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AIF and the UN Millennium Campaign host the AIF-UN Bay Area Summit
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contact: Kavya Rajan
kavya@aifoundation.org / (646) 530-8964
Summit is titled Dialogue with Change Agents: Towards Implementing the Millennium Development Goals in India
Jonathan Schwartz, President and COO of Sun Microsystems, and C.K. Prahalad, University of Michigan Distinguished Professor, to address attendees at day-long conference in San Jose, CA on Friday, September 23rd
San Jose (AIF), August 24, 2005 – The American India Foundation (AIF), in partnership with the United Nations Millennium Campaign, today announced its third annual Summit in the Bay Area will be held at the San Jose Convention Center in San Jose, California on Friday, September 23, 2005, featuring Jonathan Schwartz, president and chief operating officer of Sun Microsystems Inc., and C.K. Prahalad, University of Michigan distinguished professor & CEO and founder of The Next Practice.
"The American India Foundation and the United Nations Millennium Campaign are committed to promoting the ideals of sustainable development and grassroots movements that are key to the longterm empowerment of the underprivileged in India," says AIF President Lata Krishnan. Titled Dialogue with Change Agents: Toward Implementing the Millennium Development Goals in India, the Summit will bring together distinguished philanthropists, social entrepreneurs, non-profit organizations, and corporate leaders from across the globe to discuss innovative ways to address development challenges in India. Attendees will also examine how progressive leaders in the private, public, and not-for-profit sectors are working to integrate social, environmental, and economic considerations into their organizations.
"Real progress, whether in education, science, business, or even public policy, requires collaboration across boundaries," said Jonathan Schwartz, president and chief operating officer, Sun Microsystems, Inc. "As we seek solutions to some of the world’s most pressing issues, the act of connecting participants accelerates both social and economic development opportunities."
The Summit will spotlight issues at the intersection of AIF and the UN’s development work in India, including the universalization of elementary education, the use of microcredit to improve women’s livelihood and the HIV/AIDS epidemic in India. These key topics will be addressed in panel discussions with leaders from both Indian and American foundations, grassroots Indian NGOs, and academic and business leaders from the United States. Indian NGOs that have received AIF grants will also be featured.
About the AIF-UN Bay Area Summit:
The AIF-UN Bay Area Summit draws an audience of distinguished philanthropists, social entrepreneurs, corporate leaders, and members of academia and non-profit organizations. The Summit is open to the public. Detailed information and online registration is available at www.AIFSummit.org. For information on the American India Foundation visit www.aifoundation.org. For additional information please contact Kavya Rajan at (212) 891-4637 / kavya@aifoundation.org or Mythili Sankaran at (408) 421-4524 / Mythili@mythicaleast.com.
About AIF
The American India Foundation (AIF) is an international development organization charged with the mission of accelerating social and economic change in India. By mobilizing people and resources across the United States, AIF has raised over $25 million since its inception in 2001. AIF awards grants to education, livelihood, and public health projects in India – with emphases on elementary education, women’s empowerment, and HIV/AIDS, respectively. AIF also administers four programs: (1) the Service Corps, which develops young American leaders by placing them with Indian non-profits based on skills and need; (2) the Digital Equalizer, which bridges the "digital divide" by providing computers, Internet, and training to under-resourced schools; (3) League of Artisans, which creates sustained livelihoods for underprivileged artisans – particularly tribal, rural and women artisans – and thereby improve their economic and living conditions; and (4) Donor Education, which trains donors to become strategic philanthropists. AIF works out of New York and Silicon Valley in the US, and New Delhi and Bangalore in India. President Bill Clinton serves as Honorary Chair.
About the United Nations Millennium Development Goals
The eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set out in the UN Millennium Declaration in September 2000 are: (1) eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, (2) achieve universal primary education, (3) promote gender equality and empower women, (4) reduce child mortality, (5) improve maternal health, (6) combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, (7) ensure environmental sustainability, and (8) develop a global partnership for development. Specific targets of the MDGs as relevant to AIF’s work are: ensure that all boys and girls complete a full course of primary schooling, eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, and halt and begin to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS. All 191 United Nations Member States have pledged to reach goals in each of these eight areas by 2015.
For more information contact:
Press Contact: Kavya Rajan
kavya@aifoundation.org / (646) 530-8964
http://www.AIFoundation.org