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President Clinton, Former Secretary Clinton, and Chelsea Clinton Unveil New Commitments to Action on Second Day of 2013 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting


Commitments announced yesterday focus on women’s empowerment, mobilizing youth, conserving natural resources, and building resilient cities

NEW YORK–(ENEWSPF)–September 26, 2013.  Yesterday, during the second day of the 2013 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting, President Bill Clinton, Former Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Clinton Foundation Vice Chair Chelsea Clinton announced new Commitments to Action that will address pressing global challenges. Speakers discussed how investments in women’s employment yield significant gains in the health and education of children, in the prosperity of businesses, and in the economy overall.

“Women and girls still comprise the majority of the world’s unhealthy, unfed and unpaid, marginalized in so many ways.  We’ve built an architectural structure of laws and norms to protect women’s rights, but 2015 will mark 20 years since that conference in Beijing calling for the full and equal participation of women,” said Former Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton. “I believe it’s time for a full and clear-eyed look at how far we have come, how far we still have to go, and what we plan to do together about the unfinished business of the twenty-first century, the full and equal participation of women.”

Featured speakers included Her Excellency Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, Minister, International Cooperation and Development of the United Arab Emirates; Hillary Rodham Clinton, Former Secretary of State of the United States; Chelsea Clinton, Vice Chair, Clinton Foundation; Lloyd C. Blankfein, Chairman and CEO, The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.; Michael R. Bloomberg, Mayor, City of New York; John Chambers, Chairman and CEO, Cisco; America Ferrera, Actor, Producer, Activist; Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC); Nancy Gibbs, Managing Editor, TIME; Irwin Jacobs, Founding Chairman and CEO Emeritus, Qualcomm; Muhtar Kent, Chairman and CEO, The Coca-Cola Company; Jim Yong Kim, President, World Bank Group; Andrew Liveris, Chairman and CEO, The Dow Chemical Company; Wanjira Mathai, Director and Project Leader, Wangari Maathai Institute for Peace & Environmental Studies; Peggy Mativo, Founder and Executive Director, PACEmaker International; Bill McDermott, Co-chief Executive Officer, SAP AG; Pat Mitchell, President and CEO, The Paley Center for Media; Luis Alberto Moreno, President, Inter-American Development Bank; Piers Morgan, Host, CNN’s Piers Morgan Live; Denis O’Brien, Chairman, Digicel; Judith Rodin, President, The Rockefeller Foundation; Jim Rogers, Chairman of the Board, Duke Energy Corporation; Arne M. Sorenson, President and CEO, Marriott International, Inc.; Halla Tomasdottir, Founder and Chair, Sisters Capital; Fareed Zakaria, Host, CNN-GPS.

Former Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton, Chelsea Clinton and CGI commitment makers also announced new Commitments to Action and reported progress of commitments made at past CGI Annual Meetings.

The following new commitments were announced yesterday in Plenary Sessions:

Advancing Women-Owned Businesses in New Markets

Commitment by: WEConnect International; Accenture; WalMart Stores, Inc.; Ernst & Young; DLA Piper; Cherie Blair Foundation for Women; Pfizer Inc.; McLarty Associates; Vital Voices Global Partnership; International Center for Research on Women; U.S. Department of State
Partners: IBM; The Boeing Company
In 2013, this private and public sector consortium committed to collaborate across the development lifecycle of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) to create a more efficient, effective channel to identify, develop and scale high-potential women entrepreneurs who can become strong corporate suppliers. The partners committed to track and measure at least $1.5 billion in combined total new money spent by commitment makers targeting at least 15,000 women-owned businesses based outside the U.S. by 2018.

WeTech: Women Enhancing Technology

Commitment by: Institute of International Education
Partners: Qualcomm Incorporated; Juniper Networks; McKinsey & Company; Google Inc.; Intel Corporation; Citrix Systems, Inc.; Goldman, Sachs & Co.; Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology; International Museum of Women
In 2013, the Institute of International Education committed to creating an employee pipeline of 2,000 girls and women toward the technology sector. This $10 million investment will include programs to encourage parents and schools to teach technology subjects to girls, mentorship and scholarship opportunities, and other professional development opportunities.

Intel Connecting Women to Bridge Africa’s Gender Gap

Commitment by: Intel Corporation
Partners: Telecentre.org Foundation; CARE; World Vision; World Pulse; ChangeCorp, Inc.
In 2013, Intel committed to reducing the gender-based gap in technology use in Sub-Saharan Africa for young women by 50 percent, bringing five million young women online over the next three years. In collaboration with NGOs working in the field of women and technology, Intel committed to seek out young women and provide them with access to digital literacy training, ongoing support, and women-tailored content that they can access individually, in shared computing environments, or through a peer-to-peer model.

Bioinnovation in Africa: People, Forests, Food, Energy

Commitment by: Novozymes A/S
Partners: CleanStar Ventures; IMC, Inc.; Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies; Cornell University Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise; Dometic; Zoe Enterprises Products and Supplements; Soros Economic Development Fund; Impact Carbon; Bank of America Merril Lynch; Industrialization Fund for Developing Countries
In 2011, Novozymes and CleanStar Ventures committed to launch CleanStar Mozambique (CSM), a food-energy system to drastically improve both the environment and human lives through farmer engagement, agro-processing, distribution, and retail. CSM now works with smallholder farmers throughout Mozambique to introduce restorative and profitable systems for producing food and energy for local markets. To date, CSM has launched the world’s first sustainable cooking fuel facility and been recognized by the International Finance Corporation and the Financial Times as a 2012 “Sustainable Investment of the Year.”

Flush for Good: Affordable, Aspirational Sanitation

Commitment by: American Standard Brands
Partners: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; BRAC; International Development Enterprises; WaterAid; PRAN-RFL Group
In 2013, American Standard Brands committed to donate one SaTo latrine pan, which incorporates a hygienic water seal through a counterweighted trap door, for every Champion toilet sold in the U.S. and Canada in 2013. Partners BRAC and WaterAid will help to distribute 500,000 latrines over the next two years in rural Bangladesh, reaching 2.5 million people. In addition, from 2014 to 2017, American Standards Brand will develop, manufacture, and distribute improved and affordable sanitation products in countries such as Cambodia, Kenya and India.

Turning Garbage into Renewable Energy & Economic Development

Commitment by: Navitus Sustainable Industries
Partners: State of Utah; University of Utah; Caterpillar Inc.; City of Sandy, Utah; Adolfson & Peterson
In 2013, Navitus Sustainable Industries committed to building three waste-to-energy facilities in partnership with local communities in Utah by 2015. Through this commitment, Navitus will partner with local communities to provide sustainable solutions to both clean energy generation and local waste management. These facilities are projected to generate enough electricity to power nearly 100,000 homes, diverted nearly 1,000,000 tons of garbage from landfills, and create 300 green jobs.

Creating Biodiversity Markets for Artisanal Fishers

Commitment by: Advanced Conservation Strategies
Partners: Shellcatch, Inc; Pontífica Universidad Católica de Chile
In 2013, Advanced Conservation Strategies committed to piloting and scaling a market-based incentive program that provides additional revenue streams to Chilean artisanal fishers to offset the loss in revenue associated with conservation efforts. Focused on linking emerging markets with ancillary marine conservation initiatives to empower artisanal fishers, the model is scalable and applicable throughout Latin America and beyond.

Fishery Improvement Fund: Catalyzing Healthy Fisheries

Commitment by: Walton Family Foundation, Inc.
Partners: Darden Restaurants, Inc.; National Fish and Wildlife Foundation; New England Aquarium
In 2013, the Walton Family Foundation committed to funding and expanding a series of Fishery Improvement Funds (FIPs) over three years. These FIPS will dramatically expand sustainable fishing practices in various regions of the globe while helping to meet global demand for ocean products.

Evaluating Coastal Wetlands: Bang for Our Restoration Buck

Commitment by: Center for American Progress
Partners: Oxfam America
In 2013, the Center for American Progress committed to establishing metrics that assign monetary value to restored and protected U.S. coastal wetlands ecosystems in order to better integrate ecosystem protection and restoration into U.S. policy on coastal infrastructure and land use. The commitment will include a published report explaining why coastal ecosystems are valuable, why investments in restoration are needed, and will conclude with specific recommendations for policy makers and the public.

Expanding Marine Protection from Wild Coasts into the Ocean

Commitment by: Waitt Foundation; Wildlife Conservation Society
Partners: Waitt Institute; Gabon National Parks; Forum for the Conservation of the Patagonia Sea; Fundación Patagonia Natural
In 2013, Wildlife Conservation Society and the Waitt Foundation committed to supporting government efforts to scale up existing coastal marine protected areas (MPA) in Fiji, Argentina, and Gabon to new extents, using new resources and a unique approach of leveraging land to sea extension of coastal parks. This commitment will increase the area of ocean protected by more than 9,500 square miles.

Expanding the Dataset of Recreational Ocean Use and Users

Commitment by: Surfrider Foundation
Partner: Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
In 2013, Surfrider Foundation committed to conduct a comprehensive study to collect spatially explicit recreational use and economic data for coastal areas in the United States mid-Atlantic region. Non-consumptive recreational ocean use provides significant economic and social benefits to coastal communities: economic benefits through direct economic expenditures, as well as visitor expenditures locally on food, beverages, parking, and coastal recreational activities; and social benefits through engaging local coastal residents in ocean planning processes and connecting their economic well-being to ocean planning and conservation.

Shellfish Farming for Women and Oceans

Commitment by: Paso Pacífico
Partners: Inter-American Development Bank; National Fisheries Institute; Phillips Foods, Inc.
In 2013, Paso Pacífico committed to establishing women-run oyster aquaculture operations in Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, and Costa Rica. Over three years approximately 100 women will receive aquaculture micro-enterprise development trainings. The diversity of native shellfish will be evaluated and oysters, in particular, will be assessed for their quality and export potential. The management of the oyster fishery will also serve as a community model to increase local community understanding for the benefits of marine management zones and protected areas.

Island Conservation and Sustainable Livelihoods for Women

Commitment by: Seacology
Partners: Global Energi Sistem Tuban Surabaya; Aneka Surya Surabaya; Yayasan PAKTA Sumba; Yayasan BAHTERA
In 2013, Seacology committed to launching three new projects over a three year period to incentivize island communities in Indonesia to protect local terrestrial or marine ecosystems, by supporting women’s economic development initiatives in exchange for creating no-take indigenous community conserved areas (ICCAs). The goal of this commitment is to provide island women in marginalized communities with sustainable livelihoods in exchange for protecting local ecosystems.

More Fish – A Better Future for Mesoamerican Reef Fishers

Commitment by: Mesoamerican Reef Fund
Partners: The Summit Foundation; KfW Bankengruppe; Overbrook Foundation; Comunidad y Biodiversidad; FUNDAECO; Cuerpos de Conservación de Omoa
In 2013, the Mesoamerican Reef Fund (MAR Fund) committed to expanding their Community Fisheries Program in the Mesoamerican Reef region, to protect and restore local marine ecosystems and fisheries to increase the species abundance and size, thereby improving food security and increasing fishers’ incomes. The Community Fisheries Program supports the active participation of organized groups of fisher men and women in fisheries management and recovery, promoting an ecosystem-based approach which includes the establishment of critical fisheries recovery sites.

PIPA Marine Conservation Model for Economic Development

Commitment by: Conservation International
Partners: Republic of Kiribati; Global Conservation Fund; New England Aquarium; Phoenix Islands Protected Area Conservation Trust
In 2013, Conservation International and its partners committed to the next phase of conservation of island and ocean ecosystems in the Phoenix Islands through the first capitalization of the Phoenix Island Protected Area (PIPA) Trust Endowment Fund. The Trust will ensure long-term ecosystem protection and further the economic development of Kiribati.

Sustainable Oceans Alliance

Commitment by: The TerraMar Project
Partners: Michael Dorsey; Global Partnerships Forum
In 2013, the TerraMar Project committed to launch the Sustainable Oceans Alliance (SOA) to mobilize the international community and the public at large on the importance of the Oceans and the Seas and to ensure that the 193 UN Member States recognize and incorporate oceans in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), to be adopted in 2015.

Sustainable Seafood: Improving Supply and Driving Demand

Commitment by: Bumble Bee Foods, LLC.; World Wildlife Fund
Partners: Marine Stewardship Council
In 2013, Bumble Bee committed to contribute a minimum of $1 million over the next five years to the World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) ocean conservation efforts in conjunction with the sale of its Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified Wild Selections product line. Contributions will be utilized to further fisheries and marine conservation efforts and expand sustainable fishing practices globally.

From Periphery to Core: Proving Nature’s Value

Commitment by: JetBlue Airways Corporation
Partners: The Ocean Foundation
In 2013, JetBlue committed to reshaping their fundamental financial assumptions by translating and integrating the benefits of beautiful and pristine natural environments into the financial models that airlines use to calculate their revenue. JetBlue will incorporate environmental values into the airline’s revenue stream to create a clearer financial signal and argument to commit to specific future ocean conservation policies. JetBlue will also introduce a waste reduction program on their airplanes and at airports to educate its customers about the importance of both ocean systems and waste reduction.

The following progress reports were announced yesterday in Plenary Sessions:

Technology to Address Gender-Based Violence in Haiti

Commitment by: Digital Democracy
Partners: The Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti (IJDH); Bureau des Avocats Internationaux (BAI); Partners in Health; Zanmi Lasante; Lawyers Earthquake Response Network (LERN); Madre; New Media Advocacy Project (N-Map); KOFAVIV (Commission of Women Victims for Victims); FAVILEK (Women Victims Get up Stand Up); KONAMAVID (National Coordination of Direct Victims); Fanm Viktim Koperativ (Women Victim’s Cooperative); IFKB (Association of Women Victims of Bel AIr); KONAMSI (Victim Cooperative and Small Business)
In 2010, Digital Democracy (DD) committed to providing its Haitian partners with the technical tools and training needed for a comprehensive approach to prevent rape and gender-based violence (GBV) in Haiti. Working with a coalition of lawyers, health and psycho-social service providers, and strong networks of Haitian women and girls, Digital Democracy’s commitment will document cases of violence using network responders via mobile phones and provide comprehensive technical training to women and girls to respond to the attacks and effectively advocate for changes to further prevent violence. To date, DD and its local grassroots partners, have launched a 24-hour free emergency response hotline that has fielded over 8,000 calls and connected more than 300 GBV survivors to medical, legal, and psychosocial care. In addition, they have developed a comprehensive system to track, analyze, map, and share GBV-related data with local, national, and international partners, which currently contains over 1,100 documented incidents of GBV.

Creating Opportunities for Girls Through Land Rights

Commitment by: Landesa
Partners: Omidyar Network; Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Nike Foundation; Department of Social Welfare and Development, Government of West Bengal
In 2010, Landesa and its partners committed to improve economic and social empowerment of adolescent girls in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia by strengthening their land rights. Now in its third year, Landesa has partnered with the West Bengal Department of Women and Child Development, to implement a pilot of the government’s SABLA scheme, a nationally-funded program to empower adolescent girls. To date, 299 girls groups have been established in West Bengal. Also in 2010, Landesa launched a community-based participatory project to improve the land tenure security of women and girls in northern Uganda and is now scaling this approach and methodology to ten other communities in two districts of northern Uganda and will share the model with other stakeholders interested in improving women’s and girls’ land rights in similar contexts.

The 2013 CGI Annual Meeting is sponsored by Tom Golisano, Ambassador Gianna Angelopoulos, Hult International Business School, Rockefeller Foundation, Starkey Hearing Foundation, Victor Pinchuk Foundation, Barclays, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The Coca-Cola Company, Duke Energy, Ford Foundation, P&G, Shangri-La Industries, United Postcode Lotteries, Varkey Gems Foundation, BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina, Cisco, Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women, NRG, APCO Worldwide, Aft, Booz Allen Hamilton, Delos, Deutsche Bank, Dow, ExxonMobile, HP, Fuel Freedom Foundation, the Inter-American Development Bank, InterEnergy, Laureate International Universities, Microsoft, Nike Foundation, Pfizer, Standard Chartered, Swiss Re, Toyota, unite4:good, Western Union, Diageo and Jive.

The full program, webcast schedule, and list of participants are available here: clintonglobalinitiative.org/2013. The hashtag for the Annual Meeting is #CGI2013. Follow CGI on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative for meeting news and highlights, and watch the live webcasts at live.clintonglobalinitiative.org

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About the Clinton Global Initiative

Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an initiative of Bill, Hillary & Chelsea 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 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 2,300 commitments, which are already improving the lives of more than 430 million people in over 180 countries. When fully funded and implemented, these commitments will be valued at $76.7 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, and, this year, CGI Latin America, which will bring together Latin American leaders to identify, harness, and strengthen ways to improve the livelihoods of people in Latin America and around the world.

Source: clintonfoundation.org

 


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