In a shocking tradition, women in rural Haryana are forced to mourn the death of an elderly relative by walking barefoot for 12 days. In villages across Haryana, including Mughalpura where Satyawan Verma lives, women are forbidden from using footwear following the death of any elder while men for twelve days, while their male relatives are exempted from this hardship. The climate of Haryana is continental, with extremes of heat in summer which reaches above 45 Degree Celsius and sub-zero temperature in the winter. Women are made to walk bare feet irrespective of this extreme heat and cold. In most villages they must walk for kilometers everyday to fetch drinking water or in winter or collect firewood from outside their villages. As a result, many village women get broken skin and infection on their feet and toes because of walking barefoot. However, as we see in Satyawan’s video, despite finding it hard to walk along the rough village roads without as much as a slipper, women do not question this ritual. This is because they are fed with the idea of this being the normal way to mourn a loved one’s death. Those who disagree, stay quiet because they are scared to break an age-old tradition and being the ‘fallen’ one in the eye of the community. While women suffer in silence, men continue their normal life. As a community member, Satyawan is aghast at this cruel treatment of women. He is determined to protect his wife and other women members of his family from the hardship of such a meaningless ritual in future. He appeals to the viewers of this video to question this practice in different social/cultural forums, so that this cruel ritual of walking barefoot which he feels amounts to domestic violence against women can stop. ( less )

Imagine being born without arms. No arms to wrap around someone, no hands to experience touch, or to hold another hand with. Or what about being born without legs? Having no ability to dance, walk, run, or even stand on two feet. Now put both of those scenarios together with no arms and no legs. What would you do? How would that effect your everyday life? + info: http://attitudeisaltitude.com/ ( less )

The fight against malaria has been ongoing for many years, still every minute a person dies from malaria! The company BESTNET in cooperation with partners all over the world is leading the fight against the deadly mosquito bites. With a superb James Sampson in the vocal foreground, the ear-catching tunes of Hope Is the Light go straight to the heart! During the summer 2010 the music video for the song will be produced in Africa. Along with movie producer Johannes Berggreen, Bestnet will send James Sampson to Uganda - both of which are donating their time and effort to create awareness about malaria! Hope Is The Light - A real hit song -has been written and produced in the HIP CAT Studios in Denmark for the World Malaria Day by the local producers Michael Skouboe and Danny Otto, accompanied by cool South African rapper, "Edward V" - to shed a light on the world's malaria problem - a song that brings hope for the many small children and pregnant women, who live every day at risk of being infected by deadly malaria. On 25 April 2010 events took place worldwide in favor of World Malaria Day and Roll Back Malaria, and in Denmark, Bestnet participated with James Sampson signing CDs in Copenhagen. The company Bestnet Europe Ltd., manufacturers of the long lasting mosquito net, Netprotect ®, supports the many ministries of health and relief organizations worldwide, working for a life without malaria. Worldwide more than 1 million people a year die from malaria - most of which are children under 5 years even though the disease is preventable. Bestnet now produces more than 1.5 million Netprotect ® mosquito nets per month. Netprotect ® is produced in China and India and several locations in Africa, and the company is also working on creating an aid foundation, which henceforth will donate Netprotect ® mosquito nets to selected villages in collaboration with partners and relief organizations globally. More information about World Malaria Day is available at: www.ccn2009.org eller www.rollbackmalaria.org ( less )

Delivering quality aid is not just about giving the right amount; it's about giving it in the right way. Good aid needs to be targeted at the poorest people. It needs to be used for providing public services schools, hospitals, police forces, democratic institutions and promoting rights for women in developing countries. So, when aid is used to support developing country budgets, provided long-term and without unecessary strings attached, governments in developing countries can make effective plans to help the poorest people in their country. And that is aid that really can change lives. Join Oxfam's Health & Education For All Campaign: http://www.oxfam.org/forall or Read more about how aid can work better: http://www.oxfam.org/en/policy/21st-c... ( less )

Martha Wainwright and Jim Kerr have just recorded an original version of the iconic Simple Minds song 'Promised You a Miracle', to draw attention to the hundreds of thousands of women still dying from avoidable complications in childbirth and pregnancy. Ten years ago world leaders signed up to the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs), which commit to halving the number of people living in extreme poverty by 2015. The MDGs included a target to reduce maternal mortality rates by three-quarters by 2015. This target is now the most severely off-track of all the MDGs. These are the biggest promises world leaders have ever made to put people first, and to build a world without poverty. But unfortunately, these promises are still off track. - 350,000 women and girls are still dying every year as a result of complications in pregnancy and childbirth. - The vast majority of maternal deaths are avoidable when women have access to vital health care before, during and after birth. This must stop, and now is the time to act. The G8 summit offers a critical opportunity to tackle maternal mortality. Take action now Demand that world leaders keep their promises. Join our Health & Education For All Pledge - http://www.oxfam.org/pledge ( less )

Water is as essential to our survival as the air we breathe. And much like the right to life itself, access to water is a fundamental human right. The right to water guarantees that each and all individuals have affordable access to safe water in sufficient quantities to meet their basic needs such as drinking and eating, sanitation, food preparation and personal hygiene. Water ensures the survival, health and dignity of human beings, and access to this resource is essential to the fulfillment of several other fundamental rights. Then how can hundreds of millions of people still be without access to safe drinking water? While the right to water is protected by several international treaties, it is still but a dream for many people, especially in developing countries. If the responsibility for making sure everyone has access to water falls on governments, we, as individuals and collectively, have the power to affect change. By staying informed and adding our voices to the thousands of other voices who are calling for universal access to water, we can fulfill the water for all, all for water dream. www.onedrop.org ( less )

As part of the first official annual National Day of Service and Remembrance on September 11 and President Obamas service initiative, United We Serve, Ambassador Susan E. Rice participated in a Nothing But Nets service event hosted by the United Nations Foundation. Over 100 high school students from UNA-USAs Global Classrooms and The School Without Walls in Washington, DC attended the event to learn how service locally can make an impact globally. The Ambassador gave remarks to the group of students, which included 20 visiting students from Nigeria and Ghana. This video is a clip of her remarks. Source: UNfoundation ( less )

In over-crowded Ugandan refugee camps, without telephones or even electricity, Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF) is reconnecting families and offering a peace of mind in the midst of a difficult situation. With funding and support from the UN Foundation and Vodafone Foundation, TSF is providing thousands of refugees with free, satellite-based phone calls to family and loved ones who have been separated while fleeing the recent violence in the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). TSFs Oisin Walton reports from the field. Source: Unfoundation ( less )

As part of the first official annual National Day of Service and Remembrance on September 11 and President Obamas service initiative, United We Serve, Ambassador Susan E. Rice participated in a Nothing But Nets service event hosted by the United Nations Foundation. Over 100 high school students from UNA-USAs Global Classrooms and The School Without Walls in Washington, DC attended the event to learn how service locally can make an impact globally. The Ambassador gave remarks to the group of students, which included 20 visiting students from Nigeria and Ghana. This video is a clip of her remarks. Source: Unfoundation ( less )

As part of the first official annual National Day of Service and Remembrance on September 11 and President Obamas service initiative, United We Serve, Ambassador Susan E. Rice participated in a Nothing But Nets service event hosted by the United Nations Foundation. Over 100 high school students from UNA-USAs Global Classrooms and The School Without Walls in Washington, DC attended the event to learn how service locally can make an impact globally. The Ambassador was joined by Kathy Calvin, the Chief Operating Officer of the United Nations Foundation. Kathy Calvin gave remarks to the group of students. This video is a clip of her remarks. Source: Unfoundation ( less )