Mothers Acting Up

Farewell

2011-07-27T15:27:00.003-04:00

Dearest Mothers Acting Up Community:

For years we’ve talked about creating a “magnificent revolution” led by mothers stepping into new public leadership roles on behalf of the world’s children. Today there is clear evidence we’re living inside that revolution—from Shayne Moore’s book Global Soccer Mom: Changing the World is Easier Than You Think to theupcoming 3-year film project Women and Girls Lead, from the glorious voices atWorld Pulse, CARE, ONEMoms, and The Motherhood, to individuals as famous as Julia Roberts or Christy Turlington Burns and as familiar as you and your neighbor.

In light of this, it is no longer necessary for Mothers Acting Up to be out in front, waving the MAU flag, (even though it is a really beautiful flag … ) and we’ve chosen to close Mothers Acting Up as an organization.

Not that our work as mothers acting up is over—far from it—it’s just that mothers are taking action into our own capable hands. Mothers clearly got the memo that we’re the ones we’ve been waiting for and are Acting Up without need of a third party. There is currently atremendous amount of coherent, effective work being done on every issue impacting the world’s children, as well as opportunities for mothers to engage directly with organizations. In addition, the Internet is bringing mothers around the globe into conversations with each other—across every boundary imaginable—to share challenges, solutions & resources, and create personalized entry points into activism. In effect, we are each leading the revolution.

When Mothers Acting Up started ten years ago, this was most definitely not the case. Activism was a very suspicious activity—somewhat akin to terrorism—and definitely not appropriate to include children in or really even speak about in polite society. Not a single person we encountered wanted to be called an activist; there were many who visually blanched. Few of us used money to “vote” for the world’s children, or saw children’s lives as interconnected, fewer still had found our public voice on issues we were passionate about—or found agency in our mothering roles, or communicated with our Members of Congress. Suffice it to say, no one was blogging. Today though, when mothers look in the mirror, we don’t see a person solely defined by her private roles, we see a powerful global change agent. Or, if we don’t quite see her yet, we certainly see our friends as change agents, and can see ourselves in them.

MAU has been immensely proud to be part of this transformation by offering inspiration, education and engagement in the form of principles for exuberant activism; daily, weekly & monthly actions; tools and recipes that ranged from how to take a field trip to your MOC to how to build stilts; templates for glorious Mother’s Day parades and events that engaged hundreds of thousands; annual calendars featuring hundreds of organizations and individuals; coaching mother leaders, action groups & MAU communities; presenting the MOTHER tour to inspire personal transformation and strengthen the voices of mothers; contributing through the personal story and scholarship of MAU co-founder Beth Osnes to the wildly evocative movie on population, Mother: Caring for Seven Billion; and sharing intimate portraits from the MQs.

We’ve been especially honored to do all this with you; your actions, feedback, financial support and friendship have guided and inspired not only the organization, but our personal lives as well. We’re grateful to every mother and other who has been a part of this journey, stepping outside of comfort zones and sharing courage, challenges and triumphs. We celebrate this magnificent revolution with you in mind.

As written years ago in one of the calendars:

we are mothers, sisters, family
wrapped in different cloth, standing under the same wide sky
and we’ve come to the very end of our silence

together we’ve found our voice
and it is loud
and it is beautiful

and it sings a love song for our children

In the last few years, we did come to the end of our silence, and we have found our voice. So keep your ears tuned … someone near you is singing. When you hear them, join in and crank up the volume, because it is precisely this song that will shape our world’s future and touch all the lives that are to come.

With deep gratitude and in spirited partnership,

Karen, Juliana, Anjali, Joellen, Amy, Stacy, Beth, and Erica

P.s. Please read the other posts featuring a few of the individuals and organizations that MAU has been honored to partner with. You most likely are familiar with them, if not, visit their Websites and engage in their incredible work.

P.s. We wanted to share our final MAU photo—interestingly enough, it is as strange as our first! Also, some information: PLEASE leave any and all messages here in the comment box and elves will make sure the entire crew sees them. This Website will be live until April 2012, so no worries—you can still find that recipe on how to take a field trip to your Member of Congress, or read the MAU Principles again to commit them to memory. MAU co-founder Joellen Raderstorf will continue tweeting @actingupmama and The MOTHER tour will be accessible at www.MOTHERtour.org. Finally, the MAU FaceBook pagewill continue sharing the thoughts and actions of our MAU network for the foreseeable future—including the Acting Up of the MAU Central group—so please keep contributing your thoughts and actions on that page.

Taking Center Stage

2010-01-04T11:40:00.002-05:00

From MAU’s Director, Joellen Raderstorf:

I was told recently by a friend that the reason emotions run so high at this time of year is that there’s physical and emotional clearing in preparation for the NEW year. And we always thought it was our families … So what do we do with all this emotion?

We voice our discontent and then we take action. Join me now in a silent scream for many of the current news stories and the harsh conditions half of the world’s children endure. Okay, scream over, feeling lighter, we now take center stage.

Mothers, it may sound crazy, but it’s time for us to rule the world, (sharing the stage with others of course!) As our human family evolves, the potential to create a more sane and just world has never been stronger. Time to set modesty aside and recognize who we are as mothers: creative problem solvers, tenacious negotiators and passionately committed activists (whether we recognize it or not.)

Mothers shared the stage when 100,000 people from all over the world gathered in the streets in Copenhagen to talk about the future of our children’s planet. Mothers joined millions tweeting climate news out to the world. Mothers embraced a global shift by buying fair trade gifts and sponsoring Kiva micro-loans for teenagers and grandparents alike this year.

We spend the money, we raise future generations, we connect the dots and we talk about it. According to a study by the Keller Fay Group, moms-to-be and those with children under five have an average of 109 discussions per week. We have the power to rule the world in our conversations alone. Do the math: 100 mothers can spread the word to 10,900 in one week. If each of those mothers spread the word, 1,188,100 million people will join the conversation and by round three we reach 129 million people.

MAU invites you to take advantage of the amped-up information highways and:

Make caring for the world’s children a universal conversation.
Incorporate action on behalf of the world’s children into our daily lives in 2010 and beyond.
Recognize that our activism serves the world, no need to hide or apologize for this passion.
Invite diverse voices into this conversation; everyone needs to be heard.
Use social media to reach more mothers.
Support the MAU movement with a small monthly donation.

It’s time to step into our power. Our children and their peers around the world are calling for leadership, watching the world stage … Ahem: do you have stage fright? No worries; we’ll act together, every step of the way.

Inspired Gift Giving

2009-12-22T11:24:00.005-05:00

This time of year, most of us get caught up stressing about finding the perfect gift for our loved ones, festive ways to make centerpieces out of pinecones, or where to sleep the hoards of relatives who will soon be congregating in our homes. For many of us, the holidays end up being anything but a relaxing, spiritual time; instead, they’re often a whirlwind of commercialism, planning, cleaning, and trying to find that perfect gift for the kids, while ignoring the nagging thought they probably won’t play with it for more than a week or two this year, either.

According to a recent survey, three in four Americans wish the holidays were less materialistic, and nine in ten wished the holidays were more about spending time with family and friends, and less about giving and receiving gifts (Center for the New American dream). That sentiment is probably shared by many of our friends and family members, especially in the midst of financial and environmental crises, combined with the knowledge that many of our favorite toys and brands were manufactured by exploited workers in poor countries. A cultural shift regarding the meaning of the holidays would be beneficial to the world we live in and our personal wellbeing, but breaking the societal cycle of consumerism can be difficult, especially when your kids really need this new toy to be cool, happy, or whatever. And nobody wants to be the first vocal Grinch who admits that she currently dreads the holidays, more than looks forward to them.

But there are practical solutions that can help alleviate stress, reduce consumerism, and create new traditions, which encourage and nourish quality family time. What if instead of spending lots of time and money searching for the perfect toy, necklace, or home mani-pedi kit, we instead spent our gift money on fun, non-material things which friends and families can enjoy together—tickets to go see a great band, gift vouchers for a favorite restaurant or brewery, ski passes or Nuggets tickets. There are all sorts of fun things we can give as gifts which honor the giving season while allowing us to share experiences and spend time together. I’m talking about things that will still elicit that thrilling, Christmas morning grin, but that won’t end up in a landfill in two months, weren’t manufactured by exploited laborers, and don’t send our kids the message that material items are synonymous with happiness.

For our grownup friends, what if we hosted a holiday dinner and suggested that instead of gifts, everyone bring $10 to contribute to a charity of the host’s choice, and spend the dinner having spirited, soul-satisfying conversations about the issues facing our world today? Be creative! There are tons of ways to use our collective political and financial power for good instead of mass consumption, and it will probably be received as a refreshing break from typical holiday pressures to buy hostess gifts and gather to discuss the latest fad diets and SAT prep courses for two hours. Your creative ideas can generate real power, especially when your neighbors catch on and the tradition begins to spread.

For those of us unable or unwilling to give up traditional gift giving, fair trade is a great option which ensures that the workers were fairly paid for their labor and the working conditions are safe, healthy, and do not promote environmental degradation. There are a number of ways to find fair trade stores and products in your area—but checking out Global Exchange may be a good place to start: www.globalexchange.org.

Once the gifts are purchased, we can even exercise our power to positively impact our world by being conscious of how we wrap our gifts—why waste money and trees on wrapping paper when you can be creative and environmentally conscious by wrapping in the colorful Sunday comics page? People will appreciate these personal touches and efforts to be conscious, and you will be saving money and stress in the process—not to mention setting a great example for your kids!

Speaking of kids, are you still worried about what to tell your kid when she looks at you with those big brown doe eyes and explains, didactically and heart-wrenchingly, exactly why she needs the newest, latest gizmo-gadget to be happy? After all, what parent doesn’t want to give their child whatever it is their child most desires, especially in the age of “everybody else’s parent is getting it?” But if you, the parent, can’t stand up against what “everybody else’s parent” is doing, how is your child ever going to learn to stand up to what “everybody else is doing?” And isn’t that precisely what we try to teach them about drugs, alcohol, sex, etc—to be their own person, no matter what “everybody else” happens to be doing? (And speaking from personal experience, the “everybody else is getting it” is usually just a line anyway … )

A holiday blog by the wonderful MAU maven and intern, Hanna Johnson. Visit the MAU site for more on creating new traditions and inspired giving.

Smoking hot climate change video

2009-11-30T13:04:00.002-05:00

Through the organization 350.org, on October 24, people in every corner of the planet coordinated the most widespread day of environmental action in the planet's history. At over 5,200 events, people gathered to call for strong action and bold leadership on the climate crisis. By the day's end, it was clear: people of all kinds are calling for a fair, ambitious, and binding global climate treaty.

During the week of Dec 7-18, world leaders, including President Obama, will meet in Copenhagen to craft a new global treaty on climate change. It is up to us to make sure the treaty is strong and that world leaders hear the urgency of our message.

Watch the video.

MAU Daily Action: Fill in the blank ...

2009-11-25T18:13:00.001-05:00

Finish the following statement: I act on behalf of the world's children because ___. Share this statement with another. If their eyes shine, meet your new MAU ally! Read more at mothersactingup.org.

It begins with you ...

2009-11-23T16:38:00.002-05:00

Watch: MAU's illustrious ED maps out how mothers are prioritizing the lives of EVERY child.

Why mothers act up and often ...

2009-11-20T17:51:00.003-05:00

The new MAU Website has been launched! Here is the first of MAU's new Daily Actions:

Watch one mom's reason she acts on behalf of the world's children (with persuasive hope and a cat) & celebrate Universal Children's Day!

Snow Days, Pancakes and Energy Justice

2009-11-02T20:15:00.003-05:00

By MAU Director, Joellen Raderstorf, on The Huffington Post

Teenagers screaming “Snow Day!” from the top of their lungs at 6:30 AM is a rare occurrence for two reasons: 1) snow days are few and far between in Boulder, CO and 2) the 13+ crowd are scarce in the pre-dawn hours. When I suggest that getting up so early seems to negate the benefit of school cancellation, I’m told, “Every minute counts on a snow day!”

As young tribe members from the neighborhood and beyond enter the scene, I observe my household’s prodigious energy footprint: natural gas cooking stacks of pancakes, heating a drafty old home and providing hot water for showers and dishes; coal lighting a Risk game, powering multiple laptops and longingly beating whipping cream with one beater. The cars stay in place denying oil the opportunity to join our “high energy users” portfolio on this day. The scene might have gone unnoticed had I not just attended the World Energy Justice Conference presented by The Center for Energy and Environmental Security (CEES) at The University of Colorado Law School.

Dr. Kandeh K. Yumkella, Director-General of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), opens the conference with the three F’s: food, fuel, and financial crisis. As a result of these F’s, 100 million people have been pushed back to living on $1 a day, causing food riots that are rapidly spreading to a “full scale, full world crisis.” Dr Yumkella speaks of living his own personal dichotomy, having come from a small village in Sierra Leone―the third poorest country―and currently living in Vienna with the best of everything. When he travels back to his village, he brings a generator and bottled water, because there is no electricity or potable drinking water. His passionate work for energy justice is grounded in his personal experience of this extreme energy disparity.

I can relate. While I’m living the “make every minute count” lifestyle, nearly one third of my fellow global family members―the energy oppressed poor, or EOP―rely primarily on biomass-based fire to meet all their energy needs. Biomass in this context refers to wood scraps, plant debris, animal dung and just about any material that will burn. Adequate for cooking and heating, this ancient energy source causes serious indoor air pollution (black soot) resulting in 1.5 million premature deaths every year, primarily women and children. When the black soot enters the atmosphere, it becomes the second most significant cause of climate change. Additionally, women and children walk miles every day to collect the debris, thereby denying children of basic educational opportunities.

To address these energy access dilemmas, international and U.S. decision-makers spent three full days together generating solutions that address indoor and atmospheric pollution, create sustainable energy with appropriate technologies, promote economic growth that will break the poverty cycle and create new markets. Proven products, like $20 cook stoves that burn more efficiently and produce minimal pollution, call for a full-scale implementation plan, including funding, distribution, education, and community buy-in.

This buy-in, from men and women, is vital to the success of development projects and introducing new technology requires overcoming cultural barriers. Dr. Beth Osnes, assistant professor of theatre at the University of Colorado and co-founder of Mothers Acting Up, shares her recent trip to Guatemala, where she specifically engaged women, who are most heavily impacted but rarely included in discussions about energy. At the conference, lawyers and engineers watch attentively as Dr. Osnes and troupe re-enact interactive skits previously preformed in the Guatemalan villages to address the barriers, as well as the risks of doing nothing.

While the conference presented an impressive line-up of speakers, I was most drawn to the words of Dr. Bernard Amadei, Engineers Without Borders founder and CU professor, "When you have no light, you can make babies, but you can't read, you can't work, you can't learn." As he relays images of children studying under street-lights on a recent trip to Kabul, Afghanistan, he shares with intense passion, “The desire to learn is fierce!” He also points out that technology must be appropriate as well as sustainable; no more “cradle to grave” solutions.

All of this leads me to snow day #2. My partner in all things, reads a bit of this post and cautiously asks, “What do you want me to do?” Sitting in our toasty home fragrant with the scent of cheesy eggs and toast, and lively with movie trailers singing out from the family computer, I realize it serves no one to shamefully denigrate my abundant life. However, I need to acknowledge that one third (my third) of the planet is literally consuming huge amounts of energy, while one third is deprived of the most basic energy needed to live a productive life.

What can my third and I do? 1) Take action to reduce our energy appetites, visit the Global Footprint Network to find out how. 2) Support non-profits like the Darfur Stoves Project and Trees, Water & People in their work to provide desperately needed solutions to the energy oppressed poor. 3) Most importantly, as Dr. Lakshman Guruswamy―the man behind the conference―points out, it’s time to bring this conversation into the international climate action arena. The talks in Copenhagen can, and must, address the energy oppressed poor in the effort to reduce global CO2 emissions.

Recognizing that the conversation is just beginning, I make for the trail with my snowshoes and dog hoping I made my minutes count during these much appreciated snow days.

Read more about the World Energy Justice Conference, program presenters and CEES.

Follow Joellen Raderstorf on Twitter: www.twitter.com/earnest_mama

Swine Flu, Climate Change and a Middle of the Night Tantrum

2009-10-16T16:40:00.004-04:00

By Joellen Raderstorf, Director of MAU, on The Huffington Post

My tweetdeck is pinging like crazy since I began searching entries on swine flu, more than Oprah and three times more than climate change. In face-to-face conversations, I’ve heard dozens say “I think I had the swine flu.” I haven’t once heard someone say, “I sent my Senators a letter today, requesting immediate action on climate change” or “Today is my no drive day, I’m hoping to recover from climate change.”

So I consult the experts: I’m carpooling (chauffeuring) my teenagers, with the beautiful Colorado sky heavy with smoke from California fires, and NPR broadcasting another story of H1N1. I ask this captive crowd “Why aren’t people as concerned about global warming?” Their analysis is spot on: “People can imagine getting deathly sick from the flu; everyone has experienced this to some degree. However, most people don’t know what it feels like to suffer from climate change.” Interesting observation coming from children who literally ran from the Asian tsunami in 2004.

Three tweets cross my screen all reading “India's swine flu toll crosses 400.” A quick Google search yields perspective: 3,000 children die every day in India due to hunger and malnutrition, and 3,900 children die every day around the globe from water borne diseases (WHO 2004). According to UNICEF, climate change is expected to intensify these threats and also likely to accelerate certain large-scale environmental changes, including desertification, diminishing freshwater resources and biodiversity loss, which has far-reaching effects on child health and wellbeing.

Herein lies the kernel of my middle-of-the-night tantrum: where is our collective panic about climate change? Our energy consumptive lifestyles do not blink in the quake of devastating floods, receding glaciers and starving children. Instead we are arming ourselves with anti-bacterial gel and flu shots. "Swine flu and climate change are inextricably related," says Angela Mawle, CEO of the UK Public Health Association. "Both are the end results of unbridled economic growth, environmental degradation and industrial agricultural practices. When will we ever learn that prevention is better than cure?"

Consider this post an invitation to a full scale mother tantrum until we collectively get serious about addressing the grave threat climate change poses to our children and grandchildren, and start talking and tweeting about it.

Raise a ruckus on Oct. 24th, the International Day of Climate Action, find out how at 1sky.org and 350.org. And that’s a tweet.

Download UNICEF’s report, CLIMATE CHANGE AND CHILDREN: A human security challenge, to read more about the threats of climate change as well as adaptation and mitigation strategies.

By Joellen Raderstorf, Director of Mothers Acting Up. Follow her on Twitter: www.twitter.com/earnest_mama

Take a Stand Against Global Poverty

2009-10-01T09:23:00.004-04:00

In honor of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17, you can join CARE and stand in solidarity with poor and marginalized women around the world:

Read, learn and act! Encourage your friends, family and bookclub to read the new book, “Half the Sky”, by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. You will undertake a journey through Africa and Asia to meet an extraordinary array of women, including a woman in Burundi who becomes an empowered entrepreneur with the support of a CARE village savings and loan program. After reading the book, gather together at a local coffee house or living room, to discuss the importance of women’s economic empowerment around the world, and take action together (for a discussion guide and other tools visit www.care.org/bookclubs).
Participate! Attend one of CARE’s special events being held in October in Atlanta, Miami, and other key cities (visit www.care.org/stand for more information).
Speak out! Tell your member of Congress to support the GROWTH Act (www.care.org/GROWTH). The act promotes microfinance tools like village savings and loan programs, enhanced land and property rights, and business training for women living in poverty around the world.

Together, we have the power to help women around the world build a better future for all.

Will you call your Senator today?

2009-09-19T10:50:00.003-04:00

Call your Senator and ask her/him to pass the Clean Energy Jobs bill.

The American public overwhelmingly wants a strong clean energy bill, but fossil fuel interests are using tricks to try and maintain the status quo. They're already generating hundreds of opposition calls to our Senators, so we need to raise our voices NOW to cut through the noise and urge support for a strong bill! Our partners at the 1Sky Campaign have made it easy for you to call your Senator -- just visit http://www.1sky.org/call to get some talking points and to get connected to your Senator toll-free. With your help we can stand 10,000 calls strong for clean energy!

Do you CARE enough...

2009-08-28T15:58:00.007-04:00

Read the article Do You CARE Enough To Make A Single Phone Call by Sally, the Editor-in-Chief of Ladies Home Journal, in the August edition after her experience attending CARE's National Conference.

Take Action with CARE to Prevent Child Marriage

2009-06-25T12:46:00.004-04:00

Imagine a young girl with her whole life ahead of her. She has dreams of an education, a career and eventually, a happy family. Instead, she soon will be getting married — likely to a man more than twice her age or older. Approximately 60 million girls around the world are married by the age of 17. By forcing a girl into premature adulthood, early marriage thwarts her chances to get an education, endangers her health and cuts short her personal growth and development.

CARE, which works with families and communities to reduce the prevalence of child marriage throughout the developing world, is encouraging the United States to do its part to prevent child marriage by passing the International Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act of 2009. This legislation recognizes child marriage as a human rights violation and requires the United States to develop a comprehensive strategy to prevent these marriages and empower young girls.

A couple of weeks ago almost two-thirds of Congress voted to send child marriage prevention legislation to the Senate. This landmark vote is an early victory in the effort to advance the rights of girls everywhere, but the fight is not over yet. Send an email to your Senator encouraging them to stand up for girls’ rights. This simple action can help stop the practice that presses 25,000 girls into marriage every day!

Ask your Senator to stand with millions of other supporters in the United States by becoming a co-sponsor of the International Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act of 2009 (S.987).

June 19th National Day of Action on Climate Change

2009-06-18T06:08:00.002-04:00

On Friday, June 19th, 1Sky and groups like MoveOn, Green for All, Oxfam and others are calling for a national day of action to make the climate bill stronger. It's a day for you to "get visible" in your community. Please invite your family, friends and neighbors to rally at your representative's district office and make your voice heard loud and clear.

Sign up now for this national day of action: http://www.1sky.org/getlouder

Your voice lets your representative know that there are concerned citizens -- like you -- who want a stronger bill to create millions of clean energy jobs and begin to tackle climate change. So now it's time to get louder!

They are trying to improve this bill in three key ways:

Ensure More Clean Energy for America: By increasing the renewable energy and energy efficiency standards.

Hold Polluters Accountable: By restoring authority to the EPA to mandate cleaner technology for power plants.

Create More Clean Energy Jobs for America: Limit giveaways to polluting industries, like Big Oil and Dirty Coal, and instead bolster green job development and protection of vulnerable communities.

Why June 19th? Right now, several committees are working on this bill, and we expect a House floor vote by the end of June. This is the critical moment we've been working for in the House, so it's time to make ourselves visible!

Join with communities and voices all across America this Friday and push for a stronger climate bill. As we get closer to a House vote, tell your friends and neighbors to get louder -- sign up to plan your event this Friday, June 19th -- http://www.1sky.org/getlouder

After you sign up, be sure to download our event resource guide at www.1sky.org/resources.

Join the National Day of Action for Climate Change on June 19!

Call for Foreign Assistance Reform

2009-05-16T08:19:00.005-04:00

From our friends at ONE:

American anti-poverty efforts save lives in the developing world every day, funding AIDS drugs and anti-malarial bed nets. Our commitment to development makes it possible for farmers to improve their yields, and for more children to go to school, breaking cycles of hunger and poverty.

But the current foreign assistance act governing this system was written in 1961 to address Cold War problems and it’s ready for an overhaul. It’s time to start crafting a new foreign assistance act that will lead to more transparency and accountability, better communication and coordination between aid agencies such as USAID, the Peace Corps, PEPFAR and the Millennium Challenge Corporation, and better cooperation with other countries. The result will be that every dollar spent will go even further to support the best ideas for ending global poverty and preventable disease.

Congressman Howard Berman (D-CA) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) have introduced a bill that will begin the long process of updating the system. The bill is called the Initiating Foreign Aid Reform Act, and it’s the first step of many in reforming how we do development work. By directing the President to write a new strategy, successful passage of the Berman-Kirk bill will move us closer to our goal of bringing development into the 21st century.

Next week, the House Foreign Affairs Committee will consider this critical bill and before they do, we need to make sure it has broad support, by getting as many members of Congress as possible to sign-on as co-sponsors.

Call your US Representative. Ask her/him to support foreign aid reform and to ensure that children will be prioritized in the foreign assistance reform process.

Go to house.gov to find your Representative's phone number. For tips, talking points and an instructional video, visit ONE's call action page.

Reclaiming Mother's Day

2009-05-08T19:17:00.003-04:00

Shared by a MAU Maven and Mother Leader.....

I’m one of those mothers who love Mother’s Day. I can’t wait for the homemade gifts, the breakfast in bed drenched in syrup and sticky kisses, and it is always the day I plant my garden with my family.

But a few years ago, Mother’s Day became so much more than those wonderful sticky kisses – it became a day that I stand in solidarity with mothers around the world to demand a safe, bountiful and meaningful life for all the world’s children.

I stand side by side with Julia Ward Howe, one of our great founding mothers, who wrote the Battle Hymn of the Republic and also penned the very first Mother’s Day Proclamation in 1870. She called on women to “arise,” and wrote, “as men have often forsaken the plough and the anvil at the summons of war, let women now leave all that may be left of home for a great and earnest day of counsel.” She goes on to say, “Let them meet first as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead. Let them solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means whereby the great human family can live in peace…”

Wow. That’s where Mother’s Day originated. In the courageous arms of the mothers and grandmothers of the Civil War. It wasn’t Hallmark after all.

Written at a time when our country was still healing from the ravages of war, partisanship and economic strife. She wrote this when women had no political voice or rights, and 50 years before women got the right to vote. She was truly a mother to be proud of - courageous, just, and committed to a peaceful and prosperous world for all women and their children.

So, as I am enveloped by the sweetness of Mother’s Day, I will allow myself to be pampered and cared for. But, I will also raise my voice to bring dignity to all mothers and remember the original intent of this auspicious day, when mothers were initially called to greatness by the Mother of Mother’s Day.

This spring 100+ Mother Leaders across the country will celebrate Mother's Day by signing pledge cards, collecting post cards, and meeting with their members of Congress to joyfully demand a more just and equitable world for all. To add your voice to this beautiful collaboration of mothers and others, find us at Stand for the World's Children.

Stacy Carkonen is an advocate and Mother Leader in Sumner, Washington. For more information: www.standfortheworldschildren.org

Mother's Day, another Hallmark holiday?

2009-05-08T16:45:00.002-04:00

Read this great post from our friends at Mindful Mama...

Making Mother's Day Meaningful
By Bess Hochstein

My mother has some ‘tude about Mother’s Day. I still remember her dismissively calling it a “Hallmark holiday” when I was growing up. It was a no-win situation: Even though she found the premise contrived, she’d be upset if I didn’t send a card or a gift or call her. But I doubt my mother would disparage Mother’s Day as much if she knew the holiday’s origins—to acknowledge motherhood as sacred, to reconnect to one’s family, and promote peace by helping less fortunate mothers and children around the world.

More...

Mother Wisdom in West Africa

2009-04-30T00:39:00.009-04:00

From MAU maven, Amie Nelson

On my recent trip to West Africa, I was inoculated against every tropical disease the nurse could find in her book, guarded by my mosquito net fortress, and slightly comforted by the stash of remedies I had packed for possible infection, infestation and indigestion. I even brushed up on my rusty French, one of the common languages in Senegal. What I wasn’t prepared for is how women in this part of the world would seep into my soul, widen my eyes, and reconstruct some of my preconceptions of Africa – how they would give me a new blueprint for my own life as a mother and a woman.

Unlike prior world adventures as a wandering tourist, in West Africa I was a mama with a mission. In coordination with Tostan, a U.S. nonprofit dedicated to educating and empowering rural Africans, I traveled to Senegal to interview indigenous mothers who are working to raise awareness of health and human rights issues and inspiring their villages to abandon traditional practices harmful to women and girls. Tostan nominated three mother leaders for the book I’m writing so I spent ten days traveling to their small, remote villages to meet these remarkable women and learn what makes them effective advocates for change.

In a challenging and often sidetracked journey through the southern part of this rugged, beautiful country, I found myself enamored with the women of Senegal. During my short visit I soaked in their dress, customs, life philosophy and parenting styles. Up close and from a distance I observed their struggles and their ease of living. America seems determined to save Africa, but after spending time with these women, I wondered if they might have an approach that could save us.

Equality is in your head
For centuries, the mothers of West Africa have maintained an unspoken power in their communities. As the primary workers - planting crops, gathering and preparing food, transporting water, maintaining homes, raising families, and some as highly skilled artisans - they are the true life force of the village. As an unfortunate result, many young girls are not allowed to continue with their schooling because they are needed at home to help their mothers with this work. Gradually, as more women in Africa are finding their voice, they are beginning to address some of these inequities in their society.

Adriatou, a vivacious, stunning mother of five who is leading her village in the recognition of human rights and importance of education, told me with cool confidence that “equality is in your own head.” She said for many women and girls, once they understand they are competent and capable of achieving – this is what keeps their head lifted in the face on inequality and lack of opportunity.

These women do hold their heads high, carrying huge buckets of water and metal bowls containing the family’s next meal, sometimes for miles. Throughout West Africa I was awestruck by women walking the city streets or rural dirt roads all with proud, magestic strides, babies strapped to their backs, and containers cleverly balanced on their head. They have a cool confidence I have never seen anywhere. These women- these mothers, they understand their significance. The men understand too. This is why many males in the villages have embraced the changes that are taking place with the advancement of health and human rights in Senegal. They see that when their women and children thrive under more equitable conditions, the entire community benefits.

Each young girl I talked with during my travels in West Africa dreamed of continuing school and pursuing some type of profession. Many wanted to be teachers. Fathou, a bright-eyed 14 year old I met in The Gambia told me she wanted to study math someday. I wondered if this charming girl selling bananas at the ferry would find a way to follow her chosen path. Ame, a 12 year old street vendor in Zinginchor, a city at the southern border of Senegal and Guinea Bissau, told me she wanted to be a doctor. As the women in Africa begin to understand and reclaim their rights, their dreams may inch closer to reality in the future.

Amie is a Colorado MAU maven, mother of two delightful daughters and author of the forthcoming book Inspiring Mothers: Wisdom & Activism from Mothers Around the World. To read the rest of Amie’s inspiringmama blog go to www.inspiringmothers.wordpress.com

A project of Mothers Acting Up, Inspiring Mothers has a mission to engage a million mothers or more to become the new leaders of social change. To nominate a mother or receive your free report: 7 Simple Steps You Can Take Now to Change the World, visit http://www.inspiringmothers.com.

A Special Invitation for MAUs

2009-04-06T11:20:00.003-04:00

Make a Difference at CARE's Annual National Conference & Celebration!

You are invited to participate in the CARE National Conference & Celebrat ion on May 5 and 6 in Washington, D.C. for two days of political action, learning and inspiration. You will hear from top activists, lawmakers and speakers, including Wolf Blitzer and Gwen Ifill, and join other members of women’s organizations from across the country at special events highlighting the importance of connecting the world’s women in the fight against global poverty. You also will receive hands-on training for promoting the issues you care about on Capitol Hill, with a special focus on maternal health, and then meet in person with your own U.S. Senators and Representatives to educate them about why women's empowerment is important to you and CARE.

As a MAU, a CARE partner organization, when you register at www.care.org/women, you will receive an extension of the early registration rate through mid April and an invitation to special conference programs.

A Powerful Noise

2009-02-19T10:29:00.005-05:00

Celebrate International Women's Day with A POWERFUL NOISE!

Individuals and communities are joining CARE in theatres across the country to celebrate International Women's Day with a viewing of A POWERFUL NOISE Live. On the evening of March 5, CARE is hosting an unprecedented one-night event featuring "A Powerful Noise", an acclaimed documentary that follows three extraordinary women – Hanh is an HIV-positive widow in Vietnam, Nada is a survivor of the Bosnian war, and Jacqueline educates girls in Mali. The film takes you inside the lives of these women to witness their daily challenges and significant victories over poverty and oppression. Immediately following the film a town hall discussion will be broadcast live from New York to participating theatres, with renowned activists and experts including Nicholas Kristof, Christy Turlington Burns, and CARE President & CEO Helene Gayle, to discuss how we can empower women around the world to fight global poverty.

Tickets are on sale now. To learn more about the film, or for theatre and ticket information, visit www.apowerfulnoise.org.

Invite your friends, family and colleagues to attend A POWERFUL NOISE Live. Visit http://www.apowerfulnoise.org/guides.html to download a step-by-step planning guide for how local women's groups can participate in this exciting event.

Hot off the presses....

2009-02-10T09:50:00.007-05:00

Here it is, drum roll please...the 2008 Annual Report, MAU's first ever! MAU celebrates mother leadership -- MAUs share their stories of action and visions for the world.

A journey of exploration, of the world and self

2009-02-06T11:37:00.004-05:00

2009 MAU Calendar Portrait Camille Hook and her family are spending this month travelling through Southeast Asia visiting microcredit programs, while exploring the world. Visit their blog at www.Hooktrip.blogspot.com as they share what they learn, adventures, photos and videos.

Here’s a snippet from one of Camille’s postings before they left:

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness” by Mark Twain
I ponder this quote daily. It was to my surprise that I would start to feel the truth of it so quickly by creating a blog! Sharing the experience of our travel has already widened the borders of the stereotyped family/friend "comfort zone conversation" to include topics such as global politics, immigration, geography, history, human rights, "poverty and despair vs. poverty and dignity," economy and my favorite topic: advocacy.

As a result, I've learned of the wisdom of your own journeys. Eloquently, you all have spoken with inspirational worldliness, open-mindedness and appreciation of culture and countryside. Thank you.

These kinds of conversational moments open doors in our fundamental relationships and build intimacy and trust from which I am finding all kinds of energy to act...explore further...discover more...share again. Whadyaknow...it's a cycle!

Weekly Action

2009-02-04T16:12:00.002-05:00

Annie Leonard, the host of The Story of Stuff, is featured this week in the 2009 MAU Calendar. She discusses the problem with stuff in the US. Watch her online film that illustrates the hidden environmental and social costs of the current systems of production and consumption. And then....deliberately buy nothing one day this week.

Weekly Action

2009-01-27T01:57:00.002-05:00

From the 2009 MAU Calendar...
Walk, bicycle or bus to the local library and check out Rachel Carson's Silent Spring. Bring your household together to choose one action that will lighten your footprint on this earth.

Inauguration Day!

2009-01-25T21:08:00.004-05:00

My husband and I witnessed history being made standing shoulder to shoulder with millions of others. The hours passed quickly as we left the house in the dark to make a 5:30am train to Washington, DC. We arrived full of excitement as the sun shined brightly on a cold January morning in our nation's capital. Tens of thousands waited at the security gates while we showed our tickets and entered single file. We made our way to our area and began the countdown -- literally, there was a man from St. Louis counting down to the swearing-in.

We made friends, chatted, laughed, discussed facebook updates, and knew that the eyes of the world were upon us as the excitement in the air grew by the minute. Unfortunately, we weren't able to see much given that the huge jumbotron had a big tree right in front of it, but none the less, we weren't any less excited.

And then, it all began....dignitaries were announced and made their way to their appointed seats. The crowd shouted for former presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton. For a society that values being loud, the power of silence was striking -- not a peep was uttered when George Herbert Walker Bush entered. Some boos, but again, mostly silence for Vice President Cheney. And then Bush entered, silence gave way to boos which gave way to the song -- Na-na, na-na-na-na, hey, hey, hey good-bye. These words filled the air from behind us, to the left of us and in front of us. And then the chanting started -- O-ba-ma, O-ba-ma. It was incredible, our voices -- young and old, from all over the country and the world, women and men -- joining in unison, sounding like one -- powerful!

President Obama began his speech as the crowd chanted. As he spoke of extending a hand in friendship to those whose fists were clenched, of helping poor nations to "nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds" and reaffirming our nation's spirit, the crowd roared their support. The sense of renewed hope, purpose and responsibility -- to ourselves, to our nation and to the world -- was palpable.

The next thing we knew, we were starting our journey home to tell our daughters all about it! (Our older daughter (7 years old) really wanted to be there and had actually suggested that I take her and that daddy could stay at home with her younger sister!)

The impact of the speech didn't really hit until we got home. It was a somber speech that reflected the seriousness of our time, yet was full of hope and inspiration based on the strength of us as a people.

There seems to be life again in the White House -- from Malia and Sasha, to watching the way President Obama and Michelle danced while watching the parade go by. Who knew that the leader of the free world could seem so down to earth? At the end of the day though, it is important to remember that while government is here to work for us and as President Obama will lead us, we all must be part of the change that this country needs.

And, as the 44th President of the United States said, now the work begins!

A story of inspiration and a request to vote

2009-01-12T02:03:00.004-05:00

Susan Retik lost her husband on September 11th. He was on the first plane to hit the towers. Weeks later she gave birth to their third child. She eventually transcended her shock and grief by co-founding an organization called Beyond the 11th, which provides financial and emotional support to Afghani widows and their children who are trapped in an ever-deepening cycle of poverty. Beyond the 11th’s grants are geared toward programs that help widows gain the skills necessary to generate their own income. Susan’s work was inspired by the incredible generosity she received and her realization of the absolute scarcity of help for her counterparts in Afghanistan. Every year on the anniversary of her husband’s death Susan bikes from the site of the twin towers to Boston, MA to fundraise for Afghanistan’s widows. She eventually traveled to Afghanistan, along with Beyond the 11th co-founder and fellow September 11th widow Patti Quigley, to meet the recipients of her organization. The life changing trip is the subject of the documentary, Beyond Belief.

Susan’s work as Beyond the 11th director is to promote peace and justice. The rewards will be reaped by children as far as the Middle East, and as near as her own back yard.

Several weeks ago I wrote an essay nominating Susan for Cookie Magazine’s Smart Cookie Award. Nominations poured in to the magazine and Susan was chosen one of their 5 finalists!!! And YOU get to vote for the award winner! Please go on line to: http://www.cookiemag.com/magazine/sweeps/smart_cookie_finalists09/entry/long/ and vote for Susan Retik! She could win $35,000 for her organization! PLEASE, VOTE NOW!

There are no obligations to voting -- you do not have to subscribe to the magazine and I promise that you won’t be put on any mailing or call lists. Also, you can be a man or woman to vote. Tell all of your friends and family to vote! Together we can help Susan make a difference for the women and children in Afghanistan -- a difference that will have a ripple effect all throughout the world.

Thank you for your support!

Peace and Love,
Stephanie
A MAU in Pennsylvania

Get inspired! View her documentary trailer at: http://www.alivemindmedia.com/films/beyond-belief/
Learn more about her foundation at: http://www.beyondthe11th.org/index.html

Happy New Year!

2009-01-07T10:05:00.004-05:00

Hope you had a wonderful holiday season!

What better way to start the new year than by envisioning what we will do in 2009. Write down an issue you are passionate about and 3 actions steps you would like to take. Email it to beheard@mothersactingup.org and send along your mailing address for a free Mothers Acting Up bumper sticker.

Tell the new administration to make fighting global poverty a priority

2008-11-25T22:22:00.004-05:00

On the campaign trail, Senator Obama went "On the Record" with promises to fight global poverty and diseases, such as malaria and HIV/AIDS. Now, let's work to make those promises become reality. Join our friends at the ONE campaign and sign the petition asking President Elect Obama to make a pledge in your inaugural address to fight poverty and preventable diseases worldwide.

In January one of the first issues our new Congress will tackle will be the 2010 budget. Take action with CARE and ask your Representatives and Senators to add their names to the letters circulating Congress requesting a robust international affairs budget that will ensure vital humanitarian and development programs, which are critical in the fight against poverty.

Add your name by Nov. 24

2008-11-21T10:55:00.003-05:00

Stand up against violence to women. The UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) is collecting one million signatures to present to UN Secretary General Ban-ki Moon on Nov. 25. Your voice counts, add your name to the list. Click here to watch the second installment of videos featuring UN Goodwill Ambassador Nicole Kidman.

Add your name to the widget on the left by Monday, Nov. 24.

Welcome the 111th Congress with a card....

2008-11-12T22:12:00.010-05:00

On November 18th, mothers and others across the country will be delivering "welcome" cards to their local Congressional offices, reminding their elected officials that they voted on November 4th to make climate change a priority. Tackling climate change is not only a priority for us, but has more significant implications in terms of the world that our children will inherit.

Gather up your kids, friends and family and join 1Sky and others or organize your own visit to your Members' offices. While you're there, leave behind information about the Mother Agenda and a plate of cookies (always welcomed by the staff!). Click here to sign-up and get all the necessary information.

Say NO to Violence Against Women

2008-11-12T21:19:00.003-05:00

Did you know that 1 out of 3 women may suffer from abuse or violence in her lifetime? Click here to watch UN Goodwill Ambassador Nicole Kidman talk about the Say NO to Violence Against Women campaign in a series of three short videos.

Then, join with the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) as they collect 1 million signatures representing people saying “No” to violence against women. On November 25, UNIFEM and Goodwill Ambassador Nicole Kidman will present these signatures to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

Take a stand. Add your name and email to the box on the left hand side by November 24. To learn more about the campaign and solutions to the problem, click here.

Raise Your Voice Against Poverty

2008-10-09T22:33:00.004-04:00

October 17 is the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. Add your voice to the chorus calling for the end to global poverty. Take action with:

CARE's National Day of Action: Join CARE and send a strong message to the next President of the United States that Americans care deeply about the plight of the world’s poor. Then, host a National Day of Action event to explore concrete actions we can all take to advance U.S. policies to empower women and end poverty and injustice in one community after another. CARE's website has the resources you need to make your National Day of Action event a resounding success! CARE is hosting events around the world on Oct. 17. To host your own event, view a listing of events or to take action online, click here.

Stand Up: Stand Up with your community – family, friends, coworkers, teammates, classmates, those at your house of worship – along with millions of others around the world against poverty. Stand Up is a global mobilization to end poverty and inequality. Last year, 43.7 million people joined Stand Up worldwide, setting a new world record. This year, we are asking people to Stand Up and Take Action on October 17 through October 19 to ensure governments worldwide hear our demands to end poverty.

We are the first generation to have the tools and resources to end extreme poverty. Let's create true security for our global family and make poverty history!

Knit One, Save One

2008-10-06T17:14:00.003-04:00

October is here and there is a briskness to the air. As we start to add layers and hats to keep warm, join Save the Children's Knit One, Save One campaign.

60% of newborn deaths in developing countries can be prevented through some basic health measures, such as keeping a baby warm. That's where the Knit One, Save One campaign comes in. Click here to read more...

Back to School

2008-09-12T11:12:00.003-04:00

It's September and children of all ages are back to school. However, there are 72 million children not in school around the world, and the majority of these children are girls.

Join CARE in their Back to School Campaign called Ignite the Girl Effect. Investing in girls' education pays off in so many ways. When girls gain basic skills like reading and writing, they grow up to earn twice as much money as their peers without education. They have fewer and healthier children. And they are more likely to reinvest their earnings in their families and communities. That's the power of education!

Watch a short video called the Girl Effect and then take action. Ask your Member of Congress to pass the Education for All Act.

Click here to watch the movie
Click here to take action

Sign the ONE petition asking party platforms to tackle global poverty!

2008-07-31T15:57:00.003-04:00

Senators Daschle and Frist just returned from a trip to Rwanda where they learned some very encouraging things -- due to in large part an increase in bed net and anti-malarial medicine, there has been a 66% drop in deaths from malaria. But there is still much to be done.

In a couple of weeks, Senator Daschle and Frist will be meeting their parties' leaders as they write the policy agenda that will presented at the party conventions in Denver and Minneapolis. Tackling global poverty must be part of these policy priorities.

Sign the ONE petition seen below, and the Senators will deliver your signature when they meet with representatives from the Democratic Republican Parties to ask these political leaders to include extreme poverty and global disease in their 2008 platforms.

The petition: As a proud American, I urge you to make ending extreme poverty and global disease in the developing world a core part of your 2008 platform by including commitments to:

Fight AIDS, TB and malaria and improve basic health services, particularly for mothers and young children

Ensure access to clean water, basic sanitation and sufficient food supplies

Spur economic growth through equitable trade and investment policies

Modernize and increase development assistance, focusing on partnership, transparency and accountability

Achieve universal primary education

As Sen. Daschle says: "My late friend Paul Wellstone was fond of saying that, “The poor don’t have a lobbyist. That’s why I went to Washington.” The hope for a better future that Senator Frist and I saw in Rwanda shows what’s possible when two million of us “go to Washington” on behalf of the world’s poorest people. This summer, together, we have the chance to go to Denver and Minneapolis and show that ending global poverty is a priority for both political parties."

Sign the petition at ONE.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A MINDFUL MAMA?

2008-07-16T16:12:00.002-04:00

Check out this exclusive interview with Ani Difranco!

This interview kicks-off the Mindful Mama photo/art/essay contest, inviting moms across the country to speak their mind - and heart - about parenting in today’s world. Over $10,000 in baby gear and eco-friendly prizes will be awarded to top submissions.

Ani DiFranco is a pioneer of women’s music. Nominated for several Grammys, Ani owns her own record label - Righteous Babe Records-and now her own performance venue in her home State, New York. She was recently on NPR’s World Café, Jay Leno, and the cover of Mothering Magazine. Ani is a self-proclaimed feminist, participated in the march for women’s lives in Washington DC in 2004 and was the first musician to be honored with the “Woman of Courage Award” by the National Organization of Women in 2006. Ani’s daughter, Petah, is 18 months old and was born at home.

The grand prize winner of the Mindful Mama contest will be awarded an all expense paid trip to see Ani DiFranco perform in NYC. Two nights at the Westin New York at Times Square, spa package and babysitter included. The runner-up will win a Green Nursery, including stylish furniture, organic crib bedding, a natural crib mattress, non-toxic paint and window coverings.

Category winners will receive top-of-the-line gifts for mom, baby and home.

Prize sponsors of the contest include over 20 companies that are leading the way in health and sustainability for families: BabyBjorn, Baby Planet, Baby Star, Bebe au Lait, Be Present, Britax Bumkins, Ellie’s Homestore by Eco Products, Dansko, Evenflo, Green Nest, Happy Baby, Hunter Douglas, Kushies, Kuster, Lansinoh, Maggie’s Organics, Medela, Moby Wrap, Natracare, Natural Mat, New Chapter, Nordic Naturals, Pangea Organics, RW Knudsen Family, Scandanavian Child, Summer Infant, Traditional Medicinals and World of Good.

For more details on the contest visit www.mindfulmamamagazine.com.

Send submissions to editor@mindfulmamamagazine.com

President Bush urges Congress to pass AIDS funding

2008-07-02T14:54:00.005-04:00

This just in from Reuters via our friends at the Global AIDS Alliance.....

WASHINGTON, July 2 (Reuters) - President George W. Bush urged Congress on Wednesday to approve funds to fight AIDS in Africa and other countries, and said the issue was high on his agenda for a Group of Eight summit in Japan next week.

Members of the U.S. Senate sought last week to pass legislation to more than triple funds to fight AIDS, but some Republicans vowed to block it because of its cost.

The House of Representatives has approved its version of the measure which proposes $50 billion in U.S. funds over five years to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

"It's very important that Congress reauthorize this plan," Bush said to reporters ahead of the trip to the July 7-9 G8 summit.

Bush, who has been praised for leading efforts on funding for fighting AIDS in the developing world, said he would press G8 countries as well.

"One of my really important agenda items is going to ... rally our partners to make commitments and meet commitments," Bush said.

"We'll also discuss additional steps to confront some other challenges, such as the need to train health care workers in G8 partners countries in Africa," Bush said.

Bush's President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief or PEPFAR is supplying HIV drugs to 1.73 million people worldwide, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa.

The program, which also includes Vietnam and Haiti, is considered one of Bush's foreign policy successes.

More than 25 million people have died of AIDS since it was first recognized more than a quarter century ago. About 33 million people are infected with HIV, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa where it is spread primarily through heterosexual sex.

(Reporting by Tabassum Zakaria; Editing by Maggie Fox and David Wiessler)

Add your voice in asking the G8 to keep their promise to fight extreme poverty

2008-07-01T23:28:00.005-04:00

From our friends at the ONE Campaign....

The Financial Times ran an article yesterday [June 30, 2008] with a lead that could hardly be more alarming: "Leaders of the Group of Eight rich nations are set to backtrack on their landmark pledge at the Gleneagles summit in 2005 to increase development aid to Africa to $25bn a year."

It is astonishing that there is even debate within the G8 as to whether or not they should keep their promises. But the fact that there is a debate adds urgency to our call to the G8 to deliver on their commitments.

Tell the G8 to follow through on their promises -- click here to sign our petition

Petition text:

We call upon you to build on recent success in fighting extreme poverty by delivering your commitments on healthcare, agriculture and education and by helping citizens in developing countries in their efforts to improve governance and fight corruption.

This potential reversal comes at a time when we are seeing results from investments in development. For example, thanks to distribution of bed nets and increased access to anti-malarial drugs, in Rwanda both deaths and cases of malaria have dropped by two-thirds since mid-2006.

As malaria still kills around one million people a year, it is clear that we must replicate success stories like this. But it won’t happen if the G8 backtrack on their commitments.

Please tell the G8 leaders that aid works and is desperately needed.

Thank you for your voice,
Josh Peck, ONE.org

Violence Against Women and Girls Recognized as a Threat to Nations' Security

2008-06-22T08:58:00.004-04:00

On Friday, June 20, the UN Security Council approved a resolution (UNSCR 1820) that demands warring governments and factions act to halt violence against women and girls. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who chaired part of the Security Council session, said the world had now recognized that such violence was a threat to nations' security.

"This world body now acknowledges that sexual violence [against women and girls] in conflict zones is indeed a security concern," Rice said. "We affirm that sexual violence profoundly affects not only the health and safety of women but the economic and social stability of their nations."

Violence against women and girls reinforces social and economic barriers that drive poverty -- having experienced sexual violence, women and girls are further marginalized by their communities, are unable to work, complete their education and are put at risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases like HIV/AIDS.

The U.S. Congress is currently considering legislation that would take a more integrated and proactive approach in combating violence against women -- the International Violence Against Women Act. Call your Senators and Representative to urge their co-sponsorship of S. 2279 (introduced by Senators Biden and Lugar) and H.R. 5927 (introduced by Rep. Berman) and their support it when it comes to a vote.

Walking Lightly... A Portrait of Einstein

2008-06-16T12:32:00.006-04:00

Join Len Barron and MAU on Saturday, June 21 at 8pm at a performance of Walking Lightly... A Portrait of Einstein at the Boulder High School Auditorium.

Boulder, CO, May 30, 2008 – In honor of his 75th birthday, long time Boulder resident Len Barron will perform his legendary play Walking Lightly … A Portrait of Einstein at Boulder High School Auditorium on Saturday, June 21 at 8 pm. This event will be a fundraiser for Mothers Acting Up, a national organization he has supported and volunteered with since it was launched in Boulder in 2002.

“Walking Lightly” explores both the genius and the humanity of the illustrious physicist, Albert Einstein, whose work reshaped our understanding of space, time and gravity. This 80-minute, one-man performance receives high praise for its lighthearted, informative and human story of one of the great men of the twentieth century. Since 1989, Barron’s portrayal of Time magazine’s “Man of the Century” has continued to delight a wide range of audiences throughout the country. Barron believes, "The root of Einstein’s character was a childlike quality he maintained for all his years."

Mothers Acting Up was started by four mothers in Boulder and has spread to all fifty states and twenty-three countries. MAU inspires and mobilizes mothers to advocate on behalf of the world’s children.

For more information about Walking Lightly... A Portrait of Einstein, read the article that appeared in Friday's Daily Camera. Read about Len in Sunday's Colorado Daily.

Boulder High School Auditorium, Saturday, June 21, 8:00 pm
Tickets Available in Boulder at:
Jacque Michelle, 2670 Broadway
Boulder Bookstore, 1107 Pearl St
In Denver: Hermitage Antiquarian Bookshop, 290 Fillmore
Cost: $20 & $15 seniors/students
For more information, contact: Joellen Raderstorf, joellen@mothersactingup.org, 303-474-1286.

Generously sponsored by: Diane Israel, Dave Query, Polly and Mark Addison and Roche Colorado

Len Barron embodies the characteristics of an individual who lives a life of integrity and imagination. He presents a model of living for all of us to follow, one that emphasizes the importance of fairness, beauty, and playfulness… he reminds us that community, joy and connections to one another and to our place are what matters.
- Dr. Rebecca Lucas, Maryville College

The response of Len Barron’s audience was extraordinary. All ages were entranced by his style and wit and educated by his information.
- Michael Alexander, Boston Science Museum

Your “Walking Lightly … A Portrait of Einstein” theatre performance brought out the warmth, humor, and depth of character of Einstein. So much so that the audience could believe he was right there in person.
- Roberta Depp, Mamie Dowd Eisenhower Public Library

Principles In Practice.

2008-05-22T12:53:00.000-04:00

Go green by making your own household cleaners.

2008-05-22T12:25:00.002-04:00

Raiding the Pantry to Add Sparkle and Shine

Hiroko Masuike for The New York Times

NO MORE MYSTERY Danielle Hughes, center, holds a party at her brokerage firm to make cleaning products because she thinks store-bought ones triggered her asthma and eczema.

By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

Published: May 22, 2008

“MICHELLE, would you like to head up the creamy soft-scrub team?”

Skip to next paragraph

Whipping Up a Batch of Furniture Polish (May 22, 2008)

Lars Klove for The New York Times

With that call to arms, the women in Laura Gosa’s kitchen in Jersey City fell to, blending the ingredients spread out on her counters like so many blasts from Grandma’s preindustrial past: baking soda, borax, Castile soap, lemon oil, vinegar, glycerin and other staples of the all-natural armamentarium.

These women weren’t interested in buying green products....(more)

Mother's Day wrap up!

2008-05-20T11:16:00.000-04:00

Dearest Joy Warriors & Apron String Revolutionaries;

The MAU Mother's Day stories and photographs keep rolling in! Thousands of mothers acting up gathered in cities and hamlets across the nation to celebrate the day in the spirit of Julia Ward Howe: advocating for the world's children. We've gone public with press aplenty, witnesses to the powerful force that is mother leadership! And in a year when many events partnered with 1Sky on their collective Mother's Day Action, it's no surprise that the weather played a large role in the festivities. Here are a few reports:

From Teresa in Snohomish, WA: Our Mother's Day Gathering for Peace was a huge success! We had well over 125 people and it didn't rain! Our tradition is to have a girl/woman from every decade read a portion of the Mother's Day Proclamation by stepping up onto a tree stump. We even had our spry, mid-70s grandmother step proudly up on the stump!

From Kate in Northern Michigan: A great group of area women came together to celebrate and collaborate during our annual Northern Michigan MAU Mother's Day event. This year, we focused on a simple recipe for success with our theme, "Just Add Water." We honored five local women who have been passionate advocates for our lakes and rivers, and were fortunate enough to hear their inspiring stories of activism. Our bazaar brought in $8,000 -- a fantastic kick off toward our $14,000 goal to bring a PlayPump well system to a village in Tanzania.

From Paige in Nashville: Gale force winds (up to 30 miles per hour) radically altered our plans for our 3rd Annual Peace Parade. Two trees fell while we were at the park to set up. Mother Nature was to be respected and lived with in all her wonder. We opted to go out for coffee instead of setting up, then gathered for our parade and cake and a spirited reading of the proclamation. We had a surprisingly large crowd, given the weather. It was wild and great and we went from one stilt walker last year to two this year. We nearly blew away. But didn't.

From Juliana in Boulder: Mother's Day began the week before in Boulder with Girlcotts celebrating local fair trade stores, a performance of (M)other and Janna on TV! Then on Sunday, the Raging Grannies led a parade of stilt-walkers and strollers to gather for music, kids activities, cake and a thousand fair trade roses from Transfair/USA. Eight other organizations joined MAU in the celebration; talking with participants and hearing the eloquent words of MAU Co-founder Erica Shafroth and Jen Parsons. The entire crowd enjoyed stirring music from Danea Shanti and Ancestral Voices, including a troop of belly dancers! A festival atmosphere prevailed, culminating in an hour-long interview with Dr. Daddio!

From Kate in Bend, OR: I am very inspired and unbelievably satisfied: we had a splendid Reclaiming Mother's Day event. Our first annual MAU celebration of Julia Ward Howe's original vision started off with gusts of wind, snow and chilly temps. No matter though: families still came to picnic, play and participate in the movement.

David in Oklahoma City: In the midst of a rainy month we were blessed with an absolutely beautiful sunny afternoon and had a crowd of 75-100 people -- women, men and children -- who enjoyed being on the grass and even under a large shade tree, so everyone stayed comfortable. [We had] a wonderful speech by State Senator Connie Johnson, whose birthday it also happened to be. Our two elementary-school essay contest winners read what they had written on the subject, "I Want To Live In a World In Which . . . " and they each received $40 in gift certificates for their efforts.

Laura in Austin, TX: Adorned in colorful tutus, feathers, and flowers, Austin mamas marched across the pedestrian bridge, which spans our beautiful Town Lake, declaring, "There ain't no power like the power of the mama, and the power of the mama don't stop!"

Cheers to mamas, papas, mini-MAUs and all who answered Julia's call to "Arise!"

Yours for the JOYFUL revolution,
The Mavens at MAU Central

P.S. MAU Central gives a huge shout out to Paige for all the encouragement, support and guidance she dispatched along the planning route to Reclaiming Mother's Day. On June 1 MAU Central will say goodbye to Paige as Outreach Coordinator, sending love and blessings to her next adventure. On behalf of all MAUs who have been touched by her spirit, we thank Paige for her incredible leadership, passion, exuberance and her wonderful laugh! We hope to hear it often in the years to come...

Barack Obama sits down with BlogHer....

2008-05-19T06:30:00.002-04:00

In breaking news over the weekend, presidential candidate Barack Obama is the first and only of all invited candidates to sit down on camera to answer policy questions from BlogHer, a growing force of women / mama power on the internet.

Northern Michigan MAUs purchase Play Pump.

2008-05-19T06:06:00.002-04:00

From Kate & Copland, Northern Michigan MAU community organizers:

We did it!

Congratulations MAU supporters! Thanks to your dedication to the health and welfare of the world's children, we can celebrate reaching our $14,000 goal to purchase an entire PlayPump well system for a village in South Africa. Thanks to the compassion of our community, we are able to give 2,500 people safe water, and as a result, we are helping girls get the most valuable gift-- an opportunity for education (because they will no longer need to spend a large portion of their day traveling to gather water).

We are so grateful to our volunteers and everyone who attended the tea or donated to the PlayPumps initiative. Remember to check our website for updates, information and other good stuff from Mothers Acting Up: www.nmmothersactingup.com (you can also subscribe to our blog, and will get email notification when we update it)!

In spirited partnership,
Kate and Copland

Boulder MAU on tee vee!!

2008-05-16T11:07:00.000-04:00

Boulder MAU Maven Janna Vance and Lillian appear on 7News, KMGH Denver channel 7.

Portland, OR MAUs and Hip Mamas on Mother's Day.

2008-05-15T13:57:00.001-04:00

Healthy Child, Healthy World.

2008-05-15T12:23:00.002-04:00

No one organization will make the changes we need to be and see in order to have the world's children best cared for. That's why it's so very important to know the truth of We're all in this together! It will take all hands on deck from domestic to international efforts, sometimes one baby step at a time, to co-create the kind of world and social environment that we want for our children. ALL our children.

Here's but just one such domestic organization's message of hope.

The moms came marching one by one....

2008-05-14T19:00:00.000-04:00

Publish Date: 5/12/2008

Jennifer Parsons of Longmont helps her daughter Sedona, 1, wipe her eye Sunday before the start of the seventh annual Mothers Acting Up parade in downtown Boulder. Janna Vance of Longmont, right, and Parsons are members of Longmont Moms Go Green. Lewis Geyer/Times-Call

Mom Movement
125 gather in Boulder to march for a better future

By Scott Rochat
Longmont Times-Call

BOULDER — The moms came marching one by one — and then some.

About 125 people paraded through Boulder on Sunday, from moms on stilts to kids in strollers. It was Mother’s Day and that meant it was time for Mothers Acting Up to go on the march.

“We’re just having a lot of fun out here, while doing something worthwhile for everyone,” said Isabel Cousins of Boulder, wearing a bike helmet that had been turned into a crown of flowers, with bright purple and orange blooms.

Mothers Acting Up got its start seven years ago...(more)

Nashville MAU participates in 1Sky Mother's Day Action.

2008-05-14T16:29:00.003-04:00

Click here for more information about how Nashville MAUs (and other local MAU groups from Portland, ME to Chicago, IL) are part of over 455 groups in this country and beyond to participate in massive collective actions about global warming and climate change through the combined efforts of leaders in action Green Peace, True Majority, and 1Sky!!

Nashville MAU's Mother's Day events in Nashville Parent.

2008-05-14T11:17:00.000-04:00

Nashville's 3rd Annual Mother's Day Peace Parade.

2008-05-14T08:25:00.001-04:00

video courtesy of Chris Lugo. Thank you, Chris!!

Celebration and Reclamation in Boulder.

2008-05-13T19:13:00.000-04:00

Mothers acting up on Mother's Day

BOULDER ACTIVIST ORGANIZATIONS TEAM UP TO CELEBRATE, RECLAIM MOTHER'S DAY

Thumping grooves of world/reggae band The Ancestral Voices with Danae Shanti resonated down the Pearl Street Mall in front of the Boulder County Courthouse yesterday afternoon. The sound alerted passersby of the seventh annual Mothers Acting Up Mother’s Day Rally.

Music, dancing, and brightly colored costumes captivated the audience, while a series of tables featuring representatives from local activist organizations engaged those interested in learning more about their cause.

“I hoped that lots of people would come out, that there would be lots of new people and that it would be a very celebratory day – and all of those things happened,” said Joellen Raderstorf, Co-Founder of Mothers Acting Up, a local grassroots organization dedicated to providing a variety of opportunities for mothers seeking a voice in their community and world....(more)

MAUs of Greater Vermont reclaim the day.

2008-05-13T18:57:00.001-04:00

Mothers' Day in Vermont Goes Back to its Roots

Strafford, Vermont -- May 11, 2008

Sunday was Mothers' Day, and women in one Vermont town have gone back to the roots of the day.

This was the second year that a group called Mothers Acting Up have held a parade and rally on the town commons to commemorate Mothers' Day, which originated just after the Civil War. Almost 140 years later, organizers planted red flags representing more than four-thousand American troops lost in the Iraq War...(more)

Happy Mother's Day!!

2008-05-12T19:06:00.000-04:00

More Musing from Bottomland here.

Memphis Mamas Act Up.

2008-05-11T09:07:00.000-04:00

Marchers remind mothers to act up

By Wendi C. Thomas (Contact)
Sunday, May 11, 2008

Mothers are well- known for instructing their young charges to hush up. Or sit up. Or please try not to throw up.

But act up? The mothers themselves? Yes ma'am, that's exactly what a nascent group of moms are trying to get Memphis mamas to do -- to act up on behalf of children.

And at 3 p.m. today, a day usually reserved for crayoned cards and handmade ceramic soap dishes in the shape of a child's hand, dozens of mothers will parade on the sidewalks of Cooper in honor of mothers everywhere and, in particular, eight local mothers to be honored at a gathering to follow in Peabody Park.

"Homemade cards are great, but it shouldn't just be a Hallmark holiday," says Allison Glass, one of the organizers, the education coordinator of the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center and the mother of a beautiful 5-year-old son. "This is going to be a really celebratory, joy-filled event.

"There is a lot to be angry about,"(....more)

Top Ten Ways to Reclaim Mother's Day!!

2008-05-10T14:30:00.000-04:00

What is the sound of mothers Arising?

This Mother's Day, MAU Mavens across the country will be strapping on stilts, baking pies for elected leaders, hawking fair trade roses and singing in the streets! Reclaiming Mother's Day events - now in their sixth season - celebrate Julia Ward Howe's 1870 Mother's Day Proclamation. This year, MAU invites YOU to celebrate her call to Arise by gathering your family and community together through cakewalks, letters to the editor, Standing Women events, mama's open-mic nights, or . . . the sky and your imagination is the limit! When mothers* publicly express our commitment to children, our communities, media and government sit up and take notice. Let's sing it out in the streets, "We will protect our children with our personal & political strength - wherever they live on earth."

Thanks to MAU Mavens and partner organizations, MAU is excited to present the very 1st ever "Top 10 Ways to Reclaim Mother's Day":

1. Holy Symbolism! Step outside your comfort zone, and get up on stilts. Parade, prance and promenade with a loyal spotter by your side. When we lift our voices AND our bodies together on behalf of the world's children, we become a GIGANTIC force to be reckoned with.

2. Dare to be a Joy Warrior! Deliver pies to your local members of Congress as part of the Department of Peace's 4th Annual Mother's Day National Action: Peace Wants a Piece of the Pie Campaign.

3. Posies with a purpose: Ask for or send fair trade flowers through Transfair/USA. Fair trade benefits every person along the path, from seed in the ground to blossom in the vase.

4. Review Save the Children's State of the World's Mothers Report (2008 report availably May 6). Learn simple solutions to stop the deaths of nearly 10 million children a year; educate your community with a letter to the editor on this topic.

5. Part your purse strings, because giving matters. Donate to MAU, inspiring and mobilizing mothers* to advocate on behalf of the world's children. Your donation, in honor of a mother or other, allows MAU to reach out to a million mamas with templates, tools and recipes for actions that prioritize the lives of our children.

6. Press the candidates for Prez to take action for the world's children. Take a photo of your family at brunch this Mother's Day and send to the presidential candidates, letting them know you are a Mother Acting Up who wants Global Action for Children.

7. There is an elegant beauty to simplicity. Stand with Standing Women at 1 pm (your local time) on May 11 in support of a better world for our children.

8. Host a 1Sky climate change event, make a banner calling for serious climate action and then upload pictures and drawings of your children and families alongside the banner as part of a national call to action to Congress.

9. Join with CodePink mamas at the Mother's Day Picnic for Peace in Washington, DC's Dupont Circle, walk across the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, or gather at Merchant's Gate at Columbus Circle in Manhattan for the 2nd Annual Mother's Day Peace Stroll.

10. Find a MAU Mother's Day Reclamation event near you, and revel in it, mama! Gather round, hand out Julia Ward Howe's Mother's Day Proclamation, eat cake, birth strategic plans to act locally and think globally. Together, we can change the world.

Most important, report word of your reclamation activities to MAU Central!

Arise, all women who have hearts!

More Than Merely Mother's Day.

2008-05-10T10:20:00.001-04:00

More than merely Mother's Day

Mothers Acting Up hosts its annual downtown parade Sunday

By Jennifer Bronson, Camera Staff Writer
Saturday, May 10, 2008

Photo by Cliff Grassmick

Erika Shafroth, left, and Joellen Raderstorf, share a laughwhile on stilts before the Mothers Acting Up parade. The Fifth Annual Mother's Acting Up Parade was held Sunday (Mother's Day) in downtown Boulder. The parade was held to "mobilize the gigantic strength of mothers on behalf of the world's children."

Some mothers in Boulder want Mother's Day to be more than an excuse for flowers and breakfast in bed.

The members of Mothers Acting Up say they are "re-claiming" Mother's Day, taking it back to its historic roots as a day of female activism.

Instead of celebrating the day with a leisurely brunch, the organization's members hope that mothers in Boulder will come together at the seventh annual Reclaim Mother's Day parade to demonstrate the strength mothers have when united for a cause.

The parade will begin at the Boulder Public Library at 1 p.m. Sunday and end at the Pearl Street Mall. The annual Mother's Day events organized by Mothers Acting Up were inspired by a declaration made by Julia Ward Howe after the Civil War, when she called for a day when mothers would unite across boundaries to protect their global family.

In her Mother's Day proclamation, Howe said: "Arise, arise, all women who have hearts!"(...more)

MAU Guest Commentary in the Denver Post.

2008-05-09T08:51:00.001-04:00

guest commentary

Reclaiming Mother's Day

By Juliana Forbes

Article Last Updated: 05/08/2008 06:15:33 PM MDT

Americans are unabashedly celebrity obsessed, following the ups and downs of every star with greedy devotion. One focus of our devotion is Angelina Jolie, whose adventures the proverbial "woman on the street" tracks more closely than the weather. And "especially in the case of Angelina" what's wrong with that? In recent weeks, as she shared publicly about her current pregnancy for the first time, she also spoke up for the rights of children in Iraq. Julia Ward Howe would be delighted.

Julia Ward Howe was a suffragette and poet who, after witnessing the horrors of the Civil War, said one question haunted her. "Why do not the mothers of mankind interfere in these matters, to prevent the waste of that human life of which they alone bear and know the cost?" In 1870, she wrote a Mother's Day Proclamation, calling women to unite on a day she named Mother's Day, to protect our common global family.

Julia wrote, Arise, arise, all women who have hearts! but somewhere along the way, breakfast in bed eclipsed this fiery call to activism. But all is not lost! After decades of burnt toast and loving messages, mothers have been sufficiently fortified and are beginning to fulfill Julia's vision. Mother's Day is again becoming a holiday when we not only honor our mothers, but their role in shaping our world.

Our global family is at risk, yet often mothers "due to laws or societal norms" remain outside political circles. In a world in which every other child lives in poverty; almost half of all war causalities are children; and global warming threatens all future generations, the world needs mothers to interfere to get involved in creating policies that protect and nurture children.

Fortunately, mothers are stepping into new leadership roles in every country in the world, from Angelina Jolie saying, "Every child has a right to education, and conflict is not a reason to ignore that," to Massouda Jalal, the first woman to run for President in Afghanistan, who works to educate all children, especially attending to the empowerment of girls. Writing in the 2008 Mothers Acting Up calendar, Massouda says, "My candidacy led the Afghan community to realize women can be leaders and led Afghan women to develop a political consciousness."

Julia Ward Howe's Mother's Day Proclamation urges women to, solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means whereby the great human family can live in peace . Mothers are questioning why half our federal discretionary budget is spent on "security" without any significant percentage allocated for the prevention of conflict. Mothers and Generals agree that a security portfolio should include funding for education and development, including our promised share of the UN Millennium Development Goals (eight international targets to end extreme poverty). As U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates recently said, "We must focus our energies beyond the guns and steel of the military."

Now, if this is sounding really earnest and somber, not to worry: there are stilts involved. Around the country this spring, Mother's Day will be celebrated by reclaiming Julia Ward Howe's original vision in parades, radio shows and picnics in the park. There will be free cake, mothers on stilts (symbolizing rising up!), beautiful hats and hoop skirts, decorated tricycles and calls to Congressional Members. This Mother's Day, whether you are up on stilts or reading a fan magazine about Angelina Jolie, remember the spirit of Julia Ward Howe and heed her call to "Arise" on behalf of the world's children.

Juliana Forbes is a mother of two and co-founder of Boulder-based Mothers Acting Up, an NGO with members in all 50 states and 23 countries, working to inspire and mobilize mothers (and others) to advocate on behalf of the world's children.

Guest commentary submissions of up to 650 words may be sent to openforum@denverpost.com. This online-only guest commentary has not been edited.

MAU Executive Director on public radio's A Public Affair at noon central Friday 5/9.

2008-05-08T18:11:00.005-04:00

Tomorrow at noon (Central Daylight Time) MAU co-founder and Executive Director Joellen Raderstorf will be on a very special Mother's Day edition of WORT public radio's A Public Affair with hosts Diane Farsetta and Judith Siers-Poisson of Madison, Wisconsin.

From the WORT website:

A Public Affair

A Public Affair aims to engage listeners in a conversation on issues of international, national, & local importance with some novelty shows thrown in. The guests range from local activists and scholars to notable national & international figures. The hosts alternate throughout the week as do the focuses and topics. It is a call-in show that airs Monday through Friday from 12:05 to 1:00 pm.

Make sure to tune in online!!

Kids Aren't Cute.

2008-05-08T16:22:00.001-04:00

Stand with Standing Women on Sunday at 1 PM your local time.

2008-05-08T16:20:00.002-04:00

Empowered mothers change the world

2008-05-08T09:06:00.003-04:00

MAU co-founder and program director Beth Osnes was in Toronto last week to perform (M)other for the Mother Outlaws' ARM (Association for Research on Mothering) conference. The below article, from the Times & Transcript details the conference and talks about MAU's role in feminism and in mothering.

Empowered mothers change the world

Published Thursday May 8th, 2008

Motherhood should not impoverish you. Mothers are people too. Children are the responsibility of both parents. Every child a wanted child. Motherwork is work.

Much of the women's movement has been about those issues, about motherwork.

Mothers remain the main movers behind the movement. A fight for mothers to be valued, for a world where parenting was shared between the sexes and supported by the community.

Giving women more options -- at the core of the movement -- has meant changing attitudes and sometimes laws so that women could have children as well as a job, or not have children, or not be penalized for choosing to take care of children.(.... more here)

Annual State of Mothers Report issued by Save the Children.

2008-05-07T18:55:00.004-04:00

The full on media version of the report can be accessed by clicking below. For ease of digestion, highlighted pieces of the report, including the report card of best and worst places to be a mother are below the multimedia version-- note that the United States of America does NOT fall into either the best OR worst places to be a mother. For the full report, visit Save The Children.

2008 Mothers' Index Rankings
Top 10 Best places to be a mother		Bottom 10 Worst places to be a mother
RANK	Country	RANK	Country
1	Sweden	137	Ethiopia
2	Norway	138	Mali
3	Iceland	139	Djibouti
4	New Zealand	140	Eritrea
5	Denmark	141	Guinea-Bissau
6	Australia	142	Angola
7	Finland	143	Sierra Leone
8	Ireland	144	Yemen
9	Germany	145	Chad
10	France	146	Niger

WESTPORT, Conn. (May 6, 2008) – More than 200 million children under age 5 do not get basic health care when they need it, with the poorest children missing out and most at risk of dying, according to the ninth annual State of the World’s Mothers report issued today by Save the Children, a U.S.-based global independent humanitarian organization.
.....

Among the report’s key findings:

More than 200 million children under age 5 lack basic health care. Among the 55 countries evaluated in the Basic Health Care Report Card, the Philippines, Peru, South Africa and Indonesia/Turkmenistan (tied) are doing the best job in getting basic health care to all children under age 5. Countries doing the worst are Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Yemen, Chad, Somalia and Ethiopia.

The poorest children are least likely to get lifesaving health care and are more likely to die. In Mali and Nigeria, for example, the poorest children are 2.5 times more likely to go without health care. In India and Indonesia, the poorest children are three or more times more likely to die before reaching their fifth birthday than best-off children.
Closing health care coverage gaps could save more than 6 million children each year. If all children — rich and poor alike — were to receive a full package of essential health care, more than 6 million lives would be saved each year. Closing the survival gaps in India and Nigeria alone would prevent nearly 20 percent of global child deaths.

In more developed countries, children most lacking in basic health care and at risk of dying tend to be from low-income, ethnic minority groups. In the United States, America-Indian and Alaska-Native infants are nearly 50 percent more likely to die than white infants, and African American infants are 2.4 times more likely to die than white infants.

In addition to its special focus on the child survival gap, the report includes Save the Children’s ninth annual Mothers’ Index, which identifies the best and worst countries to be a mother and child by looking at child and maternal well-being in 146 countries. Sweden takes top place, while Niger takes last place in the ranking. The United States places 27th.

Recommendations:

To reach more children under age 5 with basic health care measures and save lives, Save the Children recommends that countries:

Design health care programs to better target the poorest and most marginalized mothers and children. To save lives, we need to close the coverage gap for all children, but especially the gap between the rich and poor.
Invest in community health workers to reach the poorest of the poor with essential life-saving care. Many children die from causes that do not require doctors or hospitals, and could be saved by training, equipping and deploying more community health workers who can deliver this basic health care.
Deliver a basic package of maternal, newborn and child health care that takes into account the realities for poor people in developing countries. The tools to save mothers’ and children’s lives work best when they are delivered together as a package and along a “continuum of care” that links communities, local health facilities and hospitals. Most health systems devote significant resources to hospital-based care, but most sick children in developing countries never make it to a hospital.
The report also calls on governments to close the child survival gap by stepping up commitments to deliver basic health care, especially to the poorest children, in developing countries. The U.S. share of this commitment, known as the Global Child Survival Act (H.R. 2266 and S1418), would help save the lives of millions of newborns, babies and young children globally. The legislation, backed by over 100 members of Congress, both Democrats and Republicans, is awaiting action before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. In the Senate, the legislation has been voted out of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and is poised to be considered before the full Senate.
“Each day that we wait to act on this legislation, nearly 27,000 lives are lost. We can do better,” said MacCormack. “We urge Congress to get behind this legislation and give mothers and their children the chance to celebrate Mother’s Day not only this year, but in years to come.”

For more information on the State of the World’s Mothers 2008 report, contact Save the Children at 203-221-4233. The report also will be posted at www.savethechildren.org.

Save the Children is the leading independent organization that creates lasting change for children in need in the United States and around the world. Save the Children USA is a member of the International Save the Children Alliance, a global network of 28 independent Save the Children organizations working to ensure the well-being and protection of children in more than 120 countries.

# # #

World AIDs Orphans Day: today.

2008-05-07T08:37:00.002-04:00

It's wonderful to see so many organizations, agencies and groups embracing the plight of the world's children, and today, particularly those orphaned as a result of AIDs, the epidemic of our time. The following is from the daily 5 minutes of caring action put out by our friends at Cool People Care.

5 minutes of caring from

World AIDS Orphans Day by Sam Davidson | Wednesday, May 7, 2008

25 million. That's the number of children around the world that have lost one or both parents to AIDS. In Sub-Saharan Africa alone, 10 million have been orphaned by the disease. And the numbers are expected to increase. But they don't have to. You can do your part by advocating that 10% of government AIDS spending be directed towards orphans and vulnerable children. You can support the families and communities that comprise the safety net for these children, as well as the organizations that help children living with HIV. Whatever you do, the time to speak up is now.

MAU Central's Anjali guest blogs at 1Sky....

2008-05-06T19:00:00.001-04:00

Only 4 days left until Mother's Day weekend! Today's guest blog is from Anjali Kochar of Mothers Acting Up, a mother of two with some inspiring thoughts on our responsibility to our children this Mother's Day. Click here to start or join a 1Sky's Mother's Day gathering near you if you haven't yet!

I was in the backyard with the girls this weekend when my one and a half year old saw a butterfly flutter by. Her eyes grew big and round, her little mouth formed the word "Oh" and she darted after it. The wonder in her eyes, the excitement in her voice were priceless. The littlest things that Mother Earth has put before us can create such joy in the smallest among us!
As I sat watching her trying to catch the butterfly, I thought about my older daughter, who's 6 and a half and how we've been teaching her about preserving and respecting the environment(... more here)

MAU Seeks to Raise Awareness of Whole New Generation of Activists.

2008-05-06T18:49:00.000-04:00

From the Colorado Daily....

Mothers Acting Up

BOULDER-BASED ORGANIZATION SEEKS TO RAISE AWARENESS AND A WHOLE NEW GENERATION OF ACTIVISTS

By DEBRA GOLDYN, Your Town Correspondent
Monday, May 5, 2008

IF YOU GO WHAT: MAU Mother's Day Parade

WHEN: Sunday, May 11, 1 p.m.

WHERE: Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd., Boulder, 80302; to the Pearl Street Mall

HOW MUCH: Free

ON THE WEB: www.bouldermau.blogspot.com

The environment is ailing, there's a war raging in Iraq, and there are children living in poverty around the globe. What's a concerned mother to do? Why, strap on a pair of stilts, of course.

At least that's the thinking for Mothers Acting Up (MAU), a Boulder-based global network of "mothers and others, on stilts or off, who exercise protective care over someone smaller." The group, which lists "Be Exuberant" as one of its guiding principles, seeks to mobilize that most primal of instincts--a mother's love--and turn it into a political force to be reckoned with. The stilts are just a unique way to bring attention to MAU's message of positive activism.

Stilts are "really the perfect metaphor for what we do,"(...more)

Northern Michigan MAUs to reclaim Mother's Day at Annual Tea.

2008-05-01T09:46:00.004-04:00

Making A Difference: Mother's Day Tea will raise money for international water group

By Kate Bassett - Harbor Light Newspaper

Clean water. Those two words flow so easily off our tongues in northern Michigan. From the beautiful vistas of the bays and Great Lakes to the ever-flowing artesian wells found in downtown Harbor Springs, fresh, clean water is, simply put, a given in this area. Local resident Copland Rudolph knows that while she only has to turn on her tap to provide that life essential to her children, other mothers across the globe lack that luxury.

Rudolph, co-chair of the non-profit group, Northern-Michigan Mothers Acting Up, said this issue— the severe lack of clean water for much of the world’s women and children— is the central theme of this year’s Mothers’ Day Tea and Bazaar, being held on Saturday, May 3 at the First Presbyterian Church in Harbor Springs.

“Our goal is to publicly and passionately advocate for the world’s women and children, and one of the ways we do that is by focusing on the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals (set to cut extreme poverty and hunger in half by the year 2015). Clean water is fundamental to five out of eight of the Millennium Development Goals, crucial to everything from fighting HIV/AIDS to providing primary educations to girls.”

As Mothers Acting Up’s goal is to give people an opportunity to come together and make a difference(...more here)

World AIDS Orphans Day May 7.

2008-04-28T10:53:00.002-04:00

Subject: Please join us to speak up for orphans and vulnerable children!

Dear Friends:

World AIDS Orphans Day – May 7^th - is a campaign to draw attention to the more than 15 million children orphaned by AIDS worldwide.

Visit the World AIDS Orphans Day website, www.worldaidsorphans.org, where you can learn more about the issue, raise awareness, lobby political leaders, plan and host events, and share stories and photos.

To mark World AIDS Orphans Day, here are a few quick and easy things you can do:

Join us: Sign up online to join the campaign. You can also join us on Facebook, Myspace, and YouTube.
Spread the word: Tell friends and fellow activists about the day, submit a letter to the editor to your local or campus newspaper, and email government leaders to advocate for 10% for children.
Host or attend an event: Host a rally, party, or tabling event to mark World AIDS Orphans Day. Add your event to our global calendar.
Share your story and put your face on the map: Take a few seconds to post a story, share news, or visit our photo map to add your voice.

Please visit www.worldaidsorphans.org today and get involved. For questions or to learn more email info@worldaidsorphans.org or call (212) 697-3566.

Help us to spread the word. Your voice is their future.

(M)other Tour in Toronto!!

2008-04-25T20:47:00.001-04:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Anjali Kochar, anjali@mothersactingup.org, cell: 917.969.2108

***Media Alert: (M)other comes to Toronto April 26***

SHOW INSPIRES MOMS TO FIND POLITICAL VOICE

THEATRE FOR EMPOWERMENT HELPS MOTHERS SEE THE INTERCONNECTEDNESS

OF ALL OUR LIVES

WHEN: April 26, Saturday at 7:00 PM. This event is free.

WHERE: Palmerston Library Theatre, 560 Palmerston Ave., Near Bathurst & Bloor, Toronto

WHO: Mothers Acting Up (MAU) inspires and mobilizes mothers to advocate on behalf of the world’s children. www.mothersactingup.org

This performance is sponsored by Mother Outlaws, Association for Research on Mothering, Mothers Acting Up and Philanthropiece.

WHAT: (M)other: a one-woman performance by MAU co-founder Beth Osnes, (M)other explores what it might take for the mothers of one country to authentically care about the mothers and children of another country. The fiction that the “other” is not part of the “mother” is washed away. What remains is a powerful affirmation of our interconnectedness in both our challenges and our solutions as a global community.

(M)other, a program of Mothers Acting Up (MAU) and Philanthropiece, combines art with social empowerment and is an inspiring opening act to reclaim the activist roots of Mother’s Day. This performance is part of The Mother Tour which will travel to cities across North America and parts of Asia and Africa from May 2008-2010.

# # #

Background:
Mothers Acting Up (MAU) inspires and mobilizes mothers* to advocate on behalf of the world’s children. MAU inspires, educates and engages mothers (a gigantic force to be reckoned with) to prioritize children in our corporate and public policies through monthly Web actions, annual Mother’s Day events, field trips to elected officials, Girlcotts, and daily inspiration and tools found in a weekly calendar. MAU brings a new breed of activism to the political landscape; one that is positive, accessible and supports mothers in making informed personal choices, inspiring collective action and influencing decision-makers. MAU, founded in 2002, is based in Boulder, CO. MAU believes that when mothers lead, generations of global citizens will follow.

Beth Osnes holds a Ph.D. in Theatre and teaches at the University of Colorado. She is currently touring her one-woman show, (M)other, around North America using theatre as a tool for empowering mothers to be effective advocates for the world’s children.

Let us:
whisper this to each other, sing it out in the streets,
yell it from our rooftops, declare it in our houses of government:
we will protect our children with our personal and political strength,
wherever they live on earth!

* mothers and others, on stilts or off, who exercise protective care over someone smaller.

Two-and-a-half-day's worth of military spending could save the lives of 6 million mothers, newborn and children!!

2008-04-25T18:12:00.003-04:00

The following UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund) press release comes to MAU via our partners at Save the Children.

G8 ACTION URGED TO AVERT SIX MILLION MOTHER AND CHILD DEATHS EVERY YEAR

New York / Cape Town, 18 April 2008bThe Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health has called on G8 leaders to fulfil their previous commitments to global health and commit to new, long-term financing for essential interventions that could avert the deaths of over 6 million mothers, newborns and children every year.

The statement calls for an additional $10.2 billion annually, the estimated cost to ensure universal coverage of basic services needed to achieve Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 4 and 5 on reducing child death and improving maternal health by 2015, respectively.

R20;It would cost the world less than two-and-a-half-dayR17;s worth of military spending to save the lives of 6 million mothers, newborn and children every year. We urge the G8 to step up funding and lead by example by saving and protecting lives. We will not achieve the Millennium Development Goals unless reproductive health, and the rights women and children, are made a priority, bsaid Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, Executive Director, UNFPA.

R20;The world is expecting G8 leaders to show the way in confronting this health crisis faced by millions of mothers and children who do not have access to essential care" said Jeffrey Mecaskey, a representative of the Save the Children Alliance. "The Countdown report gives us all the information we need. We can achieve MDGs 4 and 5, it's simply a question of making the right political choices.

The global call for funding was issued at a conference held in Cape Town, South Africa to discuss the implications of the 2008 report, Countdown to 2015: Tracking Progress in Maternal, Newborn & Child Survival, in advance of the G8 Summit to be hosted by the Government of Japan in July.

"Nigeria and other African nations are making genuine political commitments to reduce maternal and child mortality but we face substantial challenges and competing priorities" said the Honourable Saudatu Sani, a Parliamentarian from the Federal Republic of Nigeria participating in the Countdown conference. "I therefore call on G8 leaders to match our commitment by increasing donor support for strengthening health systems in Africa. This mutual engagement is critical to reach the MDGs."

The Partnership brings together more than 240 member organizations from around the world working on child survival and maternal health, and the statement addresses not just G8 nations, but all donor governments and business leaders. While donor funding for maternal, newborn and child health has increased significantly in the past few years, from $2.1 billion in 2003 to almost $3.5 billion in 2006, it remains far below the total funding needs of the 68 countries identified as accounting for 97 per cent of maternal and child deaths worldwide.

According to the most recent data, donor aid for health averaged $7 per child and $12 per live birth in the 68 Countdown countries. This is far less than the $45 per person, which is the minimum needed for governments to ensure access to basic health services. Long-term donor assistance is therefore critical to closing the gap. The statement also calls for a "reallocation of national resources to benefit women and children, especially in countries with significant economic prospects where resources can be mobilized".

"Japan has shown critical leadership in the past to improve health and human security in the worldbs poorer countriesb noted Ann Starrs, President of Family Care International. bThe Countdown to 2015 findings announced in Cape Town provide a clear blueprint for action. What we need now are political leadership and investment in services which save lives. G8 leaders must show the way at their 2008 Hokkaido Summit, but this is a long term undertaking requiring high level commitment from both North and South."

The 2000 Okinawa G8 Summit launched the Okinawa Infectious Diseases Initiative that led to the establishment of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, which has since committed over US$10 billion in 136 countries to help fight these diseases.

Contact information:

Tunga Namjilsuren, The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health, mobile: +41 79 477 26 78 , namjilsurent@who.int
Katja Iversen, UNFPA, mobile: +1 917 403 3063, office: +1 212 297 5016, iversen@unfpa.org
George Ngwa, UNFPA, mobile: +27 72 627 1032, ngwa@unfpa.org

Links:

Global Call for G8 Leaders: http://www.unfpa.org/mothers/documents/global_call.doc
Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health: http://www.who.int/pmnch/en/
No Woman Should Die Giving Life: http://www.unfpa.org/safemotherhood/
Stepping up Efforts to Save Mothers' Lives: http://www.unfpa.org/mothers/index.htm
A Bumpy Ride Can Mean the Difference between Life and Death in Guatemala: http://www.unfpa.org/news/news.cfm?ID=1053

Note for editors:

Countdown to 2015 for Maternal, Newborn & Child Survival is collaboration among individuals and institutions to track coverage for health interventions needed to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 4 & 5. For more information, visit http://www.countdown2015mnch.org

Financial data on donor assistance is drawn from an article in The Lancet special issue on Countdown to 2015, Volume 371, April 12-18 2008: Countdown to 2015: assessment of donor assistance to maternal, newborn and child health between 2003 and 2006 G Greco and others.

The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health brings together more than 240 member organizations from around the world working towards Millennium Development Goals 4 & 5 on child survival and maternal health. For more information, visit: http: www.who.int/pmnch

--

UNFPA - because everyone counts.

Ms. Katja Iversen

Media Specialist

United Nations Population Fund

O: 212 297 5016

F: 212 5576416

http://www.unfpa.org

UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is an international development agency that promotes the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. UNFPA supports countries in using population data for policies and programmes to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect.

Three trillion dollar shopping spree....

2008-04-21T13:48:00.000-04:00

This morning!: MAU co-founder on public radio call in show!!

2008-04-18T10:07:00.000-04:00

Mothers Acting Up co-founder and communications director Juliana Forbes is on Central Ohio Public Radio THIS MORNING,

Friday April 18, 11AM-noon EST/ 9-10 AM MT, with host Fred Andrle on Open Line.

Tune in online as above or below!!

You can even call in to make a comment or ask a question!

Call Open Line at 614-292-8513 or write to Open Line at openline@wosu.org

The topic to be discussed: We’ll hear how mothers can advocate for the future of children worldwide, with Mothers Acting Up Communications Director Juliana Forbes.

Open Line is a live, public affairs talk show, with listener phone calls, on WOSU public radio.

Open Line is streamed live and archived for two weeks at www.wosu.org/radio/radio-open-line

MAU at National Mothers Conference.

2008-04-17T09:33:00.000-04:00

MAU's Beth Osnes above, doing her stand-up routine.

For Immediate Release
Contact: Viviana Russell, 516 939-6667 X107, vivianar@motherscenter.org

Jericho, NY - April 17, 2008: Meeting of the Minds (and Mothers!)

Over 150 mothers-- and a few fathers-- traveled to Smithtown, NY April 4-6th for an historic conference sponsored by Jericho, NY based National Association of Mothers’ Centers (NAMC). The diverse group of national mothers support and advocacy organizations included: Family & Home Network, Mommies Network, Moms Rising, The Motherhood, Mothers & More, Mothers Acting Up, Mothers Movement Online, Mothers Ought to Have Equal Rights (MOTHERS), National Advocates for Pregnant Women, NOW’s Mothers & Caregivers Economic Rights Committee, The Motherhood Project and the Welfare Warriors.

Attendees hailed from 24 Mothers’ Centers, 16 states and Canada. They networked, attended informative workshops and explored opportunities to work together for the rights and financial stability of mothers, parents and children in this country. Keynote speaker Ellen Bravo, author of “Taking on the Big Boys: Or Why Feminism is Good for Families, Business, and the Nation” fired up the group with words of inspiration. “I realized I’m not the failure. Society has failed us [parents]. I now know where to put my efforts for activism.”, commented one first time attendee at the end of the weekend.

The conference was hailed as “… inspiring and empowering.” The NAMC plans to continue the conversation with partnering organizations who said “Bringing together the representatives from various organizations was meaningful, the results of which will be seen in years to come.”

The NAMC is the leading organization that recognizes the challenges, realities and importance of mothering and other caregiving work, offering educational and support programs in local centers, in libraries and in the workplace, offering an annual Work/Life Conference as well as doing advocacy in the fields of postpartum depression, early care and education, work/life balance and the economic impact of being a care giver. For more information contact us at 877.939.MOMS X101, info@motherscenter.org, or visit our website at www.MothersCenter.org.

# # # # #

GROUP PHOTO

Back Row: (left to right)

Cathy Myers, Family & Home Network; Valerie Young, NAMC's MOTHERS Initiative; Joanne Brundage, Mothers & More; Judith Stadtman Tucker, Mothers Movement Online; Linda Lisi Juergens, NAMC; Pat Gowens, Welfare Warriors; Rhonda Kave, NAMC

Front Row: (left to right)

Emily McKhann, Moms Rising; Tiloma Jayasinghe, National Advocates for Pregnant Women; Debra Levy, Mothers & More; Kristin Maschka, Mothers & More; Beth Osnes, Mothers Acting Up

Photo credit: Moseley/bbaphotography.com

Photo Donated by Bill Moseley/bbaphotography.com

MAU co-founder Juliana Forbes at Ohio State this month.

2008-04-09T17:55:00.000-04:00

From The Lantern.

Women's Place fights for gender equality

Michelle Fehribach
Issue date: 4/8/08 Section: Campus

Only about 30 percent of Ohio State's faculty in 2006 were women, while 66 percent of graduate and 49 percent of undergraduate students were women.

"We listed the number of female students compared to female faculty. In general, that ratio is quite a bit lower than the ratio of male students to male faculty," said Deb Ballam, director of The Women's Place.

TWP is a small organization working to change those numbers and create an environment of equality in which women can thrive and fill leadership roles.

"The main mission we look at is this institutional change mission. To change the climate so that all women - faculty, staff and students - can be successful at the university," Ballam said.

TWP was established in 1999 and was created to be different from other resources on campus.

"When the office was set up we did not want to duplicate existing efforts," Ballam said.

There are only two other universities in the country Ballam knows of with offices similar to TWP - the University of Michigan and Oregon State University. TWP works with other offices to change policies such as the consensual sexual relations policy, which clarified the dynamics of romantic relationships between faculty and students.

"It was a controversial topic that went through almost a year of debate before it was changed, but it educated a lot of people and resulted in better policy," Ballam said.

One of the guiding principles of TWP is to address stereotypes that affect men and women.

"Anything we do to change the institutional culture to support women will also make a better culture for men. I do truly believe that," Ballam said.

Every October, TWP and the President's Council on Women publish a "Status Report on Women," profiling the diversity of the faculty, staff and student body while highlighting one particular issue each year.

Last year's report focused on stereotypes faced by members of the OSU community such as race, sexual orientation and gender.

"I would not have guessed you were from Appalachia because you speak so well," is one of the prejudiced statements found in the report.

TWP also works with other offices to bring speakers to OSU to talk about what changes need to be made, Ballam said.

Juliana Forbes, the communications director of Mothers Acting Up, will be at OSU April 22 and Wilma Mankiller, the first Deputy Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, is coming May 15.

"Individual services and programming are not offered, but TWP never turns students away," Ballam said.

TWP directs students to the appropriate office and often collaborates with resources such as Women's Student Services, the Multicultural Center and Counseling and Consultation Services, Ballam said.

Michelle Fehribach can be reached at fehribach.4@osu.edu.

##

MAU Live on the move....

2008-04-05T17:47:00.000-04:00

MAU co-founder Beth Osne's (M)other performance gets press in Evergreen.

Facebook with us....

2008-03-27T21:21:00.002-04:00

Right over here.....

The Baby Borrowers.

2008-03-25T11:18:00.001-04:00

Bizarrely, this reminds me of Mothers Acting Up co-founder Beth Osnes’ show, (M)other.

Many of you may receive Mothering Magazine’s weekly email and activism alerts and therefore may have read the following.

But in the event you missed it, please think about letting NBC know this is a bad idea.

Tell NBC to Stop The Baby Borrowers

Presented as a "unique social experiment" the reality TV show "The Baby Borrowers" places real infants in the care of unrelated teen couples to "test" their ability to withstand the demands of parenthood and their relationship's strength to survive the pressure.

The show originated as a BBC production. This fall, NBC is rolling out its own version for a US audience. It films couples between the ages of 16 and 19 attempting to care for infants, toddlers, children, and eventually teenagers. Local authorities, concerned about the physical and emotional risk to the children, called on the BBC to cancel the show. Their requests were ignored, and social workers hoping to oversee the filming were turned away. Despite the protests in the UK, NBC seems equally determined to roll out their production of the show, describing it as an opportunity for the couples to "...peer into the future and see what they (and their partners) might be like if they remain together and decide to build a family."

The Natural Child Project is voicing its concerns to NBC and calling on producers to entertain people without jeopardizing anyone's mental health and happiness. Read the Open Letter to NBC by Jan Hunt, Director of The Natural Child Project. Send your letter of concern to:

Mr. Jeffrey Zucker
President
NBC Entertainment
3000 W. Alameda Avenue
Burbank, CA 91523

MAU swag box available to Mother's Day event organizers / communities!!

2008-03-20T09:45:00.005-04:00

In previous years, we’ve sent all free, but at this time, we are compelled to charge a nominal purchase fee for MAU swag.

Swag boxes (movie, 15 calendars, 100 bumper stickers) $40!!

We WILL send a DVD of the MAU movie free to each organizer, even if you choose not to purchase the swag box. Sending postage to MAU Central would be lovely.

These items are a great addition and support for any Mother’s Day event. Here in Nashville, we’ve passed out bumperstickers on our parade route, and had these lovely items available to all who add themselves to MAU’s mailing list. Additionally, we offered Nashville MAU tee shirts for a donation amount, which enabled us to make the money for our Metro permit and additional expenses. I’ll post details to the RMD list serv only.

IF YOU WANT A SWAG BOX, please email beheard@mothersactingup.org with PLEASE SEND SWAG BOX in the subject line.

If you are not yet on the mauRMD@yahoogroups.com mailing list and are organizing an event, please join. This will be *the* place for support and discussion of MD events.

Thank you so much!!

Memphis MAUs reclaiming Mother's Day.

2008-03-12T07:28:00.002-04:00

Memphis mamas are mobilizing!!

Join their yahoogroup to build community and plan for Mother's Day, and check out their blog. Get involved!

Denver MAU launches Mindful Mama.

2008-03-12T07:19:00.005-04:00

Denver MAU Sarah Kraft has launched Mindful Mama, a guide for pregnant and new mothers. If you're a mom-to-be, a care provider for same or just intrigued, check her out. You can even download a sample copy of Mindful Mama for perusing at your leisure....

Cool!

Mothers Acting Up

Farewell

Taking Center Stage

Inspired Gift Giving

Smoking hot climate change video

MAU Daily Action: Fill in the blank ...

It begins with you ...

Why mothers act up and often ...

Snow Days, Pancakes and Energy Justice

Swine Flu, Climate Change and a Middle of the Night Tantrum

Take a Stand Against Global Poverty

Will you call your Senator today?

Do you CARE enough...

Take Action with CARE to Prevent Child Marriage

June 19th National Day of Action on Climate Change

Call for Foreign Assistance Reform

Reclaiming Mother's Day

Mother's Day, another Hallmark holiday?

Mother Wisdom in West Africa

A Special Invitation for MAUs

A Powerful Noise

Hot off the presses....

A journey of exploration, of the world and self

Weekly Action

Weekly Action

Inauguration Day!

A story of inspiration and a request to vote

Happy New Year!

Tell the new administration to make fighting global poverty a priority

Add your name by Nov. 24

Welcome the 111th Congress with a card....

Say NO to Violence Against Women

Raise Your Voice Against Poverty

Knit One, Save One

Back to School

Sign the ONE petition asking party platforms to tackle global poverty!

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A MINDFUL MAMA?

President Bush urges Congress to pass AIDS funding

Add your voice in asking the G8 to keep their promise to fight extreme poverty

Violence Against Women and Girls Recognized as a Threat to Nations' Security

Walking Lightly... A Portrait of Einstein

Principles In Practice.

Go green by making your own household cleaners.

Raiding the Pantry to Add Sparkle and Shine

Related

Whipping Up a Batch of Furniture Polish (May 22, 2008)

Mother's Day wrap up!

Barack Obama sits down with BlogHer....

Northern Michigan MAUs purchase Play Pump.

Boulder MAU on tee vee!!

Portland, OR MAUs and Hip Mamas on Mother's Day.

Healthy Child, Healthy World.

The moms came marching one by one....

Nashville MAU participates in 1Sky Mother's Day Action.

Nashville MAU's Mother's Day events in Nashville Parent.

Nashville's 3rd Annual Mother's Day Peace Parade.

Celebration and Reclamation in Boulder.

Mothers acting up on Mother's Day

BOULDER ACTIVIST ORGANIZATIONS TEAM UP TO CELEBRATE, RECLAIM MOTHER'S DAY

MAUs of Greater Vermont reclaim the day.

Happy Mother's Day!!

Memphis Mamas Act Up.

Marchers remind mothers to act up

Top Ten Ways to Reclaim Mother's Day!!

More Than Merely Mother's Day.

More than merely Mother's Day

Mothers Acting Up hosts its annual downtown parade Sunday

MAU Guest Commentary in the Denver Post.

Reclaiming Mother's Day

MAU Executive Director on public radio's A Public Affair at noon central Friday 5/9.

A Public Affair

Kids Aren't Cute.

Stand with Standing Women on Sunday at 1 PM your local time.

Empowered mothers change the world

Annual State of Mothers Report issued by Save the Children.

World AIDs Orphans Day: today.

It's wonderful to see so many organizations, agencies and groups embracing the plight of the world's children, and today, particularly those orphaned as a result of AIDs, the epidemic of our time. The following is from the daily 5 minutes of caring action put out by our friends at Cool People Care.

5 minutes of caring from

World AIDS Orphans Day by Sam Davidson | Wednesday, May 7, 2008

MAU Central's Anjali guest blogs at 1Sky....