As cities around the world struggle to meet the basic needs of their booming populations, many are falling behind when it comes to water, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement marking World Day for Water.

“Urbanization brings opportunities for more efficient water management and improved access to drinking water and sanitation,” Ban said. “At the same time, problems are often magnified in cities,” he added.

Wednesday, 8 March, marks the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day. It is a time to not only celebrate the role of the women worldwide, but it is also an opportunity to remind the world of the struggles that women have faced over the years in the fight for equal rights, dignity and respect.

Over the years, the United Nations has paid particular attention to women’s issues, particularly to women’s empowerment as a tool for global development.

When all eyes were on the MDG Summit in September 2010, the UN Millennium Campaign’s partner organizations, the United Nations Foundation and Devex, had already teamed up to launch a global dialogue on “Making the Millennium Development Goals Happen.” The discussion, which focused individually on each of the eight MDGs over a six month period, was intended to serve as a resource for development professionals around the world to discuss, debate, and celebrate progress to date on

Alison Gemgnani, North America Editorial and Advocacy Consultant, participated in the kick-off event of “MDGs Week” at St. Michael’s College in Colchester, Vermont.

Anita Sharma, North America Coordinator, participated in a panel discussion on November 15th at the Global Washington Annual Conference: "Bridges to Breakthroughs." The panel entitled “The Changing Environment of International Development” focused on challenges, recommendations, and effective public/private partnerships in global development.

Leanne Rios, North America Communications Analyst, spoke to Social Studies teachers from around the world about their role in helping to assure the Millennium Development Goals are achieved by 2015.