Probe Launches Search for the Philippines’ MDG Warriors
MANILA, Philippines, May 21, 2010— As build-up to the September 17-19 Special Edition Stand Up, Take Action Campaign to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Probe Media Foundation, Inc. partnered with the United Nations Millennium Campaign to launch the “Search for the Philippines’ MDG Warriors.”
“As a UN Millennium Campaign partner, Probe is taking a more positive approach to helping promote the MDGs. We are doing this by searching for inspiring people and organizations, and by encouraging students to tell their stories to the public,” said veteran broadcast journalist Cheche Lazaro, President of Probe.
Probe has been committed to helping create a deeper understanding and appreciation of social issues by producing stories that move the hearts and capture the minds of viewers. By involving students, Probe also hopes to discover a fresh generation of talented broadcast journalists and ‘documentarists.’
This two-part competition involves a nationwide search for individuals or organizations whose selfless work and commitment to public service have produced a great positive impact on any of the MDGs, and a contest for college students to produce a documentary about the winning MDG warriors.
“We are aiming to discover a new breed of heroes,” Lazaro said. “We believe that while the government has the primary responsibility of working to achieve the MDGs, we, as a country, can get there faster and easier if we all take a stand and get ourselves actively involved.”
According to Minar Pimple, UN Millennium Campaign Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, “By honoring these individuals and organizations, we encourage others to make their own contribution for the accelerated achievement of the MDGs. At the same time, this is one way of putting the pressure on government leaders to deliver on their MDG commitment, especially as we commemorate the 10th year of the Millennium Declaration.”
By signing the Millennium Declaration of 2000, 189 world leaders committed to achieving eight Millennium Development Goals anchored on eradicating extreme poverty by 2015. These are:
1) end extreme poverty and hunger;
2) achieve universal education;
3) promote gender equality;
4) reduce child mortality;
5) improve maternal health;
6) combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases;
7) ensure environmental sustainability and
8 ) develop a global partnership for development.
The Stand Up Campaign, a yearly global mobilization aimed at reminding government leaders of their MDG commitment, is special this year because it is happening right before the MDG Summit to be held in New York in September. At the Summit, world leaders will be asked to present their MDG Breakthrough Plans for the accelerated achievement of the MDGs by 2015.
Nomination for the Search for the Philippines’ MDG Warriors opens on May 25, 2010, and will run until June 30, 2010, at 11:00 P.M. Anyone who is of legal age by June 30, 2010, can nominate any individual or organization that has impacted the society by working to achieve the MDGs, provided the nominee has not been previously awarded by any national or international award-giving body. The nomination form can be downloaded from, www.probetv.com (click here). Self-nominations will not be accepted.
Seven finalists representing each of the seven (MDG 1-7) focus MDGs of the Campaign in the Philippines, will be chosen to receive cash prizes and special awards. From these finalists, a special committee will determine the grand winner, who will be awarded with a study tour abroad.
To find out more about the Search for the Philippines’ MDG Warriors, download the competition guidelines (click here).
May 21st, 2010 at 12:36 am
can I nominate more than one group?
May 21st, 2010 at 12:40 am
nice project
May 25th, 2010 at 3:45 am
Thank you for your question, prophet_d. Yes, you may nominate more than one person or more than one group.
May 28th, 2010 at 11:54 pm
Wonderful to promote MDGs and to give recognition to those who do. Know many Filipinos quietly doing their share in helping out.
May 29th, 2010 at 1:17 am
I do not have access to personal data of Ms. Gina Lopez of ABS CBN Foundation, but definitely she and ABS CBN Foundation should be among awardees!!!!! She has been tireless in her efforts to alleviate and mitigate social and environmental problems confronting our country. I have been witness to and am aware of the many programs and projects undertaken by ABS CBN Foundation.
Is it alright to nominate her without her personal data? Or without complete personal data????
May 30th, 2010 at 7:37 pm
Hello, Ms. Tet Lorenz!
Thank you for supporting the MDGs. I have sent you an email regarding your question on nominating ms. Gina Lopez.
May 31st, 2010 at 10:07 pm
I did not receive the e-mail re: Ms.Gina Lopez, please resend. I also have another nominee. He is from the religious order. The work, projects and programs he has undertaken, under the order and in cooperation with NGOs and civic organizations is documented. Aside from the nomination form, is it okay to provide attachments detailing out the programs and projects for your perusal. Please call me if that is alright. Thank you.
June 1st, 2010 at 4:05 am
Hello again, Ms. Tet! I have sent you an email again. Thanks so much!
June 4th, 2010 at 5:45 pm
Your email address as provided in the nomination form has been rejecting our mail.
June 7th, 2010 at 4:57 pm
Your MDG e-mail has rejected my mail twice already!
June 7th, 2010 at 5:00 pm
Please call me. I did not get your email, I tried submitting via e-mail, but my mail was rejected twice.
June 7th, 2010 at 5:02 pm
mdgwarrior@probetv.com – is rejecting mail.
June 7th, 2010 at 7:27 pm
Hello Ms. Tet. You sent it to the wrong email.The email address is mdgwarriors@probetv.com.
June 7th, 2010 at 10:30 pm
Thanks!
June 18th, 2010 at 6:16 am
Hi, Philippines:
This is an awesome project, specially because either the country has not worked much on the Eight Millennium Development Goals for the past ten years, and/or has even misinterpreted its findings — like “the incidence of HIV AIDS among youth increased fivefold from 41 in 2007 to 218 in 2009″. That is shocking and true when analyzed on Excel. Fivefold is quantitatively factual but contextually false. What is 218 cases in relation to all HIV AIDS cases in the world?
Please read http://knol.google.com/k/josephine-acosta-pasricha/teaching-gender-and-sex-through-systems/3h6jhxpqiqmxn/4
Perhaps, we should work on the Millennium Development Goals through Systems Thinking.
Mabuhay, Philippines!
July 1st, 2010 at 7:08 pm
I have to state, you chose your words well. The ideas you wrote on your encounters are well placed. This is an incredible blog!
July 4th, 2010 at 5:55 am
Hi, Rex:
Thank you for reading my paper through this blog. I hope that it is enlightening. Perhaps, we can all become MDG warriors, monitoring the foreign financial aid spent by government and the efficient delivery of services and goods on the ground by leaders. Then we can end poverty by 2015.Mabuhay, Philippines