Georgetown students are hoping to bring attention to what they say is a forgotten issue. The movers and shakers at Georgetown’s chapter of UNICEF and the Student Campaign for Child Survival will be joined by students from across the country Monday to lobby Congress for children’s rights. They will prepare for the effort at this weekend’s 2nd Annual SCCS National Student Conference, held at Georgetown.
The conference will bring attention to the issue of child health. “It’s a problem of apathy,” said Jacqueline Smith (CAS ‘06), conference organizer and member of the Georgetown Chapter of SCCS.
“We need people to brainstorm and network. When we bring everyone together its amazing what we can get accomplished,” she said.
Those involved in the conference, a diverse group of students from 20 different schools, say the cause of child survival gets very little financial help from Congress. They hope that Congress will maintain, if not increase, foreign aid allocated for medical services and basic education for children.
SCCS is the only organization in the country dedicated solely to the cause of child survival. Their argument centers on the fact that the main causes of child mortality, such as malaria, pneumonia and diarrhea, are easily and inexpensively prevented through the use of immunizations and rehydration therapy.
In addition to lobbying workshops, the students will attend several lectures on child health and poverty issues.
Sunday’s agenda includes speaker Zacharia Akol, a student at Michigan State and former child refugee from Sudan, who will recount his long journey to America and the dire conditions he faced in his home country.
Saturday will showcase Dr. Paul Zeitz, Executive Director of the Global AIDS Alliance. The public health specialist has worked in Africa and resource-poor countries to stop the global AIDS epidemic.
Other speakers will include UNICEF Chief of Health Pascal Villeneuve, Global Justice Executive Director Adam Taylor, and Earth Institute Director and Columbia University Professor Jeffery Sachs.
The conference, sponsored by the SCCS, Global Justice and UNICEF, begins Friday evening and culminates when the students head to Capitol Hill on Monday.
“It’s an honor to have the conference here. The Georgetown chapters of UNICEF and the Student Campaign for Child Survival formed a very successful partnership this year. We’d really like to see the presence of the Georgetown community at the conference,” Smith said.
Georgetown students who are members of UNICEF hope that the conference will foster discussion on campus. “We are trying to promote awareness for child health issues and encourage campus participation,” explained Amanda Gant (SFS ‘07).
Workshops and panels throughout the weekend will address how to develop campus advocacy campaigns, gain publicity for programs, and prepare the students for their rendezvous with the congressmen and their staffers on Monday.
“We are asking Congress to increase the amount to $900 million,” said Sean Barry, Policy Coordinator for Global Justice. “This increase will cost relatively little and is more than worth it when you consider the reality that for many, medical implementations that cost mere pennies mean the difference between life and death.”
The Student Campaign for Child Survival started two years ago as a project of Global Justice and is distinguished as a pioneer in grassroots organizations for child health issues.
President Bush’s proposed budget cuts the funding for USAID’s child survival programs by $5 million. The funds for these programs have remained unchanged for years and have not been adjusted for inflation.
The $900 million request by Global Justice was also suggested as the United States’ responsibility by the World Health Organization in conjunction with the Millennium Development Goals developed by the U.N. in 2000.
