Enough Said...

FYI...

CARE Launches I Am Powerful Campaign on International Women's Day Awareness campaign connects women in the United States to women in impoverished countries Atlanta (March 1, 2006) — "When a woman gains power, she, her husband, her children and her extended family benefit for a lifetime," says Dr. Helene Gayle, incoming president of CARE, a leading humanitarian organization.

"Women are an untapped natural resource in fighting global poverty." That's why CARE is launching a national effort to engage women here in the lives of impoverished women around the world.The I Am Powerful campaign — kicking off officially on March 8, International Women's Day — offers women in the United States an opportunity to stand in solidarity with women in poor countries who struggle to survive on less than a dollar a day.

"I Am Powerful represents the spirit of International Women's Day by bringing attention to the hidden face and inherent power of women in the fight against global poverty," adds Anne Lynam Goddard, CARE's chief of staff, who has 25 years of experience working in developing countries. "CARE focuses on women not only because they make up 75 percent of the poorest people in the world, but also because we know that working with women results in the greatest impact.

If given the opportunity, women have the power to change their world. We have the power to help them do it."Today, women represent two-thirds of the world's 876 million illiterate adults, and although women make up half the world's population and produce half the world's food, they own just 1 percent of its farmland.As it stands, Goddard says, "A woman in a poor country living on less than a dollar a day wakes up every morning and wonders how she'll feed her children. One in three of her children will likely die from a preventable disease like diarrhea. She might be able to write only her name because she was denied a basic education. Women in impoverished countries cling to hope every day for the opportunity to participate in society and provide a better future for their children."

CARE's six decades of experience and extensive research show that the longer a girl stays in school, the higher the income of her family when she becomes an adult. She also will have fewer and healthier children. In short, empowering women can be a crucial first step toward lasting change in the world's poorest countries. This change would mirror the actions of women in the United States a century ago when they stood up for the right to participate in society, to vote, and to own and inherit property. CARE's community-based programs in 70 countries place a special focus on working with women because they are disproportionately affected by poverty and are crucial to fighting it. "Women are the center of their families, families are the center of communities, and communities are the center of the world," says Goddard. "We can and must step up to support women's efforts to become empowered and to make a difference in the world."

To increase awareness of the issues affecting poor women, CARE's I Am Powerful campaign features a speaker series in partnership with Borders bookstores; influential women ambassadors including Meg Ryan, Christy Turlington Burns, Mayor Shirley Franklin, Anne Hathaway and Sheila Johnson; airport dioramas; and print, radio and television public service announcements — the latter directed by one of Hollywood's top cinematographers, Ed Lachman.

The journey toward true love begins within...