United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon got full rock star treatment when he visited the United Nations International School (UNIS) in New York to lead the students in a Stand Up Action.

With just six years left until the deadline by which heads of state have pledged to eradicate extreme poverty and its root causes, Stand Up and Take Action is a stark reminder that citizens will not accept excuses for governments’ breaking promises to the world’s poorest and most vulnerable citizens. “This year’s mobilization will place particular emphasis on telling world leaders that their track record on women’s rights, maternal mortality and hunger is unacceptable. Citizens refuse to accept the fact that 70 percent of the people living in poverty are women and children and 500,000 women continue to die annually in the process of giving life, and they are demanding urgent action from their leaders,” Salil Shetty, UN Millennium Campaign Director, said.

Last year, over 116 million people – nearly two percent of the world population – took action in the Stand-UP, breaking the Guinness World Record for the largest mobilization around a single-cause event in recorded history.

UN agencies around the world are participating, as are millions of people from faith-based groups, student organizations, bloggers and everyone in between. The UN Foundation has a couple of initiatives underway through their Nothing But Nets, Better World Campaign and It’s Getting Personal, climate change campaign.  Some of the UN Foundation staff in DC stood up this morning.

Many organizations around the world are working to raise awareness of the pressing need for solutions to world hunger problem. In Canada the Art of Living Foundation is hosting walks in seven Canadian cities for a 72 hour period on October 16 - 18th, an annual global event that allows people to Stand Against Poverty. Stand Up and Take Action has a photostream.

Inter Press Service examines the Stand Up Take Action campaign, which took place October 16-18 to highlight the Millennium Development Goals’ [MDG] 2015 deadline. “With just six years left until the deadline by which heads of state have pledged to reduce extreme poverty by half, Salil Shetty, director of the U.N. Millennium Campaign, says that Stand Up is a stark reminder that citizens ‘do not accept excuses for governments breaking promises to the world’s poorest and most vulnerable citizens,’” IPS writes.

“Agreed to in 2000, the [MDGs] include a 50 percent reduction in extreme poverty and hunger; universal primary education; promotion of gender equality; reduction of child mortality by two-thirds; cutbacks in maternal mortality by three-quarters; combating the spread of HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; ensuring environmental sustainability; and developing a North-South global partnership for development,” the publication writes. The article includes information about campaign events worldwide and discusses awareness about MDGs in the U.S. (Hoeksema, 10/18).

To mark the campaign in India, “a candle light vigil” was held ”to symbolize the dispersal of the darkness of poverty and illiteracy,” IANS/Thaindian News reports. “The National Federation of Indian Women will also submit memorandums to district officials … to demand equal wages and jobs under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), better health facilities under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) and a check on child mortality and maternal deaths,” the publication writes. Public stalls were also set up in various locations asking people to participate in a health and education survey (10/16).

In Ghana, approximately 500 students from six schools in the capital of Accra ”joined the anti-poverty campaign” Friday, asking ”world leaders to help bring relief to those locked in the state of deprivation,” Joy Online reports (10/17).

IPS examines small-scale agriculture in Mozambique, which is a significant issue in upcoming national elections. “The Mozambican government has identified small-scale agriculture production as the main tool to fight poverty in the country,” the publication writes, adding that the Stand Up Take Action campaign “will target candidates in Mozambique’s elections, to be held on Oct. 28.”

Ivone Soares, an opposition candidate from the RENAMO party, said, “We need an agriculture policy that meets the needs of Mozambican farmers… farmers need to find ways of selling their products in the markets… They also need incentives and tax exemptions when purchasing productions tools like fuel, tractors and seeds” (Machado, 10/16).

Just ahead of the campaign, IPS interviewed Sylvia Mwichuli, deputy director of the U.N. Millennium Campaign. The interview includes questions about MDGs, including one about the weakest progress towards an MDG. “There are challenges in meeting Goal Three, gender equality and women’s empowerment, and Goal Five, improving maternal health,” Mwichuli said (10/15).

Students, faculty and staff members at The American University in Dubai (AUD) stood against poverty in the University’s premises, on Sunday, the 18th of October, 2009, as part of the “Stand Up and Take Action” on campus movement, organized by the AUD International Aid Society (AIA), in their advocacy to help end poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set by the United Nations (UN).

The United Nations Millennium Campaign attempted to break its own Guinness World Record this weekend, and for a very good cause. It wanted to achieve the largest mobilisation in recorded history for one single cause — the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and an end to extreme poverty.

Millions turned out at more than 5,000 events in more than 100 countries. Last year, 162 million took part and this year, organisers hope it was even bigger.

UNMC director Salil Shetty said, “This year’s mobilisation will place particular emphasis on telling world leaders that their track record on women’s rights, maternal mortality and hunger is unacceptable. We are in the process of putting in place a tracking system to monitor delivery of basic services.”

He said, “Citizens refuse to accept the fact that world over 70% of the people living in poverty are women and children and 500,000 women continue to die annually in the process of giving life, and they are demanding urgent action from their leaders.”

For instance, the country is suffering alarming hunger and is ranked 66th out of the 88 developing countries. About 30% of the total population lives below the poverty line and more than 200 million people are malnourished.

According to UNMC, India’s track record in certain indices is “off-track” and requires a re-assessment of strategy like policies in tackling maternal and infant mortality. Malnutrition contributes to over 50% child deaths while there are an alarming 450 maternal deaths per 1,000 live births.

The problem, according to the Shetty, is more in six states and 200 districts, with Dalits, adivasis and women being the worst affected. While low resource allocation is a concern, officials feel that it is the delivery mechanism that must be tightened. The monitoring mechanism is likely to target this loophole through civil society involvement.

Iloilo City and the rest of Visayas region is virtually overflowing with cultural events October 16-18, signifying the region’s union with the National Commission for Culture and Arts (NCCA) in answering the United Nation’s (UN) call to stand up against poverty and take action in support of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

MDGs are global shared targets on poverty, health, education and environment, among others, set by UN for developing countries to achieve by 2015.

Leading the Visayas campaign is Lihok Bisaya, an NCCA-KALAHI (Kapit-bisig Laban sa Kahirapan) culture care giving assisted program initiated by the Visayas NCCA inter-committee members.

The Visayas NCCA inter-committee is a multi-disciplinary and inter-agency strategy to develop community-based creative industries to combat poverty, promote equity, health and ecological sustainability through the power of arts and culture.

On October 18th, around 3 pm, dozens of people participated in this cutting edge social movement. For the first time, a Flash Mob (FLASH mawb- n. a large group of people who gather in a usually predetermined location, perform some brief action, and then quickly disperse) of this nature took place in Santa Barbara. This event was one of thousands across the world that occurred as part of “Stand Up, Take Action, End Poverty Now” on October 16-18, demanding that world leaders keep the promises they made in 2000 to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2025.

Participants froze on cue for 5 minutes on strategic locations along downtown State Street. First, they met at De La Guerra Plaza where they were greeted by the organizing committee – the Education Generation UCSB team-, in order to receive their final instructions. Education Generation UCSB is a student organization founded in 2008 whose aim is to promote the scholarship portal educationgeneration.org.

(via Big Brother Africa Stands Up)

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The Black Eyed Peas opened for U2 for the first time on Sunday (Oct. 18) in Norman, Oklahoma. Bono told the crowd, “For the past few days, all over the world, people have been standing up against extreme poverty. Last year 1.6m people stop up, there’s about 60,000 of you here tonight so let’s see if we can break a record.” The charismatic frontman urged the audience to sit down and stand back up on the count of three and they obliged, yelling “Stand Up” on Bono’s cue, prompting him to say, “This is happening in Africa and India, and now Oklahoma yes … from all of us, thank you so much.”