The INFO Project Blog

Here at INFO, we love to report about how others are using Web 2.0 to advance the cause of improved global health, especially in the area of reproductive health, family planning and maternal and child health.

Recently I received a wonderful e-mail from the folks at Engenderhealth (see past post on the ACQUIRE End of Project Meeting). EngenderHealth has been using YouTube in order to raise awareness for infant and maternal mortality and the Millennium Development Goals.

The Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that the 189 United Nations member states (plus a broad range of international organizations) agreed in 2001 to achieve by the year 2015. They include cutting levels of extreme poverty in half, substantially reducing child mortality rates, fighting epidemic diseases, and promoting global socioeconomic development.

YouTube has organized a global campaign called “In My Name” to raise public awareness of the Millennium Development Goals, in the belief that governments would be willing to do more if they saw how strongly so many of their citizens believe in this kind of effort. The overall campaign features Black Eyed Peas front man Will.I.Am, and his call-out video asks people from around the world to create and upload their own video stating their name, their home country, and a specific request that their own government do more to help achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

EngenderHealth, is one of eight organizations invited by YouTube to prepare a short video highlighting one of the eight Millennium Development Goals and communicating why that goal is an important milestone to creating a more equitable world. EngenderHealth’s video, called Every Minute Counts, conveys the urgency of the fifth Millennium Development Goal—preventing maternal mortality and improving maternal health.

This video is rich and informative and hopefully thanks to You Tube EngenderHealth’s work will reach a large audience.