The Clinton Foundation Announces Leadership Transition

Eric Braverman Steps Down as Chief Executive Officer; Maura Pally Appointed Acting CEO
 

New York, NY – The Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation today announced that Eric Braverman has stepped down as Chief Executive Officer.  Maura Pally has been named Senior Vice President, Women and Youth Programs, and will serve as Acting CEO of the Clinton Foundation as the Board of Directors conducts a search for a permanent CEO.

“I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have worked at the Clinton Foundation and have been inspired by the tireless work of our staff around the world to impact and improve the lives of millions of people,” said Eric Braverman. “In the last few years, all the initiatives and programs have worked together to make the Clinton Foundation even stronger and now is the right time for a new leader to take the Foundation into the future.  I'd like to thank President Clinton, Secretary Clinton and Chelsea Clinton for the amazing opportunity to serve at this unique moment in the life of the foundation. Most importantly, I'd like to thank the Clinton Foundation staff and partners for their extraordinary work. I’m looking forward to seeing their continued success as part of the extended Clinton Foundation family and will be cheering them all on.”

“When Eric came onboard, the Foundation had been growing quickly for more than a decade. Our individual initiatives were doing well, but Eric’s leadership helped us improve our governance structure, increase coordination across the Foundation and build better internal processes,” said President Bill Clinton, Secretary Clinton and Chelsea Clinton.  “Eric also helped us put the use of data front and center so we can better measure the impact of our work and make better decisions about our programs, enabling our staff in New York and around the world to increase our impact and deliver on our mission. We are very grateful to Eric for his leadership and these efforts.”

Maura Pally said, “I am incredibly honored and humbled by the opportunity to step into this role during this transition.  I have worked alongside the Foundation’s tremendous team for quite some time, and know we all share the same passion for and commitment to empowering others to live their best lives.  We have a remarkable legacy here, and an even bigger opportunity ahead.” 

Maura will temporarily fill the role of Acting CEO as the Board conducts a search for a new CEO, and will resume her duties as Senior Vice President, Women and Youth Programs once a permanent CEO has been selected and announced. Eric will remain available to help Maura and the Foundation leadership team through the transition process.

                                                                       Maura Pally

Maura Pally is the Senior Vice President, Women and Youth Programs, and serves as Acting CEO as the Board conducts a search for a permanent CEO. Previously, Maura was the Executive Director for the Office of Hillary Rodham Clinton at the Clinton Foundation where she guided strategic direction, program development, and engagement efforts for No Ceilings: The Full Participation Project, which works to advance the status of women and girls around the world; Too Small to Fail, which aims to close the word gap and promote early literacy for children ages zero to five; and Job One, which mobilizes businesses and organizations to create employment pathways for disconnected youth in the United States.

Maura joined the Clinton Foundation from Bloomberg Philanthropies where she provided strategic direction for programmatic activities and oversight of operational management.  Previously, she served as Acting Assistant and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA). As Acting Assistant Secretary, Maura led a bureau of 450 employees and a $635 million annual budget to fulfill ECA’s mandate of facilitating public diplomacy through exchange programs, including the flagship Fulbright Scholarship Program.  Maura oversaw the Department’s exchange activities and budget strategy ensuring programs furthered the Administration’s foreign policy objectives, and created new programs, including smARTpower and TechWomen to empower the next generation of women leaders in technology. Maura has also worked in the private sector, including as Manager of Politics and Public Policy at Oxygen Media, managing the network's on-air and on-line efforts to engage women in the political process. Maura served as a special assistant in the Office of White House Counsel under President Clinton, and earned a B.A. from Brown University and a J.D. from the University of Southern California.

                                                        About the Clinton Foundation

The Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation convenes businesses, governments, NGOs, and individuals to improve global health and wellness, increase opportunity for women and girls, reduce childhood obesity, create economic opportunity and growth, and help communities address the effects of climate change.  Because of our work, 26,000 American schools are providing kids with healthy food choices in an effort to eradicate childhood obesity; 36,000 farmers in Malawi and Tanzania have improved their incomes by more than 500% percent; 248 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions are being reduced in cities worldwide; more than 5,000 people have been trained in marketable job skills in Colombia; 8.2 million people have access to lifesaving HIV/AIDS medications; $200 million in strategic investments have been made, impacting the health of 75 million people in the U.S.; and members of the Clinton Global Initiative have made more than 3,100 Commitments to Action to improve more than 430 million lives around the world.

Clinton Climate Initiative’s Home Energy Affordability Loan (HEAL) Program Celebrates Five-Year Anniversary

Little Rock, Arkansas – The Home Energy Affordability Loan (HEAL) program is celebrating its fifth anniversary of making energy efficient home retrofits available as an employee benefit. Spearheaded by the Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI), an initiative of the Clinton Foundation, HEAL works with employers to make energy improvement on company facilities and then provide employees with the resources to complete home audits and retrofits, the program is delivered in much the same way as a 401k or Flexible Spending Account. Since HEAL was enacted five years ago, HEAL and its replication programs have impacted 5,600 individuals in seven states, created over $3.75 million in construction activity and are producing utility bill savings of over $625,000 per year.

“By bringing a market-based solution the issue of home energy consumption, HEAL has proved that environmental sustainability is financially sensible,” said President Clinton. “Over the past five years, HEAL not only benefitted workers and their families, but helped their employers and communities with lower energy costs and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. I am proud that this program began in Arkansas. Its measured success proves that it is ready to be scaled up at home and implemented across the United States.”

HEAL was inspired by the Clinton Foundation’s Hurricane Katrina recovery programs in New Orleans. After seeing firsthand how energy efficient home renovations were benefitting low and moderate income homeowners, CCI developed the HEAL concept for use in the workplace. Launched in 2009 in Arkansas, in partnership with Governor Mike Beebe and the Arkansas Energy Office, CCI scaled HEAL to an employer in each of Arkansas’ Congressional Districts.

“For five years now, the Clinton Climate Initiative has worked diligently to reduce energy use in Arkansas homes and businesses,” Governor Mike Beebe said. “The Home Energy Affordability Loan program has created energy-service jobs, helping attract and train a skilled workforce in communities throughout our state.”

Since its inception ago, the HEAL program has focused on achieving the triple bottom line of:

• Social equity: Providing access to energy education and affordable energy financing for all economic levels of society.
• Economic development: Creating cost savings to the occupants and providing local jobs to implement the work.
• Environmental impact: Providing measurable and verifiable greenhouse gas reductions through energy retrofits.

To date, the HEAL program has been tested and replicated in seven states with organizations of varying types, sizes, and business sectors. Since launching in Arkansas, HEAL and its Replication Partners have piloted the program in Wisconsin, Vermont, Michigan, California, North Carolina and Missouri.

Currently, CCI is working to further develop the program with new offerings targeting other areas of employee sustainability such as transportation and water conservation.

###

About the Clinton Climate Initiative

The Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI) was launched in 2006 to implement solutions to the root causes of climate change. CCI works to improve the energy efficiency and advance building retrofits; to increase access to clean energy technology and deploy it at the government, corporate, and homeowner levels; to help over 20 island nations reduce their reliance on diesel and adopt renewable energy; and to monitor, preserve and grow forests in line with national governments and communities. CCI’s approach addresses the major sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the people, policies, and practices that impact them - while also saving money for individuals and governments, creating jobs, and growing economies.

About the Clinton Foundation

The Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation convenes businesses, governments, NGOs, and individuals to improve global health and wellness, increase opportunity for women and girls, reduce childhood obesity, create economic opportunity and growth, and help communities address the effects of climate change.  Because of our work, 26,000 American schools are providing kids with healthy food choices in an effort to eradicate childhood obesity; 36,000 farmers in Malawi and Tanzania have improved their incomes by more than 500 percent; 248 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions are being reduced in cities worldwide; more than 5,000 people have been trained in marketable job skills in Colombia; 8.2 million people have access to lifesaving HIV/AIDS medications; $200 million in strategic investments have been made, impacting the health of 75 million people in the U.S.; and members of the Clinton Global Initiative have made nearly 3,100 Commitments to Action to improve more than 430 million lives around the world.

Learn more at http://www.clintonfoundation.org, on Facebook at Facebook.com/ClintonFoundation and on Twitter @ClintonFdn.

President Clinton to Bring Together Leaders from Business, Government, and Civil Society at Clinton Foundation’s Future of the Americas Convening

Juan Manuel Santos, President of the Republic of Colombia; Carlos Slim, Founder, Carlos Slim Foundation; Luis Alberto Moreno, President, Inter-American Development Bank; Dr. Valentin Abe, Founder, Caribbean Harvest; Gustavo Cisneros, Chairman, The Cisneros Group of Companies; Vicky Colbert, Executive Director, Fundación Escuela Nueva; Henry Cisneros, Chairman, Citiview; Hernando de Soto, President, Institute for Liberty and Democracy; David Crane, President and CEO, NRG Energy; Gloria Estefan, Estefan Enterprises; Frank Giustra, President and CEO, Fiore Financial Corporation; Stanley Motta, President, Motta Internacional; Thomas F. McLarty, Chairman, McLarty Associates; Jennifer Pryce, Founder and CEO, Calvert Foundation; Frank Rainieri, President Grupo Puntacana; Carlos Rodríguez-Pastor, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Intercorp; Donna Shalala, President, University of Miami; Robert Zoellick, Chairman, Goldman Sachs’ International Advisors; are among leaders who will convene Dec. 11 in Miami, Florida to focus on improving shared prosperity across the western hemisphere

NEW YORK — Today, President Bill Clinton announced a roster of international leaders from the private and public sectors across Latin America, the Caribbean, Canada, and the United States who will participate in a one-time Future of the Americas convening on December 11 at the University of Miami in Miami, Florida. This convening is part of President Clinton’s long-standing commitment to economic prosperity, investment, and innovation across the western hemisphere, through his work in office and post-presidency through the Clinton Foundation.

Twenty years after President Clinton convened the first Summit of the Americas, this convening will bring leaders together from across the hemisphere to create space for them to have a conversation about the next twenty years, with a focus on how to strengthen investment, jobs, health, and education. The Future of the Americas will complement the official Summit of the Americas in April 2015.

The agenda of President Clinton’s Future of the Americas convening will encourage cross-sector collaboration across Latin America, the Caribbean, Canada, and the United States. Discussion topics will include energy, infrastructure, the environment, agriculture, small and medium-sized enterprises, women and girls, technology, chronic diseases, nutrition, primary education, and vocational training. This convening is a working meeting, with an emphasis on interactive, roundtable discussions.

“I'm looking forward to our Future of the Americas discussions in Miami. There’s been tremendous progress across our hemisphere since we first came together twenty years ago, and now more than ever, it’s clear the next twenty years in our hemisphere will depend largely on the actions that leaders from all sectors and countries take today,” said President Clinton. “This meeting will give people an opportunity to focus on key challenges and opportunities – around jobs, education, health and the need for inclusive political, economic, and social policies. I’m thankful for the leadership of the people who are participating, and hopeful that our discussions will re-energize their efforts to shape our shared future in ever more positive ways.”

Participants in the Future of the Americas discussions include Dr. Valentin Abe, Founder, Caribbean Harvest; Gastón Acurio, Chef, La Mar by Gastón Acurio; Fidel Andueza, Head of the Americas, Libra Group; Carlos Julio Ardila, Vice President of the Board, Organización Ardila Lülle; Steffano Bertozzi, Dean, School of Public Health, University of California at Berkeley; Carlos Bulgheroni, CEO, Bridas Energy; Luis Carlos Sarmiento Angulo, President, Grupo Aval; Adriana Cisneros, CEO and Vice Chairman, The Cisneros Group of Companies; Gustavo Cisneros, Chairman, The Cisneros Group of Companies; Henry G. Cisneros, Executive Chairman, CityView Companies; Vicky Colbert, Executive Director, Fundación Escuela Nueva; David Crane, President and CEO, NRG Energy; Hernando de Soto, President, Institute for Liberty and Democracy; Jorge Errázuriz, Partner, BTG Pactual;  Emilio Estefan, Estefan Enterprises; Gloria Estefan, Estefan Enterprises; Alfonso Fanjul, CEO, Fanjul Corp; Angélica Fuentes, CEO, Grupo Omnilife; Alejandro García Padilla, Governor, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; Frank Giustra, President and CEO, Fiore Financial Corporation; Rolando González-Bunster, Chairman and CEO, InterEnergy Holdings Ltd.; Nizan Guanaes, Chairman and Founder, Grupo ABC; Gabriela León, CEO, GRESMEX SA de CV; Phillip Levine, Mayor, Miami Beach; Alfredo Mesa, Executive Director, Florida Marlins Foundation; Thomas F. McLarty, Chairman, McLarty Associates; Luis Alberto Moreno, President, Inter-American Development Bank; Stanley Motta, President, Motta Internacional, S.A.; Dyer Narinesingh, President, University of Trinidad and Tobago; Eduardo Padrón, President, Miami Dade College; Nicholas Prouty, President, Putnam Bridge Funding Jennifer Pryce, Founder and CEO, Calvert Foundation; Frank Rainieri, President and CEO, Grupo Puntacana; Julissa Reynoso, U.S. Ambassador to Uruguay; Carlos Rodríguez-Pastor, Chairman and CEO, Intercorp; David Rothkopf, President and CEO, Garten Rothkopf, Israel Ruiz, Executive Vice President and Treasurer, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Alejandro Santo Domingo, Managing Director, Quadrant Capital Advisors, Inc.; Juan Manuel Santos, President of the Republic of Colombia; Donna Shalala, President, University of Miami; Carlos Slim, Chairman, Grup Carso; Javier Soto, President and CEO, The Miami Foundation and Gerardo Werthein, Chairman, Caja de Seguros S.A., and many others.

This convening builds on President Clinton’s commitment to inclusive growth across the Americas. While in office, President Clinton:

• Along with fellow democratically-elected leaders in the Americas, convened the first Summit of the Americas in December 1994, in Miami. The summit – the first of its kind in 27 years – brought together the 34 democracies of the hemisphere to articulate their shared vision of the future.  The leaders agreed to 23 separate initiatives in support of the four summit themes: strengthening democracy, promoting economic prosperity, eradicating poverty and discrimination, and guaranteeing sustainable development.
• Authorized a $20 U.S. billion loan package in 1994 to restore international confidence in the Mexican economy after the peso hit an all-time low.  From 1996-97, the Mexican economy experienced its most rapid growth in 20 years. In 1997, President Clinton announced that the Mexican government had repaid the loan, with interest, ahead of schedule.
• Developed new accords with the Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru that forgave between 45-79% of eligible debt and rolled over payments of the rest to more manageable levels.  The agreements helped restore international confidence in Latin American economies, which led to new foreign loans from both private banks and international financial institutions such as the World Bank.

Since leaving office, President Clinton has continued to be active in the region though the work of the Clinton Foundation:

• Since 2007, the Clinton Climate Initiative and C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group have been empowering cities in Latin America to invest in green technologies and fight climate change— including Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo’s deployment of low-carbon transportation, Bogotá, Colombia’s retrofitting of traffic lights, and Mexico City’s improvement of waste management systems.
• Since 2007, the Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership (Enterprise Partnership) empowers individuals across Latin America to work themselves out of poverty. The Enterprise Partnership creates distribution, supply chain and programs training social enterprises, including the Acceso Training Center in Colombia that will place 20,000 people in jobs and the Chakipi Distribution venture that will train 3,000 women for distribution jobs in Peru.
• The Clinton Foundation, since 2010, has raised a total of $34 million for Haiti, including relief funds and also conducts projects focused on supporting Haiti’s small and medium businesses, improving livelihoods, enhancing education and exploring the nexus of agriculture, energy and environment.
• Since 2012, the Clinton Health Matters Initiative has been implementing community health transformation and college campus mental health programs in communities and college campuses serving more than two million Latino Americans.
• In 2013, President Clinton convened Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Latin America meeting, resulting in 40 Commitments to Action: new, specific, and measurable plans to address global challenges. Since CGI launched in 2005, CGI members have made 712 commitments around the world that directly impact the Latin American region. Over 300 students from Latin American countries have attended CGI University meetings since they began in 2007.
• The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, a joint initiative of the Clinton Foundation, works with schools, companies, community organizations, healthcare professionals and families to build healthier environments where children thrive. The Alliance works with more than 4,800 schools and out-of-school time programs whose primary ethnicity of the student population is Latino.  The Alliance also focuses on populations where significant racial and ethnic disparities in obesity prevalence exist, especially in the Latino community.

For more information, a complete list of featured participants, and the most up-to-date schedule visit www.clintonfoundation.org/futureoftheamericas or email press@clintonfoundation.org. Follow us on Twitter at @ClintonFdn and Facebook at Facebook.com/ClintonFoundation for meeting news and highlights.

ALL PRESS MUST BE CREDENTIALED BY THE CLINTON FOUNDATION. Press registration is now open to the members of the media. To apply, please complete the form at https://www.clintonfoundation.org/press/registration/future-americas-meeting.  All media must apply for credentials and must be approved by the Clinton Foundation to attend. The deadline to apply is Friday, December 5. Journalists may apply for credentials on-site, but pre-registered media will be given priority.

###

About the Clinton Foundation

The Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation convenes businesses, governments, NGOs, and individuals to improve global health and wellness, increase opportunity for women and girls, reduce childhood obesity, create economic opportunity and growth, and help communities address the effects of climate change.  Because of our work, 26,000 American schools are providing kids with healthy food choices in an effort to eradicate childhood obesity; 28,000 farmers in Malawi have improved their incomes by more than 500 percent; 248 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions are being reduced in cities worldwide; more than 5,000 people have been trained in marketable job skills in Colombia; 8.2 million people have access to lifesaving HIV/AIDS medications; $200 million in strategic investments have been made, impacting the health of 75 million people in the U.S.; and members of the Clinton Global Initiative have made more than 3,100 Commitments to Action to improve more than 430 million lives around the world.

Wine Star: Nicolás Catena

The right leader at the right time, this vintner effected profound change in Argentina's wines

Ben O'Donnell
Posted: October 21, 2014

Nicolás Catena poured the Bodega Catena Zapata Malbec Mendoza Adrianna Vineyard 2007.

It can take years, even centuries, for a wine region to come of age but, as Wine Spectator executive editor Thomas Matthews noted, “sometimes, on occasion, an inspirational leader can bring rapid and profound change.” He invoked Baron Philippe de Rothschild and Robert Mondavi, and in the next breath, introduced another pioneer: Argentina's wine visionary, Nicolás Catena.

Catena described the evolution of Catena Zapata. The family company, like most Argentine bodegas, produced large quantities of inexpensive, rustic wine. Then, a visit to Napa Valley in the early 1980s inspired him: Relative upstarts were talking about achieving world-class quality in wine. “I had been educated that nobody, nobody, could make a wine to compete with the French,” he recalled. “Why could I not do the same in my country?”

The path forward was far from clear. After insufficient success trying to emulate others with varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, “finally I accepted the French obsession with terroir.”

Catena returned to the Malbec grape that had proved itself a partner to the land and headed for the hills—to Tupungato, 5,000 feet above sea level. Skeptics warned that late frosts would wipe out his crop, and it would never ripen at such altitude, but Catena was undeterred. With a talented team, and a great site identified in the Adrianna Vineyard, Catena sought to steer his wine toward greatness with research and technology, joined by his daughter Laura in 2001.

Even today, Catena said, the work continues: The higher sunlight intensity at altitude affects the grapes “in a way we are only just starting to understand.” But his dream of greatness on the world stage has been met, with other Argentineans following in his footsteps. For Wine Experience guests sipping the immense but deftly balanced Bodega Catena Zapata Malbec Mendoza Adrianna Vineyard 2007 (95 points, $120 on release), there could be no disputing that.

President Clinton, Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, And Chelsea Clinton Call Members to Action on Final Day of 10^th CGI Annual Meeting

Members made 188 new Commitments to Action, expected to impact nearly 4.9 million people. To date, more than 3,100 commitments have been made, improving the lives of over 430 million people in more than 180 countries.                                                

NEW YORK, NY – Today, President Bill Clinton, Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Chelsea Clinton closed the 10^th Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting by announcing new Commitments to Action and issuing a call to action to members in four critical issue areas: addressing energy poverty around the world, tackling food insecurity and hunger in the United States, increasing access to water, and responding the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Over three days, CGI members made 188 new Commitments to Action, expected to impact nearly 4.9 million lives around the world when fully funded and implemented.

Highlights from the final day of the Annual Meeting included:

• Featured speakers included: President Bill Clinton, Founding Chairman, Clinton Global Initiative, 42nd President of the United States; Hillary Rodham Clinton, Former U.S. Secretary of State and U.S. Senator from New York; Chelsea Clinton, Vice Chair, Clinton Foundation; Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan; Cady Coleman, Astronaut, NASA; Katie Couric, Global Anchor, Yahoo News; Peter H. Diamandis, Chairman and Founder, X PRIZE Foundation; Melinda Gates, Co-chair and Trustee, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Leymah Gbowee, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, 2011, President, Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa; Hikmet Ersek, President, CEO and Director, The Western Union Company;  David Leonhardt, Editor, The Upshot, The New York Times;  Graça Machel, Founder, Graça Machel Trust and Foundation for Community Development;  Nilofar Sakhi, Chief Executive Officer, American University of Afghanistan; and Reid Wiseman, Astronaut, NASA , Commander, U.S. NAVY
• Melinda Gates joined Secretary Clinton to examine the progress that has been made since the 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing and what challenges remain.
• CNN’s Erin Burnett hosted a retrospective conversation on lessons learned since CGI was founded. Participants included President Bill Clinton, Founding Chairman, Clinton Global Initiative; 42nd President of the United States; Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah, Queen of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan; Tony Blair, Former Prime Minister, United Kingdom; Ashley Judd, Actor, Author, Advocate, Population Services International; Zainab Salbi, Founder, Executive Producer and Co-Creator, Women for Women International; The Trials of Spring.
• The Haiti Action Network joined together to highlight the work of the group and debate how members can continue designing and implementing Commitments to Action that build local capacity and have clear exit strategies to enable Haiti to prosper far into the future.
• A discussion hosted by CNN’s Sanjay Gupta discussed the importance of investing in early childhood education and development. Participants included Geoffrey Canada, President, Harlem Children’s Zone; Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton; Nadine Burke Harris, Founder and CEO, Center for Youth Wellness; Cindy McCain, Founding Member, Eastern Congo Initiative; and Rosemarie T. Truglio, Senior Vice President, Global Education Content, Sesame Workshop.
• CGI members discussed their current efforts underway to combat the current Ebola outbreak in West Africa and explored ways to leverage partnerships in response to the outbreak.
• At the closing, Secretary Clinton had a conversation with Graça Machel, Founder, Graça Machel Trust and Foundation for Community Development, and presented her with the Clinton Global Citizen Award for Civil Service

In the closing plenary, Secretary Clinton issued calls to action to members to develop innovative commitments in four issue areas:

• Committing to make dramatic progress on energy access and energy poverty. As many as 1.3 billion people around the world do not have access to electricity today;
• Helping communities around the world get the clean water they need. In the majority of developed countries, access to clean water is often taken for granted, but worldwide 780 million people lack access because of poor quality or insufficient supplies;
• Increasing access to and improving the affordability of healthy food in low-income communities across America. An estimated 15 percent of all American households, or roughly 49 million Americans, experience food insecurity or hunger;
• Providing immediate assistance and strengthening health systems to respond to the deadly Ebola outbreak in West Africa.

The Annual Meeting is sponsored by Ambassador Gianna Angelopoulos, HSBC Bank USA, N.A., Hult Prize Foundation, Starkey Hearing Foundation, Victor Pinchuk Foundation,  Barclays, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The Coca-Cola Company, Ford Foundation, Monsanto, P&G, Rockefeller Foundation, United Postcode Lotteries, Varkey Gems Foundation, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Cisco, Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women, NRG Energy, PWC, Blackstone, Deutsche Bank, ExxonMobil, HP, Inter-American Development Bank, InterEnergy, Laureate International Universities, Microsoft, Standard Chartered Bank, Swiss Re, Western Union, APCO Worldwide, Diageo, Jive, and Knoll.

Commitments announced in Plenary Sessions today include:

CHARGE: Collaborative for Harnessing Ambition and Resources for Girls’ Education

At the 2014 CGI annual meeting, the Center on Universal Education at the Brookings Institution will commit to create CHARGE (The Collaborative for Harnessing Ambition and Resources for Girls Education), a global collective of public, private, and grassroots organizations working to advance the “second generation” of global girl’s education. With more than 30 partners, including the United States, Nepal, the United Kingdom, No Ceilings, Pearson, CHIME for Change, and Discovery Communications – CHARGE has already pledged nearly $600 million to reach 15 million girls over the next 5 years. Working to develop and advance solutions for the most pressing challenges, the partners commit to closing persistent gaps and improving the quality, safety, and security of girls’ secondary education worldwide. The collaborative will chart a new path in this pursuit by focusing on a unique five-step agenda that will: Keep girls in school; Ensure school safety and security; Improve quality of learning; Support transitions from and out of school; and Support girls’ education leaders/workers in developing countries to fulfill these goals.

Connected Women: Driving Gender Equity Through Digital Economy
Commitment by: GSM Association
Partner(s): Ooredoo, Qualcomm, A.T. Kearney

In 2014, GSM Association and its partners committed to develop the Connected Women program to increase women's participation in the mobile economy. The first part of the program includes a comprehensive research project to assess women's wants and needs surrounding mobile technology. Upon completion of the research, the mobile network operators working in partnership with Connected Women, including Ooredoo, Qualcomm, Roshan, and Smart Communications, will utilize the information collected to implement programs and services for their female customers. In 2010, research found that 300 million fewer women than men owned a mobile phone and women are 21 percent less likely to own a phone in low and middle income countries. The Connected Women program will generate information about the socio-economic benefits of greater inclusion of women at all points in the mobile industry continuum from consumer to employee to leader, and then work with industry players to create opportunity.

Dhaka to Harlem: Empowering Women as Engines of Growth
Commitment by: Grameen America

In 2014, Grameen America committed to opening a new branch of its micro-lending service in Harlem, New York, pledging to provide $50 million to 7,000 women business owners in the area over 5 years. Since 2006, when Grameen opened its first New York branch in Queens, the organization has expanded to 18 branches in 11 cities, lending $171 million to nearly 33,000 low income women entrepreneurs across the country. Starting in October with 500 women, Grameen will provide entrepreneurs with funding and financial training on savings, credit maintenance and interest rates.

Rework America: Markle Economic Future Initiative
Commitment by: The Markle Foundation

In 2014, the Markle Foundation made a $50 million commitment to launch the “Rework America” Initiative, providing technological training for the modern business world to college age and continuing education participants later in life. Students will have access to a classroom and online learning environment utilizing models developed by the University presidents of Arizona State University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, providing participants with real world skills they might not learn in a university environment.

Ebola Response: Air Bridge Support
Commitment by: Airlink
Partner(s): Paul G. Allen Foundation; Greenbaum Foundation; ChildFund International; AmeriCares; Direct Relief; AFYA Foundation; LIFT; ALAN (American Logistics Aid Network); Brussels Airlines; Western Global Airlines

In 2014, Airlink committed to transporting between 100 and 500 tons of material aid cargo by air to Western Africa by year-end 2014 with the help of its partners. The actual amount that Airlink will ship will depend on the length of time that an air bridge is called for in Western Africa before slower forms of transportation become sufficient to serve the requirement for material aid.

Emergency Solar Lighting for Ebola Relief Teams
Commitment by: Econet Wireless Group

Econet Wireless, a global telecommunications company with operations and investments in a dozen African markets, and its subsidiary company, Solarway, will provide $100,000 worth of solar power lanterns (totaling 5,000 lanterns) to support relief teams working to treat, contain and prevent the Ebola virus disease outbreak in the three worst affected countries – Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. The solar power lanterns will provide medical and relief workers with lighting in areas where there is limited or no access to electricity. The lanterns, which come with a solar panel, can be hung as room lights and provide up to 20 hours of light from one full charge. The lanterns also come with a port for charging all types of mobile phones to support improved communications and coordination. Econet Wireless will partner with relief agencies on the ground to ensure 5,000 solar power lanterns are delivered and distributed to frontline public health workers most in need of sustainable lighting solutions.

Combating Ebola: Airlift of 100 Tons of Medical Aid
Commitment by: Direct Relief
Partner(s): Wellbody Alliance – Sierra Leone; Medical Research Centre – Sierra Leone; CDC – Sierra Leone; Last Mile Health – Liberia; Christian Aid Ministries – Liberia; CDC – Liberia; Africare – Libreria; Ministry of Health/National Drug Services – Liberia; Merck; Becton, Dickinson and Company

In response to the deadliest Ebola outbreak in history, Direct Relief committed to sending more than 100 tons of urgently needed personal protective equipment (PPE), medical supplies, and medicines to its partners on the ground in Liberia and Sierra Leone. Partners on the ground will team up with the respective Ministries of Health to deploy an effective distribution channel to get supplies to clinics, health facilities, and hospitals in regions heavily affected by the outbreak. In addition, more supplies will be secured in other locations as precautionary and emergency preparedness measures.

Fighting Ebola: Strengthening Rural Health
Commitment by: Partners in Health and Last Mile Health
Partner(s): Wellbody Alliance; Direct Relief

Partners In Health, Last Mile Health (Liberia) and Wellbody Alliance (Sierra Leone) have launched a coalition to scale-up rural Ebola response efforts and rebuild primary health systems in two of the most-affected countries: Liberia and Sierra Leone. The Coalition builds on over 40 years of collective experience (including 15 combined years in Liberia and Sierra Leone) in strengthening public health systems in partnership with Ministries of Health; and integrating research, teaching, and service to deliver high-quality, comprehensive health care to the poor.

The Hult Prize
Commitment by: Hult International Business School

In 2010, the Hult International Business School committed to bring together MBA and undergraduate business students from schools around the world together to come up with innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing social problems. Every year, teams from around the globe compete to win recognition for their consulting efforts and $1 million dollars in funding to put their project into practice. Past winners include Cambridge University’s 2011 mPanni plan, now a functioning company in Mumbai, India that provides mobile technology for increased social impact to underserved communities. The 2014 Challenge was to find solutions to non-communicable diseases in urban slums. This year’s winner was NanoHealth, which will be awarded $1 million in start-up capital for their proposal to use innovative technology to create micro-insurance health networks for slum dwellers. After presentations, NanoHealth was announced as the winner at the Hult Prize Dinner on Tuesday.

Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women Initiative - Peru
Commitment By: Goldman Sachs Foundation

In 2009, the Goldman Sachs Foundation committed to build on their global 10,000 Women initiative by joining with the Inter-American Development Bank's Multilateral Investment Fund and the Thunderbird School of Global Management to provide women entrepreneurs in Peru with quality business education and enhanced access to capital. In cooperation with Mibanco, a leading provider of loans to small and micro entrepreneurs, this training will offer more than 700 high-potential small business owners with the specialized training, access to capital, networking, and mentoring necessary to significantly grow their businesses.  Today, 728 women are certified, exceeding the target of 700; 200 women entrepreneurs received one-on-one mentoring, exceeding the target of 120.

About the Clinton Global Initiative
Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an initiative of the Clinton Foundation, convenes global leaders to create and implement innovative solutions to the world's most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together more than 180 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, members of the CGI community have made more than 3,100 Commitments to Action, which have improved the lives of over 430 million people in more than 180 countries.

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.

Clinton Global Initiative to Host Inaugural CGI Middle East and Africa Meeting in Spring 2015 in Marrakech
International convening will bring together leaders from business, government, and philanthropy to address regional and global issues

New York – At the 10th CGI Annual Meeting today, President Bill Clinton, Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Chelsea Clinton announced that the Clinton Global Initiative will hold its inaugural CGI Middle East and Africa Meeting in the Spring of 2015 in Marrakech with a focus on economic development.

“CGI brings together leaders from all sectors of society, highlighting successes and creating opportunities to build partnerships to further social, economic, and environmental goals,” said President Clinton. “The Middle East and Africa have a youthful workforce, fast-growing economies, untapped natural resources, and enormous potential to thrive in the coming years.”

In addition to CGI’s Annual Meeting in September, CGI hosts a number of convenings throughout the year, including CGI America and CGI University. In recent years, CGI has brought its model of dialogue and commitment-making to an international setting, tailored to a specific region. This will be the third CGI International Meeting. In December 2008, CGI Asia in Hong Kong brought together several hundred leaders from across the continent to further strengthen social and global responsibility in Asia. In December 2013, CGI Latin America brought together key leaders from the private sector, government, civil society, and NGOs to address to the region’s most pressing challenges.

Follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative for upcoming meeting news and highlights.

# # #

About the Clinton Global Initiative
Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an initiative of the Clinton Foundation, convenes global leaders to create and implement solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together more than 180 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, members of the CGI community have made more than 3,100 commitments, which are already improving the lives of more than 430 million people in over 180 countries.

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.

Clinton Global Initiative to Host CGI Mediterranean in June 2015 in Athens, Greece

First CGI meeting in Greece will bring leaders from business, government, civil society, and philanthropy to address economic and social challenges in the region

New York, NY — Today at the 10th Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting, President Bill Clinton, Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Chelsea Clinton announced the CGI Mediterranean meeting, to be held in Athens, Greece in June 2015.

“The CGI Mediterranean meeting will bring leaders together to address critical regional challenges such as youth unemployment and social and economic volatility through new Commitments to Action, and to showcase the region’s enormous potential for growth,” said President Bill Clinton.

“I’ve been honored to serve as a CGI convening sponsor for the past five years. I love the CGI ethos of turning ideas into action. That’s why, today, I am proud to announce I will sponsor the first CGI Mediterranean event to bring the Clinton Global Initiative legacy of leadership and action to my own country,” said Ambassador Gianna Angelopoulos, who joined President Clinton for the announcement and is the founding sponsor of CGI Mediterranean.

In addition to the CGI Annual Meeting in September, CGI hosts a number of convenings throughout the year, including CGI America and CGI University. For the past two years, Ambassador Angelopoulos has encouraged Greek students to submit proposals to CGI University, and funded their projects after launch. CGI has also brought its model of commitment-making to international settings, as well as hosting issue-focused meetings to create partnerships and develop new Commitments to Action on a global challenge.

CGI Mediterranean continues that tradition. Participants will develop solutions for long-term economic growth and competitiveness for countries in the Mediterranean region by generating commitments in areas such as youth employment, economic development, job creation, and green growth.

Follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative for upcoming meeting news and highlights.

About the Clinton Global Initiative
Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an initiative of the Clinton Foundation, convenes global leaders to create and implement solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together more than 180 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, members of the CGI community have made more than 3,100 commitments, which are already improving the lives of more than 430 million people in over 180 countries.

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.

# # #