders. B Lab will build on the momentum of the B Corp movement in the US and begin its global campaign first in South America, partnering with its first international partner Sistema B to build a founding class of 100 B Corps in the region by the end of 2013. This global initiative will include policy work to create a new corporate form and policy incentives, extensive use of B Lab's standards and technology platform, and partnerships with organizations that have regional presence and expertise.

The following progress reports were announced in Plenary Sessions today:

General Mills/PEPFAR/USAID Partnership for Food Security
Commitment by: General Mills, Inc.
In 2009, General Mills, in partnership with the Office of United States Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC) and United States Agency for International Development (USAID), committed to link its technical and business expertise with small and medium-sized (SME) mills and food processors in sub-Saharan Africa, with the goal of improving those companies' ability to produce high-quality, nutritious, and safe food at affordable prices. This partnership will utilize the expertise of 1,200 experts in General Mills' research and development arm to investigate the challenges to locally sourcing supplemental and therapeutic foods for the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). Ultimately, General Mills, in close partnership with the USAID Agriculture Bureau, aims to engage multiple Fortune 500 food companies in the provision of technical assistance to up to 200 SMEs in 15 countries.

Pollinator Habitat Improvement
Commitment by: Grief, Inc.
In 2009, Grief, Inc. committed to improving pollinator habitats using various silvicultural activities. Grief expects these treatments to increase pollinator populations and, ultimately, improve wildlife habitat for game and non-game species, songbirds and migratory birds. By improving wildlife habitat, timberland owners will justify increases in hunting lease revenues. Increasing pollinator populations will allow for greater yield on agricultural lands.

Girls Not Brides: Partnership to End Child Marriage
Commitment by: The Elders, The Ford Foundation, NoVo Foundation, and Nike Foundation
In 2011, the Elders, the Ford Foundation, the Nike Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation committed to jointly establish 'Girls Not Brides: The Global Partnership to End Child Marriage' (Girls not Brides). Girls not Brides is a member-driven partnership with a global focus. They also committed to raise $3 million to ensure the functioning of the partnership, the creation of a secretariat, and to seed activities to end child marriage in priority countries. In addition, they committed to establish a network of donors to support programs to end child marriage worldwide.

Developing MFI Social Performance Scorecard & Ratings
Commitment by: The Moody's Foundation
In 2010, Moody's, one of the world's leading sources for credit ratings, research, and risk analysis, committed to develop a scorecard and standardized rating for assessing the social performance of microfinance institutions (MFIs). The social performance rating will consider items such as client protection principles, client service, social impact measurement, and governance. As part of this process, Moody's will work with investors and MFIs to develop an understanding how social performance is assessed, create customized social performance tools, and publish research on how the industry assesses social performance. Moody's will work with a consortium of partners including The Social Performance Task Force, Grameen Bank, Women's World Banking, Blue Orchard, The MIX Market, Deutsche Bank, and ImpAct to design and develop the scorecards.

Western Union’s Our World, Our Family Program
Commitment By: Western Union Foundation
In 2008, Western Union Foundation made a commitment to initiate the Western Union's Our World, Our Family® program, a five-year, $50 million initiative designed to equip migrants and the communities they leave behind with the skills, knowledge, and resources essential to alleviating poverty. Worldwide, there are an estimated 500 million migrants working outside of their home countries, who sent home an estimated $369 billion in remittances in 2007. Western Union and its partners seek to leverage the talents, experience, and resources of migrants and other stakeholders to build capacity and extend access to capital and financial services to communities outside the financial mainstream. Since its inception, this program has achieved key milestones including developing a global partnership with Mercy Corps, launching an employee volunteerism program, introducing Western Union Global Giving Circles to support educational initiatives in India, and collaborating with the Economic Intelligence Unit to develop research and convene leading experts around the issue of migration.

Medical Supply Chain Transformation Project
Commitment By: The Coca-Cola Company
In 2010, the Coca-Cola Company (TCCC) committed to share its route-to-market expertise to support the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (The Global Fund)'s ability to get vital drugs, medicines, and medical supplies to the people who need them most. It will do this initially through a pilot project wherein 10 months of direct support will be provided to the Medical Stores Department in Tanzania. There is potential for additional phases of work. The objective will be to test this innovation in public private partnering to build a model that encourages others to add their expertise. The company hopes to create a scalable, sustainable and replicable model that can be rolled out to other countries facing similar challenges related to the supply chains of critical medicines. It is envisaged that partnerships with multiple organizations from the public sector, private sector and civil society could be encouraged in future replications of this work.

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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 create and implement innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together more than 150 heads of state, 20 Nobel Prize laureates, and hundreds of leading CEOs, heads of foundations and NGOs, major philanthropists, and members of the media. To date CGI members have made nearly 2,300 commitments, which have already improved the lives of more than 400 million people in more than 180 countries. When fully funded and implemented, these commitments will be valued at $73.1 billion.

CGI also convenes CGI America, a meeting focused on collaborative solutions to economic recovery in the United States, and CGI University (CGI U), which brings together undergraduate and graduate students to address pressing challenges in their community or around the world. For more information, visit clintonglobalinitiative.org and follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.

President Clinton to Honor Six Recipients at the Sixth Annual Clinton Global Citizen Awards

Ugandan LGBT rights activists, business and philanthropy leaders, and 14-year old social entrepreneur to be recognized for outstanding contributions

Seal, Joshua Bennett, Angelique Kidjo, and K’NAAN to perform, with special appearances by Haiti Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe, Lt. Governor of California Gavin Newsom, Matt Damon, Rosario Dawson, Donna Karan, Eva Longoria, Bebe Neuwirth, and June Sarpong

NEW YORK – Tonight, President Bill Clinton will honor recipients at the sixth annual Clinton Global Citizen Awards in New York City in a ceremony featuring performances by recording artists and appearances by heads of state and celebrity philanthropists. The Clinton Global Citizen Awards recognizes individuals from various sectors who demonstrate visionary leadership in addressing global challenges. Carlos Slim Helú, founder of Fundación Carlos Slim; Luis A. Moreno, president of Inter-American Development Bank; Denis O’Brien, chairman and founder of Digicel Group; Pepe Julian Onziema, programme director and advocacy officer of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG); The Right Reverend Christopher Senyonjo, executive director of St. Paul’s Reconciliation and Equality Centre; and Katie Stagliano, founder and chief executive gardener of Katie’s Krops, will accept awards this year.

“The work being done by this year’s honorees is nothing short of extraordinary,” said President Clinton. “Tonight I’m proud to honor two Ugandans who risk their lives to secure basic human dignities many of us take for granted, three leaders whose contributions have positively impacted communities across the Caribbean and Latin America, and a social entrepreneur on pace to take my job before she turns 16. These are some truly amazing folks. They embody the spirit of CGI and inspire us all to be more responsible citizens of the world.”

President Clinton will host the ceremony to be held from 8 p.m.-10 p.m. and air on Hulu.com in October. Actress Bebe Neuwirth will emcee the show that features performances from Grammy Award-winning singer Seal, slam poet Joshua Bennett, Grammy Award–winning Beninoise recording artist Angélique Kidjo, and Somali-Canadian rapper K’NAAN. Haiti Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe, Lt. Governor of California Gavin Newsom, Matt Damon, Rosario Dawson, Donna Karan, Eva Longoria, and June Sarpong will also make appearances in honor of the recipients.

The honorees were nominated by a collection of CGI members and global leaders and selected for their visionary leadership, demonstrated impact, and sustainable and scalable work in solving global issues. Recipients were chosen from government, civil society, the private sector, and the philanthropic community.

The Clinton Global Citizen Awards will be held on the second night of the 2012 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting, which convenes more than 50 current and former heads of state and hundreds of business and civil society leaders to come up with innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges.

The 2012 Clinton Global Citizen Award recipients are:

Leadership in Civil Society

The Right Reverend Christopher Senyonjo (Joint Honoree), executive director, St. Paul’s Reconciliation and Equality Centre
Kampala, Uganda
The Right Reverend Christopher Senyonjo is perhaps best known for his courageous advocacy on behalf of LGBTQ persons in Uganda. Bishop Senyonjo received his Master of Divinity in 1966 and his Master of Sacred Theology in 1967 from Union Theological Seminary in New York. From 1974 until 1998, Bishop Senyonjo was the Diocesan Bishop of West Buganda. He completed a Doctor of Ministry at Hartford Theological Seminary, which was key to his understanding of marriage and human sexuality. Following his retirement, Bishop Senyonjo began counseling services for LGBTQ people. In 2010, he founded St. Paul’s Reconciliation and Equality Centre in Kampala with support from the St. Paul’s Foundation for International Reconciliation in the United States. He has been recognized by the California State Assembly for his leadership on LGBTQ issues and was named one of Huffington Post’s Ten Most Influential Religious Leaders for 2010. Additionally, he was recently named a Grand Marshall of the San Francisco Pride Parade for his advocacy.

Pepe Julian Onziema (Joint Honoree), programme director and advocacy officer, Sexual Minorities Uganda
Kampala, Uganda
Pepe Julian Onziema is a 31-year old Ugandan transgender person. A Pan-African Human Rights Defender currently working as the programme director and advocacy officer at Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), Onziema is the spokesperson for both SMUG and the Ugandan LGBT movement, plus the LGBTI focal person on the Steering Committee of the Pan African Human Rights Defenders Network. In these capacities he has mobilized, coordinated, led, organized, and moderated actions to promote and protect the liberties of LGBTI persons in Uganda, regionally at the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and internationally at the United Nations Human Rights Council. He has been arrested, threatened, named, and shamed in local media for his work.

Katie Stagliano, founder and chief executive gardener, Katie’s Krops
Summerville, South Carolina, United States
Katie Stagliano is the 14-year-old founder and chief executive gardener of Katie’s Krops, a nonprofit organization that starts and maintains vegetable gardens and donates the harvest to help feed people in need, while also inspiring and helping others to do the same. Stagliano’s dream to end hunger one vegetable garden at a time began when she grew a 40-pound cabbage in third grade. She donated the cabbage to a soup kitchen, where it fed 275 people. Katie’s Krops currently maintains 51 kid-run vegetable gardens in 21 states, which are producing thousands of pounds of healthy food for families in need. Utilizing her harvest, Stagliano also runs a soup kitchen to provide healthy meals to those in need. She sits on the Youth Advisory Board for the Alliance for a Healthier Generation and is a Global Teen Leader for the We are Family Foundation.

Leadership in Philanthropy

Carlos Slim Helú, founder, Fundación Carlos Slim
Mexico
Carlos Slim Helú founded Grupo Carso in 1965. In 1982, in the middle of Mexico’s debt crisis, Slim Helú decided to invest heavily and actively. He made diverse investments and acquisitions in different sectors, including industry, construction, consumer products, hospitality, mining, and retail and financial services. In 1990, Grupo Carso acquired five percent of Telmex in partnership with SBC and France Telecom, and in 2001, Slim Helú spun off Telmex’s cell phone unit to create America Movil. He continues to be active in business, although his primary focus is on education, health, and employment in Mexico and Latin America. Slim Helú’s foundations have been instrumental in growing the human, cultural, and economic capital of Mexico, and he has personally supported more than 165,000 young people in attending university, paid for numerous surgeries, and provided equipment for rural schools. Last year, he opened the Soumaya Museum, which has been visited by more than one million people.

Leadership in the Corporate Sector

Denis O’Brien, chairman and founder, Digicel Group
Ireland
Denis O’Brien is chairman of the privately-owned Digicel Group, one of the fastest growing mobile operators in the world. O’Brien founded Digicel in 2001, when the company launched a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) cellular phone service in the Caribbean. Digicel has extended its operations to 31 markets, with over 12.8 million subscribers in the Caribbean, Central America, and Pacific regions. O’Brien is one of Ireland’s leading entrepreneurs, with extensive investments across several sectors, including international telecoms, radio, media, property, aircraft leasing, golf, and other leisure interests. In 2010, O’Brien was named goodwill ambassador for the city of Port-au-Prince in Haiti by the mayor in recognition of his efforts to rebuild Haiti and attract foreign direct investment in the aftermath of the earthquake that year. Digicel is the single largest private investor in Haiti.

Leadership in Public Service

Luis A. Moreno, president, Inter-American Development Bank
Colombia
Luis Alberto Moreno assumed the presidency of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) on October 1, 2005. As president of the Bank, Moreno also serves as chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of the Inter-American Investment Corporation and chairman of the Donors’ Committee of the Multilateral Investment Fund. Previous to joining the IDB, Moreno served as Colombia’s ambassador to the United States for seven years. Moreno was also executive producer of the “TV Hoy” news program, which received the King of Spain Prize for journalistic excellence. He received the Orden de Boyacá en el Grado de Gran Cruz — the highest distinction given by the Colombian state — from the President of Colombia on August 2, 2002. Moreno obtained bachelor’s degrees in business administration and economics from Florida Atlantic University in 1975, and a Master of Business Administration from Thunderbird School of Global Management in 1977.

Corporate Sponsor DIAGEO back at CGI

President Clinton Opened 2012 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting Emphasizing Action through Social Investment, Empowering Girls and Women, and Designing for Impact

Featured speakers included Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim, IDEO Chief Executive Officer Tim Brown, and Walmart President and CEO Michael T. Duke

New commitments focusing on environmental protection, women’s empowerment, sustainable energy and global health and progress reports on previous commitments announced

 

President Clinton at his press confereence on CGI's opening day.

New York, NY – Today, Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim, and Walmart President and CEO Michael T. Duke joined President Bill Clinton and other global leaders in New York City at the opening of the eighth Annual Meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative. Over the course of the three-day meeting, pioneers and innovators from business, government, and civil society will examine the most effective ways to design a more prosperous and sustainable world and confront the most urgent global challenges.

“As CGI’s eighth Annual Meeting begins, I am deeply grateful that such a diverse group of esteemed leaders are here with us to motivate global action and change lives worldwide,” said President Clinton. “Their dedication reminds us that the international demand for solutions must take priority over the differences that divide us. It’s the same dedication to humanity that has helped CGI members make nearly 2,300 commitments that have impacted the lives of more than 400 million people since 2005. In the next three days, I look forward to seeing how the world’s leading thinkers will propose creative and inclusive solutions to the obstacles facing our planet.”

This year’s theme, “Designing for Impact,” focuses on the capacity of global citizens to cultivate an environment where their lives and the systems they utilize can serve as an effective vehicle for change. Through this theme, participants will convey how innovation and creativity can transform into platforms for global action. Each day of the Annual Meeting, CGI members will use a different lens to approach designing their work for impact from the empowerment of women and girls to social investment.

President Clinton moderated the opening panel featuring Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim, and Walmart President and CEO Michael T. Duke, who discussed how we can better design our world to cultivate greater opportunity and equality. The conversation followed opening remarks from IDEO CEO Tim Brown, whose cutting-edge ideas on design have influenced the meeting’s creative focus this year.

In addition to moderating the discussion in the plenary session, President Clinton announced new commitments for 2012 and reports on progress of commitments made at past CGI Annual Meetings.

The 2012 CGI Annual Meeting is sponsored by Abraaj Capital, American Federation of Teachers, Ambassador Gianna Angelopoulos, APCO Worldwide, Barclays, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Booz Allen Hamilton, Cisco, CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Delos Living, Deutsche Bank, Diageo PLC, The Dow Chemical Company, Duke Energy Corporation, ExxonMobil, The Ford Foundation, Varkey GEMS Foundation, The Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing, Hewlett Packard Company, Inter-American Development Bank, InterEnergy, Jive Software, Knoll Inc, Laureate International Universities, Microsoft Corporation, NRG Energy Inc, Procter & Gamble, The Rockefeller Foundation, Shangri-La Industries, Standard Chartered Bank, Starkey Hearing Foundation, Swiss Reinsurance Company, Tom Golisano, Toyota Motors Corporation, United Postcode Lotteries, The Victor Pinchuk Foundation, and Western Union Financial Services Inc.

The full program, webcast schedule, and list of all CGI Annual Meeting commitments are available here: clintonglobalinitiative.org/2012.

The following new commitments were announced today in plenary sessions:

GIVE: Lights and Power for Panzi Hospital
Commitment by: GlobalECHO Foundation
In 2012, the GlobalECHO Foundation committed to providing $150,000 over a two-year period that will help the Panzi Hospital in the Democratic Republic of Congo transition from a reliance on diesel fuel and an undependable grid to clean, sustainable, and renewable energy. Specifically, the Foundation will fund the installation of solar panels donated by another CGI member, Suntech Power Holdings Company Limited.

Health Justice for People with Intellectual Disabilities
Commitment by: Paychex Corporation and Special Olympics International
In 2012, Tom Golisano committed $12 million to fund 12 Special Olympics (SOI) International Healthy Communities Demonstration Projects worldwide. Through this contribution, SOI will identify communities where they will deliver a sustained set of health interventions and supports for individuals with intellectual disabilities in a comprehensive, community-based year round model. This commitment will enable SOI to expand its data collection and ability to document the global health status of people with intellectual disabilities, raising awareness and generating collaborative solutions to the issue of health disparities facing people with intellectual disabilities.

Empowering Palestinian Women In and Through Media
Commitment by: NISAA Broadcast Radio Company
In 2012, 96 NISAA FM, a woman-owned radio station in the West Bank, committed to train and eventually hire community reporters and students in radio reporting and broadcasting. In order to work against gender stereotypes in media by increasing both women’s roles in media leadership as well as positive representations of women in media, every trainee will learn essential reporting skills, such as gathering news from the field, producing audio reports, reporting live, and working inside the NISAA studio.

Bridging the Gap: Empowering Women Through Education
Commitment by: Georges Malaika Foundation
In 2012, the Georges Malaika Foundation (GMF) committed to expand educational access and quality learning opportunities to 340 young girls in the Katanga Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Through the use of a holistic approach to education, the GMF School will provide tuition-free education that also offers two meals a day, clean drinking water, sanitary latrines, internet access, and highly-trained teachers.

Man Up Congo: Youth Ending Violence Against Girls in Schools
Commitment by: Man Up Campaign
In 2012, the Man Up Campaign committed to support its two youth delegations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo who create community-based programs to combat gender violence, specifically the normalization of sexual violence against girls in school. Through Man Up’s support, the two youth delegations will be able to implement awareness raising activities (theater and workshops) to directly engage over 300 students around issues of gender-based violence.

Solar Panels for Panzi Hospital
Commitment by: Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. and The Panzi Hospital of Bukavu
In 2012, Suntech, the world’s largest producer of solar panels, partnered with CGI member GlobalECHO Foundation, committed to outfit the Panzi Hospital in the Democratic Republic of Congo to run on solar power. This commitment will help the hospital transition from a reliance on diesel fuel and an undependable grid to clean, sustainable, and renewable energy.

The following progress reports were announced today in plenary sessions:

P&G Children’s Safe Drinking Water: Save a Life an Hour
Commitment by: Procter & Gamble
In 2010, Procter and Gamble (P&G) committed to increase its scope of providing clean drinking water to developing countries by aiming to save a life every hour, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, by 2020. The PUR packet program has provided 1 billion liters of clean drinking water in the last 10 months and hopes to scale up with the PUR packet providing 2 billion liters a year by 2020.

Avon Foundation Global Breast Cancer Clinical Scholars
Commitment by: The Avon Foundation
In 2011, the Avon Foundation committed to create the Women Global Breast Cancer Clinical Scholars Program (Avon Global Scholars) to provide clinically-focused scholarship opportunities to breast cancer specialists outside the United States. The goal of the program is to give advanced training at leading U.S. breast cancer centers affiliated with the Avon Foundation to improve treatment and care of women facing breast cancer around the world.

Addressing Sexual Violence Against Girls
Commitment by: Becton, Dickinson & Co. (BD)
In 2009, Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) and many other partners committed, via Together for Girls (TfG), to develop and implement sexual violence prevention and response programs at the country level. Together for Girls, the first global initiative to address human injustice and public health impact of sexual violence against girls, uses information from national surveys to mobilize government leaders, civil society, and donors.

Dream Builder: The Women's Business Creator
Commitment by: Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Foundation
In 2011, Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold, along with the Thunderbird School of Global Management, committed to develop and pilot an online Women’s Business Academy with the goal of providing business skills training to an estimated 3,400 women who plan to start or grow small businesses. The official program name has since been changed to “DreamBuilder: The Women’s Business Creator.” With curriculum and technological design well under way, DreamBuilder is on track to fulfill the Clinton Global Initiative Commitment to train 3,400 women over the next 5 years.

For more information please visit clintonglobalinitiative.org/2012. Follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative for meeting news and highlights. The event hashtag is #CGI2012.

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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 create and implement innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together more than 150 heads of state, 20 Nobel Prize laureates, and hundreds of leading CEOs, heads of foundations and NGOs, major philanthropists, and members of the media. To date CGI members have made more than 2,100 commitments, which have already improved the lives of nearly 400 million people in more than 180 countries. When fully funded and implemented, these commitments will be valued at $69.2 billion.

CGI also convenes CGI America, a meeting focused on collaborative solutions to economic recovery in the United States, and CGI University (CGI U), which brings together undergraduate and graduate students to address pressing challenges in their community or around the world. For more information, visit clintonglobalinitiative.org and follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.

Watch 2012 CGI Annual Meeting

Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting This year's Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting will convene hundreds of world leaders including President Bill Clinton, President Barack Obama, President of Mexico Felipe Calderón, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Governor Mitt Romney to answer the question: How can we design our world to create more opportunity and more equality? The meeting will be held September 23 – 25 in New York City. RSVP to watch the live webcast. We Want to Know What You Think You have a unique perspective on our organization, and we want hear what you think of the Clinton Foundation. Complete our brief online survey by September 21, 2012. Take the Survey. Join Us in LA We're excited to announce that R&B artist Robin Thicke will be joining President Clinton and Chelsea at our October 8 Millennium Network event. Join other young philanthropists at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles to support the incredible work of the Clinton Foundation and learn about how we're making a difference in Los Angeles and around the world. Purchase your tickets today. President Clinton Visits Haiti Earlier this week, President Clinton visited Haiti to tour the Haiti Hotel School in Port-au-Prince, the only hospitality school of its kind in the country. The school provides training and resources for people pursuing careers in the hospitality industry and works to reinvigorate the tourism sector. See how we're working to build partnerships that are expanding economic development in Haiti. Read more. Healthier Schools September is Childhood Obesity Awareness Month. Ms. Williamson-English, a school nurse, is helping her school create a healthier learning environment. Read more. President Clinton's Commitment to Africa The New York Times highlights President Clinton's recent trip to Africa, where he and Chelsea toured the sites of many Clinton Foundation projects. Read the article.

Give Today | Email Sign Up | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Flickr President Bill Clinton established the William J. Clinton Foundation with the mission to improve global health, strengthen economies, promote healthier childhoods, and protect the environment by fostering partnerships among businesses, governments, nongovernmental organizations, and private citizens. CLINTONFOUNDATION.ORG William J. Clinton Foundation | 1200 President Clinton Avenue | Little Rock, AR 72201

For Immediate Release: September 20, 2012
Contact: press@clintonglobalinitiative.org

President Clinton Announces That Newly Elected Libyan President Mohamed Magariaf, Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Will Join More Than 50 Current and Former Heads of State at 2012 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting

Global business, government, and civil society leaders also announced to attend include Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, prime minister, State of Kuwait; Luis Federico Franco Gómez, president of the Republic of Paraguay; Laurent Lamothe, prime minister of the Republic of Haiti; Otto Pérez Molina, president of Guatemala; Sauli Niinistö, president of the Republic of Finland; Bujar Nishani, president of Albania; Rosen Plevneliev, president of the Republic of Bulgaria; Portia Simpson-Miller, prime minister of Jamaica; Ehud Barak, minister of defense, deputy prime minister, and former prime minister, State of Israel; Benjamin W. Mkapa, former president of the United Republic of Tanzania and founder of the Benjamin William Mkapa HIV/AIDS Foundation; George Papandreou, former prime minister of the Hellenic Republic; Ray LaHood, secretary of transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation; Lloyd C. Blankfein, chairman and CEO of the Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.; Philippe Cousteau, Jr., president of GlobalECHO Foundation; Michael T. Duke, president and CEO of Wal-mart Stores, Inc.; Paul Farmer, founder of Partners in Health; Andrew Liveris, chairman and CEO of the Dow Chemical Company; and Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia

New York, NY – President Clinton announced today that newly elected president of the General National Congress of Libya Mohamed Magariaf, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt Mohamed Morsi, and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will participate in the eighth Annual Meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative to be held September 23-25 in New York City. They will join world leaders in government, business, and civil society, including President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney, at the meeting dedicated to creating and implementing solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. Secretary-General Ban will participate in a panel during the Opening Session on Sunday, September 23, and President Morsi will address and attend the Closing Plenary Session on Tuesday, September 25.

“I am inspired that so many world leaders are coming together at the Clinton Global Initiative as part of their efforts to find a road to a more peaceful and prosperous future for people everywhere, regardless of borders,” said President Clinton.

President Clinton also announced that Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, prime minister, State of Kuwait; Luis Federico Franco Gómez, president of the Republic of Paraguay; Laurent Lamothe, prime minister of the Republic of Haiti; Otto Pérez Molina, president of Guatemala; Sauli Niinistö, president of the Republic of Finland; Bujar Nishani, president of Albania; Rosen Plevneliev, president of the Republic of Bulgaria; Portia Simpson-Miller, prime minister of Jamaica; Benjamin W. Mkapa, former president of the United Republic of Tanzania and founder of the Benjamin William Mkapa HIV/AIDS Foundation; Ehud Barak, minister of defense, deputy prime minister, and former prime minister, State of Israel; Tarja Halonen, former president of the Republic of Finland; George Papandreou, former prime minister of the Hellenic Republic; Walter T. Gwenigale, minister of health and social welfare, Republic of Liberia; Alvin Brown, mayor of the City of Jacksonville; Ray LaHood, secretary of transportation, the U.S. Department of Transportation; Gavin Newsom, lieutenant governor of the State of California; Christine C. Quinn, speaker of the New York City Council; Lloyd C. Blankfein, chairman and CEO of the Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.; Philippe Cousteau, Jr., president of GlobalECHO Foundation; Michael T. Duke, president and CEO of Wal-mart Stores, Inc.; Paul Farmer, founder of Partners in Health; Bill Goodwyn, chief executive officer of Discovery Education at Discovery Communications Inc.; Randall Kempner, executive director of Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs; Andrew Liveris, chairman and CEO of the Dow Chemical Company; Ross Mountain, general director at DARA; Billy Parish, president of Solar Mosaic; Jonathan Quick, president and CEO of Management Sciences for Health; Ethnie Miller Simpson, chief executive officer of Zinergy International; Richard Stengel, managing editor of TIME Magazine; Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia; and Michelle Yeoh, global ambassador, Make Roads Safe Campaign at the FIA Foundation will participate in the upcoming Annual Meeting.

For the full list of confirmed participants, visit: clintonglobalinitiative.org/ourmeetings/2012/speakers

CGI will also feature for the first time televised “Broadcast Conversations,” a series of sessions hosted by broadcast journalists with an international audience for use on their programs. Hosts will include CNN’s Piers Morgan of “Piers Morgan Tonight” and Fareed Zakaria of “Fareed Zakaria GPS” and Charlie Rose, executive editor and anchor of “Charlie Rose,” which airs on PBS and Bloomberg.

During the “Broadcast Conversations,” CGI members and commitment makers from government, business, nonprofit, and entertainment will share their experiences with addressing and designing solutions to major global challenges and discuss current affairs. Participants will include Felipe Calderón Hinojosa, president of Mexico; Salva Kiir Mayardit, president of the Republic of South Sudan; Tony Blair, former prime minister of the United Kingdom; Timothy Geithner, secretary of the treasury, United States Department of the Treasury; Lloyd C. Blankfein, chairman and CEO of the Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.; John Chambers, chairman and CEO of Cisco; and Andrew Liveris, chairman and CEO of the Dow Chemical Company.

For more information, please visit clintonglobalinitiative.org/2012. Follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative for meeting news and highlights. The event hashtag is #CGI2012.

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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 create and implement innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together more than 150 heads of state, 20 Nobel Prize laureates, and hundreds of leading CEOs, heads of foundations and NGOs, major philanthropists, and members of the media. To date CGI members have made more than 2,100 commitments, which have already improved the lives of 400 million people in more than 180 countries. When fully funded and implemented, these commitments will be valued at $69.2 billion.

CGI also convenes CGI America, a meeting focused on collaborative solutions to economic recovery in the United States, and CGI University (CGI U), which brings together undergraduate and graduate students to address pressing challenges in their community or around the world. For more information, visit clintonglobalinitiative.org and follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.

President Clinton to travel to Haiti

New York, NY- On Monday, September 17, President Bill Clinton will travel to Haiti.

In the afternoon, President Clinton will visit the Haiti Hotel School in Port-au-Prince, where he will tour the facilities and meet students and staff. The tour is open press.

President Clinton will then visit the Center for Investment Facilitation in Port-au-Prince, where he will make an announcement, tour the facility, and talk to staff. The visit is open press.

Later, he will speak at an open press ceremony at the University of Notre Dame in Port-au-Prince, where new projects funded by the Qatar Fund will be announced.

For more information, please contact press@clintonfoundation.org.

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Monday, September 17, 2012
1:15 PM EST
President Clinton tours Haiti Hotel School
#1 Impasse Lavau
Bois Verna
Port au Prince
OPEN PRESS


2:30 PM EST
President Clinton visits Center for Investment Facilitation (CFI)
CFI Facility
27, rue Armand Holy
Port-au-Prince
OPEN PRESS


3:45 PM EST
President Clinton speaks at Qatar Fund Announcement
University of Notre Dame
6 Rue Sapotille
Port-au-Prince
OPEN PRESS

President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney to Attend and Address
the 2012 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting

Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan; Felipe Calderón, president of Mexico; Denzil L. Douglas, prime minister of the Federation of Saint Kitts & Nevis; Ralph E. Gonsalves, prime minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; Atifete Jahjaga, president of the Republic of Kosovo; Goodluck E. Jonathan, president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Paul Kagame, president of the Republic of Rwanda; Kamla Persad-Bissessar, prime minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago; Hashim Thaçi, prime minister of the Republic of Kosovo; Timothy F. Geithner, secretary of the treasury, U.S. Department of the Treasury; Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, finance minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to President Barack Obama; Tom Golisano, CGI's founding sponsor, and founder and chairman of the board of Paychex; Condoleezza Rice, founding partner of RiceHaleyGates LLC; Leymah Gbowee, 2011 Nobel Peace Prize-winner; and Carlos Slim Helú, founder, Fundación Carlos Slim will join the CGI Annual Meeting with the theme “Designing for Impact”

Other newly announced participants include Regina M. Benjamin, surgeon general, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Cheryl D. Mills, counselor and chief of staff, U.S. Department of State; Cherie Blair, founder of the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women; Muhtar Kent, chairman and chief executive officer, The Coca-Cola Company; Arif Naqvi, founder and group chief executive of Abraaj Holdings; Peter G. Peterson, chairman, The Peter G. Peterson Foundation; Judith Rodin, president of the Rockefeller Foundation; Reeta Roy, chief executive officer of the MasterCard Foundation; and Melanne Verveer, ambassador-at-large for global women’s issues, U.S. Department of State; Linda Zecher, president and chief executive officer, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

NEW YORK – Today, President Bill Clinton announced that President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney will participate in the eighth Annual Meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative joining world leaders in government, business, philanthropy, and civil society who gather each year to create and implement solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. President Obama and Governor Romney will address separate sessions during the final day of the Annual Meeting to be held September 23-25 in New York City.

“I’m grateful that President Obama and Governor Romney are taking time to join leaders from all parts of society who choose to address our greatest global challenges through the Clinton Global Initiative,” said President Clinton. “CGI is built on the spirit of non-partisan, cross-sector collaborations that drive action and I’m proud that, since we began in 2005, CGI members have made more than 2,100 commitments that are already improving the lives of 400 million people all over the world.”

In addition to President Obama and Governor Romney, President Clinton announced new participants including Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan; Felipe Calderón, president of Mexico; Denzil L. Douglas, prime minister of the Federation of Saint Kitts & Nevis; Ralph E. Gonsalves, prime minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; Atifete Jahjaga, president of the Republic of Kosovo; Goodluck E. Jonathan, president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Paul Kagame, president of the Republic of Rwanda; Kamla Persad-Bissessar, prime minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago; Hashim Thaçi, prime minister of the Republic of Kosovo; Timothy F. Geithner, secretary of the treasury, U.S. Department of the Treasury; Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, finance minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Regina M. Benjamin, surgeon general, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to President Barack Obama; Cheryl D. Mills, counselor and chief of staff, U.S. Department of State; Melanne Verveer, ambassador-at-large for global women’s issues, U.S. Department of State; Cherie Blair, founder of the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women; Leymah Gbowee, 2011 Nobel Peace Prize-winner; Adi Godrej, Chairman, Godrej Group; Tom Golisano, CGI's founding sponsor, and founder and chairman of the board of Paychex; Muhtar Kent, chairman and chief executive officer, The Coca-Cola Company; Arif Naqvi, founder and group chief executive of Abraaj Holdings; Peter G. Peterson, chairman, The Peter G. Peterson Foundation; Condoleezza Rice, founding partner of RiceHaleyGates LLC; Judith Rodin, president of the Rockefeller Foundation; Reeta Roy, chief executive officer of the MasterCard Foundation; Carlos Slim Helú, founder, Fundación Carlos Slim; and Linda Zecher, president and chief executive officer, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt will join the CGI Annual Meeting with the theme Designing of Impact.

For the first time, the CGI Annual Meeting is built around the single theme, “Designing for Impact,” which will examine how the Commitments to Action that CGI members make can be structured to achieve the most positive, measurable results. The three-day meeting will focus on designing for individual lives, our environments and the systems we rely on including food, an inclusive economy, and good governance.

CGI will conduct Design Labs facilitated by the following leading design experts: Kate Canales, Director of Design and Innovation Programs, Southern Methodist University; John Cary, Founder and Editor, PublicInterestDesign.org; Krista Donaldson, Chief Executive Officer, D-Rev: Design Revolution; Heather Fleming, Chief Executive Officer, Catapult Design; David Janka, Levinthal Fellow, Stanford University Institute of Design; Patrice Martin, Co-Lead and Creative Director, IDEO.org; Liz Ogbu, Scholar in Residence, Center for Art and Public Life, California College of the Arts; Sandy Speicher, Education Lead, IDEO; Sarah Stein Greenberg, Managing Director, Stanford University Institute of Design; and, Jocelyn Wyatt, Co-Lead and Creative Director, IDEO.org.

Earlier this year, CGI introduced a comprehensive program of year-round opportunities for CGI members organized around eight tracks which will be threaded throughout the programming at the Annual Meeting including Girls & Women, Education & Workforce Development, Energy & Ecosystems, Global Health, Market-based Approaches, Response & Resilience, Technology and the Built Environment.

Previously announced participants at the 2012 CGI Annual Meeting include: Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, founder and chairperson of BRAC; His Serene Highness Prince Albert II, Sovereign Prince of Monaco; Madeleine Albright, chair of the Albright Stonebridge Group; Joyce Banda, president of the Republic of Malawi; Walter A. Bell, chairman of the board at Swiss Re America Holding Corp; Seth Berkley, chief executive officer of the GAVI Alliance; Tony Blair, former prime minister of the United Kingdom; Tim Brown, president and CEO of IDEO; His Majesty King Juan Carlos I, Kingdom of Spain; John Chambers, chairman and CEO of Cisco; Jason Clay, senior vice president of market transformation at the World Wildlife Fund; Chelsea Clinton, board member of the William J. Clinton Foundation and Clinton Global Initiative; Hillary Rodham Clinton, secretary of state, U.S. Department of State; Ertharin Cousin, executive director of the United Nations World Food Programme; David Crane, president and CEO of NRG Energy, Inc.; Salma Samar Damluji, chief architect at Daw‘an Mud Brick Architecture Foundation; Mallika Dutt, president and CEO of Breakthrough; Jay S. Fishman, chairman and CEO of the Travelers Companies, Inc.; Anne H. Hastings, chief executive officer of Fonkoze Financial Services; Fred P. Hochberg, chairman and president of the Export-Import Bank of the United States; José Insulza, secretary general of the Organization of American States; Robert Ivy, executive vice president and CEO of the American Institute of Architects; Antony Jenkins, group chief executive at Barclays PLC; Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, president of the Republic of Liberia; Jim Yong Kim, president of the World Bank Group; Klaus Kleinfeld, chairman and CEO of Alcoa Inc.; Kay Krill, president and CEO of ANN INC.; Nicholas D. Kristof, columnist at the New York Times; Sasha Kramer, co-founder and executive director of Sustainable Organic Integrated Livelihoods (SOIL); Gayle Tzemach Lemmon, author, journalist, and deputy director of the Women and Foreign Policy Program, Council on Foreign Relations; Elizabeth Littlefield, president and CEO of Overseas Private Investment Corporation; Molly Melching, founder and executive director of Tostan; António Mexia, chief executive officer, EDP – Energias de Portugal, S.A.; Carolyn Miles, president and CEO of Save the Children; Luis Alberto Moreno, president of the Inter-American Development Bank; Jayaseelan Naidoo, chairman of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN); Reema Nanavaty, director of economic and rural development at Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA); Jacqueline Novogratz, founder and CEO of Acumen Fund, Inc.; Denis O'Brien, chairman of Digicel Group; Sally Osberg, president and CEO of the Skoll Foundation; Clarence Otis, Jr., chairman and CEO of Darden Restaurants, Inc.; Stephan Ouaknine, chairman, managing partner, and CEO of Inerjys Ventures Inc.; Johanna Ralston, chief executive officer of the World Heart Federation; Navinchandra Ramgoolam, prime minister of the Republic of Mauritius; Jim Rogers, chairman, president, and CEO of Duke Energy Corporation; Irene Rosenfeld, chairman and CEO of Kraft Foods Inc.; Robert E. Rubin, co-chairman of the Council on Foreign Relations, former secretary of the U.S. Department of the Treasury; Kiran Sethi, founder and director of the Riverside School, Ahmedabad – India; Luis A. Ubiñas, president of The Ford Foundation; Rajiv Shah, Administrator of United States Agency for International Development; Porfirio Lobo Sosa, president of the Republic of Honduras; Lynn Stout, distinguished professor of corporate and business law at Cornell University Law School; Hans Vestberg, president and CEO of Ericsson; Daniel Yohannes, chief executive officer of Millennium Challenge Corporation; Kandeh Yumkella, director general of the United Nations Development Organization; and Jochen Zeitz, chairman of the management board and CEO of PUMA AG Rudolf Dassler Sport.

President Clinton will also honor remarkable individuals for their leadership in philanthropy, government, civil society, and the corporate sector at the sixth annual Clinton Global Citizen Awards in a special ceremony with live musical performances and celebrity presenters on Monday, September 24.

The 2012 CGI Annual Meeting is sponsored by Abraaj Capital, American Federation of Teachers, Ambassador Gianna Angelopoulos, APCO Worldwide, Barclays, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Booz Allen Hamilton, Cisco, CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Delos Living, Deutsche Bank, Diageo PLC, The Dow Chemical Company, Duke Energy Corporation, ExxonMobil, The Ford Foundation, Varkey GEMS Foundation, The Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing, Hewlett Packard Company, Inter-American Development Bank, InterEnergy, Jive Software, Knoll Inc, Laureate International Universities, Microsoft Corporation, NRG Energy Inc, Procter & Gamble, The Rockefeller Foundation, Shangri-La Industries, Standard Chartered Bank, Starkey Hearing Foundation, Swiss Reinsurance Company, Tom Golisano, Toyota Motors Corporation, United Postcode Lotteries, The Victor Pinchuk Foundation, and Western Union Financial Services Inc.

The full agenda for the 2012 Annual Meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative can be found at clintonglobalinitiative.org/2012. Follow CGI Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.

All media wishing to cover the event must apply for credentials and be approved by CGI. Space is limited and the application deadline is Friday, September 21 at 5 p.m. EST. To apply, please complete the form at: cgilink.org/PP392s

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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 create and implement innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together more than 150 heads of state, 20 Nobel Prize laureates, and hundreds of leading CEOs, heads of foundations and NGOs, major philanthropists, and members of the media. To date CGI members have made more than 2,100 commitments, which are already improving the lives of nearly 400 million people in more than 180 countries. When fully funded and implemented, these commitments will be valued at $69.2 billion.

CGI also convenes CGI America, a meeting focused on collaborative solutions to economic recovery in the United States, and CGI University (CGI U), which brings together undergraduate and graduate students to address pressing challenges in their community or around the world. For more information, visit clintonglobalinitiative.org and follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.