STAND UP AND SPEAK OUT... world iniciative against poverty

Did you know that:

Every year over 10 million children starve to death, one every THREE SECONDS?

Over one billion people live with just ONE dollar a day?

The three richest people of the world hold more wealth than 600 million people living in the poorest countries?

Around 18 million people die each year due to poverty-related causes?

Part of the Couchsurfing proyect mission is to participate in creating a better world and to raise collective consciousness. Most of us have opened not just our homes, but our hearts to people from all over the planet that share a common idea: that our world can become a better place, one new friend at a time.

In the year 2000, 189 world leaders committed to reach 8 Millennium Development Goals by the year 2015. This goals deal with issues that range from poverty to gender equality, to sustainable development, to the fight against HIV/AIDS, malaria, etc.

Today, halfway trough the deadline, many countries are still far from providing the help their promised and from keeping their commitments.

Last year 23.5 MILLION PEOPLE participated worldwide in the STAND UP campaign, searching to raise awareness on world poverty, and setting a world Guinness record for the largest number of people standing up for a cause in 24hrs.

This year, our goal is even higher. On october 16-17 we have to STAND UP AND SPEAK OUT, letting our world leaders know that we will no longer keep quiet, and that they must keep their promises, NO EXCUSES.

Couchsurfers all over the world can join this campaign by attending local Stand Up events, or by organizing their own. The process is very simple. You simply have to check the official web site to see if there's and event taking place near you or register your event at:

www.standagainstpoverty.org

making sure it takes place between 9:00pm (GMT) on the 16th, and 9:00pm (GMT) on october 17th.

When the moment of the event comes up, you must ask people to sit or kneel down, and then to STAND UP.

After the event you must register your Stand Up numbers on the webpage for them to count for the Guinness World Record, if you go to an already planned event, the organizers will register your participation for you.

It doesn't matter if you Stand Up on your own, or if you gather as many people as you want. You can promote this campaing at your school, work, congregation, or simply gather all your friends and family toghether.

The world needs action. WE ARE THE FIRST GENERATION THAT CAN END WORLD POVERTY. Others have fought agianst segregation and apartheid. Our time has come to act, to make a difference, to STAND UP.

Join millions of people around the world on october 16 and 17th, and help the CS project change the world one couch (and one pair of feet) at a time!

For more information visit :
www.standupagainstpoverty.org

For Latin America and the Caribean you can find information in spanish at:
www.cinu.org.mx/levantate2007

Bárbara Lazcano