Save the Children Partners with American Girl to Promote Childhood Literacy in the United States

"American Girl's new 2012 Girl of the Year®, McKenna™, will help children across the United States become better readers through the McKenna Online Initiative promoting Save the Children's U.S. Literacy Programs. Introduced this January, McKenna is a skilled gymnast whose confidence tumbles when she starts having difficulty with reading comprehension — an issue affecting many children as they enter fourth grade, particularly the 16 million children living in poverty. Through McKenna, girls will discover the power of believing in themselves and their potential to achieve great things."

Click here to learn more about this new program.

This Valentine's Day, Help Break the Cycle of Poverty

"When you get Valentine’s Day cards from Save the Children, your donation supports our education, health and resiliency work in the U.S. for children living in poverty."

Learn more here.

Justin Bieber Backs 'Social Good' Facebook Game, WeTopia, Benefiting Children

"Justin Bieber, global pop/R&B phenomenon, will be spreading the joy of reading to U.S. and Haitian school children. Bieber announced earlier this week that he will provide entertainment marketing support to Sojo Studios new slate of 'social good' games, beginning with WeTopia. WeTopia benefits charitable projects in the United States and abroad, including Save the Children's summer literacy program in Appalachian Kentucky and textbooks for children in Haiti."

Read more about Bieber's participation here.

Save the Children Partners with Discovery Kids to Help Children Affected by Floods in Central America

"Save the Children is pleased to announce a new partnership with Discovery Kids, the leading network in children's programming from the portfolio of Discovery Networks Latin America/U.S. Hispanic, to support families struggling through severe floods in Central America. Through online marketing tools, included at the parent section of its website, www.tudiscoverykids.com, the channel is raising awareness of children affected by flooding in El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua."

Read more here.

New Facebook Game, WeTopia, Spreads 'Joy' of Giving to Appalachian, Haitian Children

"Facebook fans and online game lovers can spread the 'joy' of giving and develop a better world for children — both on Facebook and in the real world — through Sojo Studios' new Facebook game, WeTopia, launched today. This novel way to Play for Good™ will help underprivileged kids, including Appalachian children benefitting from Save the Children's literacy programs."

Read more about this new game and how it can change lives  here.

Save the Children Study in Lancet Offers New Hope on Battling Pneumonia, the #1 Cause of Child Death

"Children treated at home for severe pneumonia by Pakistan’s 'Lady Health Workers' were more likely to recover than children referred to health facilities, Save the Children found in a USAID-funded, WHO-coordinated study published in The Lancet medical journal today."

Read more about these hope-filled findings here.

The IKEA ‘Mr. Broccoli’ Soft Toy Heads Home for the Holidays and Visits School Children Along the Way

"Don’t head for the hills of Whoville just yet, the Grinch won’t be the only guy in green this holiday season.


Come November 1, Mr. Broccoli, an IKEA soft toy personality and a lead character in the IKEA Soft Toy campaign, will venture away from the broccoli patch and show the world his willingness to travel by boat, plane, rickshaw or railroad to make it home in time for the holidays. With a camera slung around his stalk, Mr. Broccoli plans to capture the heartbeat behind Save the Children’s IKEA-funded education programs in Bangladesh, China and Vietnam, while checking off some favorite U.S. and European hotspots from his travel list."

Catch up with Mr. Broccoli here.

Tererai Trent Inspires Schoolchildren at Matau Primary School on Visit Home

"'Education is the pathway to progress and the gateway out of poverty,' said Oprah’s all-time favorite guest, Tererai Trent, to schoolchildren, teachers and the community at the Matau Primary School in Zimbabwe this past week. Tererai returned on October 11 to the school, which she attended as a little girl, to deliver words of hope and encouragement on her visit home.

The Matau Primary School is part of a Save the Children project funded through The Oprah Winfrey Foundation to honor Tererai, whose story of tenacity, courage and spirit inspired Oprah and millions of fans around the world."

For more about this project, click here.

Save the Children Partners With Discovery Latin America Partners to Raise Awareness of Child Hunger Crisis in East Africa

"Save the Children and Discovery Networks Latin America/US Hispanic, (DLA/USH), a division of the leading global nonfiction media company Discovery Communications, announced a partnership to support Save the Children’s 'I’m Gonna Be Your Friend' campaign through online marketing tools on Discovery’s major regional websites."

Learn more about this partnership here.

Malawian Children's Artwork Picturing Love at Westport Arts Center

"Thirteen-year-old Justin is a boy in love. When asked to illustrate love on canvas, he painted himself with a few strokes of indigo blue and emerald green giving a flower to a girl he cares about. Justin's watercolor painting is one in a series of artworks on display at the 'Malawi with Love' exhibit at The Westport Arts Center studio gallery and art studio from Sept. 16 through Nov. 4, 2011."

Read more here.

Entertainment Industry Launches Bob Marley Campaign to Reach Nearly 600 Million Facebook and Twitter Fans to Support Save the Children's East Africa Appeal

"Today sees the launch of a ground-breaking social media campaign, ‘I’m Gonna Be Your Friend’ supported by many of the world’s most famous names in entertainment and their fans. A global audience close to 600 million* Facebook and Twitter fans will be able to view a short film of the crisis in East Africa created by award-winning director Kevin MacDonald from footage of East Africa. The film is set to the 1973 Bob Marley & The Wailers song ‘High Tide or Low Tide’ and will reach over a billion people."

Read more about the campaign here.

Save the Children Urges Immediate Support for East Africa’s Hunger Crisis

"Save the Children has made an urgent call to donors to provide life-saving help to thousands of children in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia whose lives are at risk due to severe food shortages. The UN has called this East Africa’s worst drought in 60 years."

 Click here to learn how you can help.

Save the Children Distributes Shoes, Diapers; Deploys Child-Friendly Spaces to Children Who’ve Lost Everything in Tornadoes

"When children have to run for their lives, they don’t have time to put on their shoes, grab a favorite toy, or say goodbye to the place they called home. So as part of the Southeast tornado response, Save the Children has distributed truckloads of shoes, diapers, portable cribs, toys and other child-specific essentials to more than 1,100 children in hardest-hit Tuscaloosa, Ala., and Smithville, Miss."

Click here to read more.

Save the Children Receives Devex International Development Innovator Award for its Literacy Boost Program

"Save the Children has been chosen as one of the Devex Top 40 Development Innovators for its Literacy Boost program, an effort to improve language and reading skills among young school-age children in developing countries."

Click here for more...

Save the Children Ships Medicine to Ivory Coast; Supplies Run Dangerously Low

"As medicine runs low in Ivory Coast, Save the Children has chartered a plane to deliver six tons of life-saving medical supplies and equipment to the city of Man in the west of the country."

Click here for more.

Save the Children receives $400,000 from employees of DreamWorks Animation to aid Japan and New Zealand

"Save the Children today announced that it has received $400,000 from employees of DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. to provide relief to children and families affected by the disaster in Japan and earthquake in New Zealand."

Read more here.

Save the Children Teams Up with Music for Relief on ‘Download to Donate for Tsunami Relief’ Campaign

"Artists such as Linkin Park, Enrique Iglesias and Counting Crows have contributed new songs to the nonprofit group Music for Relief to support Save the Children’s emergency response efforts in Japan. The exclusive and growing catalog of songs can be downloaded at www.downloadtodonate.org for a donation of $10 or more. All contributions will go to Save the Children for the duration of the campaign, which runs through May 11."

Click here for more on how to get this exclusive tunes.

Save the Children Receives $500,000 from Target for Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Efforts

"Save the Children announced today it has received a $500,000 donation from Target in support of the organization’s efforts to help meet the needs of children and families affected by the devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan last week."

Click here for more on Save the Children's efforts in Japan.

Save the Children Mobilizes Response to Massive Japan Earthquake, Tsunamis

"A massive earthquake has hit Japan triggering a deadly tsunami and raising warnings of more tsunamis across the Pacific basin. Japanese media report that the death toll is rising and hundreds are missing in the aftermath of the disaster. It is the worst earthquake to hit Japan in at least a century and has sparked dozens of fires, including in more than 30 buildings in Tokyo and an oil refinery near the city."

Click here for more on the earthquake and relief efforts.

What is Advocacy Day? Well, I was asking that same question about a year ago

"To get more information about attending Advocacy Day on March 1, 2011, or to register for the event, go to Save the Children’s website.

Read about Kristina Horner's experiences at last year's event here."