Have you ever woken up and not knowing where your next check was coming from, not none of you would have enough water and oil to feature entire family. There is common here. We are people struggling, fighting for vitality. That night our windows travel burst through her street to split open a crack battlelines into a community. Turn our neighbors and to warriors who are then too blinded to see that day, we are fighting on the same side. We are survivors who are tired of surviving. We want to live, refuse to be our humanity any longer. Good health, nutrition is not primitive clear that health is not a luxury. Water is not a treasury. Sunshine in you and you. Solidarity starts an open palm, shoulders above steps towards action to care, to offer yourself as a resource can help support a foundation that was already there. And im an important part of the culture is to share. So now, let us share the work, the accountability, and how healthy can you really be adhering to extending the hungry, the thirsty, the resisting to care is to offer partnership, teamwork can invest in the lives that youre already living. Dont wait to support the ones that will come after us. The drought isnt over until every cup at the table is full, overflowing. Now is the time to be intentional about her abundant. I pray that we are rich in compassion, rich enjoy, rich and support. Peace has always been within our reach. We cannot afford to waste any more time reaching to the sky, to each other. The time is now more than ever. [applause] i used to have dreams of supporting others, steady income and join in having a better life. Survival is only think about every day. A country that loves people with thousands of women and children every day for Different Reasons. Imagine yourself. You wake up in the morning and not you want to do is grab your kids can run for your life and survived. Thousands of people in young men find themselves in this situation. All they think about is what will be next. Will they find that they and be able to get clean water to drink and what they have access to facilities would make a thick beard the majority of the people are going to the tragedy daily in their daily routine. I know many women and men who wish they wont wake up the next day so they dont have to go through the same thing of suffering every day. At a certain period of my life i know what it means to be homeless, to be displaced, and youre not supposed to say this. I know what it means with family members that she wont ever again. I know what it means to be scared to death if you let your child go to school in you may never, ever seeing him again. I seem child disappear every day. Their dreams about their future has significantly changed. Millions of people are going through condition with the worst, another crisis upholding now as an outbreak of cholera. Who could imagine her in the 21st century people in yemen dont have access to very basic right that you all enjoy here. That we should have the right to as well. My people are dying. Now more than ever in yemen coming attention before its too late. [laughter] is welcomed president and ceo of care, michelle nunn. Join in thanking for sharing her story. 18 million men, women, boys and girls. Thats how many people are in need of humanitarian assistance in yemen right now. Today as you all are here, you are Standing Shoulder to shoulder with them in your everyman voice for their name and seeking to their hunger in half to continue education. The requirements of access to lifesaving medication when they need it and their desire to have some form of normalcy, to have a safe haven of home. Today he signaled that someone remembers and you insist that our nation with the most vulnerable around the world. Ordinary citizens have always shaped our nation and efforts to let that our values and a promise to one another and for the world. From the abolitionist and civil rights heroes to the ordinary citizens who firsters onto the refugees of world war ii with the creation of the worst care package. Today you join in this course citizens about history who in moments of importance have responded with compassion and generosity and pave the way for people everywhere to live for free and more dignified lives. In fact, there has never been a time in the sevenyear history where this has been more important. There are more People Living in the world than ever before. More people facing famine and more people facing natural disasters and Climate Change than ever before. So truly, our theme now more than ever is true. Your voice and leadership are required. We welcome you and thank you for participating in this years annual care conference. Give yourself a round of applause for being here. [applause] we want to thank our sponsor. We wouldnt be here without them. Douthat and ups and dove chocolate and cap and walmart. Please join me in yankee man. Over the next few days still had the chance to be inspired by humanitarians like change agents like solomon who is here with us. An amazing growth like beyond good. We have reminded that behind all of the big numbers for top about sometime can be overwhelming. He high nietzsche does numbers are individuals with unique and really powerful stories. Amazing potential. We know and the reason we are here is the world will be definitely help them to realize their full potential. We have someone here today who embodies that truth and the truth is we all have the capacity to be enormous agents of change and that person is delaying child. An immigrant who came to this country from asia at the age of eight speaking no english. Her family came to the country to build a better life for themselves with six daughters. I was talking to her backstage. Her experience coming to this country in this way has motivated her to invite her entire career trying sure everyone has the opportunity with the better life for themselves and for their family. Shes done not really powerfully and really profoundly if you look at her resume. She served as the president chief operating officer of united way of america. She went on to be the director of the peace corps and she then went on to beat the u. S. Secretary of labor. She was the first asianamerican woman to be appointed to a cabinet position in all of americanhistory. Today the 18 secretary of the treasury of the United States. We want to think her for her extraordinary leadership. Along the way with that in a lot of other things, she has received 36 honorary degrees. Please join me and warmly welcoming and appreciating secretary elaine chao. [applause] thank you. Thank you so much. Well, hello, everyone. Its really kind of intimate and i love that. Theyre going to receive two days of workshops and training and the third day youre going to be going throughout our government to share your experiences about care and issues that you care about to members of our congress, senate and house of representatives. You are participating in said rain so fundamental that is so much a hallmark of who we are at the people on what democracy means. I was told for some of you its the first time. You might be a little scared, but dont worry. Youre going to do fine because most of all, you have a story to tell and that is an important story that you are sharing with important policymakers. So i am so pleased to be part of this forum on empowering and to have the opportunity to make a difference. I think my goal of helping women started very early when i was a young child when i heard about my mothers story. My mother, her name is ruth chew chao. She was among the few women of her generation in the wartorn china at the early 1900. She came from a distinguished family that believed in the education of daughters, women. She received an education. Because of the education, my mother was so much better prepared to be alert to face the turmoil and challenges of her later life. She returned home to the lord on august i cant come the 2007, but her spirit and good for continued to inspire me and my sisters everyday. As you heard, im an immigrant to this country. I came to america when i was eight years old. I didnt speak any english. We couldnt get used to so many things in this country. We have difficulty with american food, hamburgers, hot dog. I mean, we didnt put me between brad. We do need read, so we didnt understand so much about the culture, about what mainstream america was like. Like so many other newcomers, my parents were so brave. They were incredibly hardworking and they were determined to build a better life for their daughters. The fact that there are six children were all girls was never an issue. They taught each one of their daughters to work, to fulfill our potential and contribute to society. They believe with hard work, a positive attitude and perseverance we could achieve anything we wanted to do. That was their recipes. [applause] one of the most important attribute my parents also taught their daughters was to always help others. And to appreciate the value of Financial Independence for women. So whenever i had the opportunity, ive tried to launch programs and empower women and help them achieve the very important goal that broadly speaking we now that education is the key to success in all countries, rich and poor. The literacy means that there is a huge impediment to reducing poverty rate especially for women. Nearly a billion adults in this world today are estimated to be a letter read. Two thirds of them are women. I was once director of the peace corps and i had so many efforts, and again small to help impoverished people around the world. One that stayed with me as a young peace corps volunteer experience helping rural women fill their own Small Businesses. And do you know what these women told her that they need the mouse . These women told her that the skill they needed most was to learn how to read and write and count numbers. Basic math skills are something we take for granted in developed country. It is worth remembering that women in developing countries need these basic skills to access opportunity. But it takes more than just math skills to successfully run a Small Business or small farm. Basic entrepreneurial skills are critical as well. So is director of the peace corps, i launched a first entrepreneurial training courses in the newly emerging democracies of the former soviet union. An important element of this training was encouraging women onto pernod ours. And then i secretary of labor, i had an opportunity to help make a difference for women in the middle east. Rebuilding iraqs economy and Civil Society where priorities and is part of the plan for iraqs reconstruction the department of labor under my tenure provides 5 million right away to rebuild the iraqis and they bring social affairs. This ministry is a very important task of creating job Training Programs and Employment Services so desperately needed after the war. I wanted to ensure that women were a priority for the nail ministry of labor. You know what i did . I was kind of proud of myself. The first three iraqis we chose to participate in a Leadership Training Program at the u. S. Department of labor were women. [applause] and that was so important because it sent such a signal to the rest of the iraqi ministry. Because one of the major challenges throughout the world is the Economic Empowerment of women. I was also very honored to support the efforts of her sleeve laura bush to provide access to education to afghan women and girls. Her daughter, barbara bush is carrying on her mothers work on behalf of the worlds most vulnerable population. I am delighted that barbara is on the program this afternoon and i understand Chelsea Clinton is on the program as well. Working with first lady laura bush, the Labor Department provided funding to purchase materials for school uniforms, girls in afghanistan, something so simple so that impoverished afghan families can send their daughters to school. As you know so well, girls could not attend school under the taliban and today, hundreds of thousands of young afghan girls and women have access to education. In addition, i also cochaired with secretary of state Condoleezza Rice and other powerful woman the Interdepartmental Task force on child trafficking. Our goal was to strengthen sanctions against child trafficking, which is another scorch the devastates so many of the worlds most Vulnerable Women and girls. Finally, one more story. We achieved gender equity in our top Leadership Team during my tenure as the u. S. Secretary of labor. [applause] so when i had the opportunity to travel to iraq and the middle east, i presented a group of iraqi women with an autographed photograph of the eight top women executive leaders at the u. S. Department of labor. The iraqi woman couldnt believe it. They could not leave the women held the top leadership positions in a Big Government ministry of the department of labor. It was a small but significant and inspirational gesture. As a touchstone for these women because i told them this is their goal. They had a goal to achieve these leadership positions so that the organization they enter into will have gender equity as well. It was a reminder that even in the most advanced economies is always more that can be done. So im here to thank you so much for everything you are doing globally to ensure that each mother, daughter, sister and wife can grow and reach her full potential so that our world would be a better place. Thank you for all that you do. [applause] please welcome mariella shaker, activist and violin asked. Thank you so much for allowing me the opportunity to share my story in music with you all today. It is truly a great honor. Four years ago when i was still in aleppo i studied Business Administration and i graduated from the university of aleppo. I was also employed as a fulltime institute of music. I remember during the war walking through the music is to to to teach, not knowing if i would make it back home as mortars were falling everywhere randomly. My students and i would hide under the table when we heard the missile is in neighborhoods. Every day we risked our lives may be mayor. However, i. Was determined to send my application to universities all over the world. We did not have ethnicity or power. I was in internet cafes. After six months, i was beyond had read to receive offering me full solution scholarship in music performance. Although i feel safe here now, i cant stand here of my family and friends who are still struggling there without the basic necessities of life. I wonder if they will be alive tomorrow and i wonder if i will get the chance to be reunited with him one day. I was hoping for my mom to be here with me as im graduating in two weeks. [applause] but she did not calm my fiance has been admitted to John Hopkins University with a post graduate degree with a scholarship. Being a refugee here taught me to be strong, independent and above all, to never give out. Since i arrived here, ive been working so hard to achieve success in the music world and to advocate for my syrian colleagues and friends. I was humbled to be honored at the white house as champion of change for world refugees in 2015. I feel this is a huge responsibility and i would like to be an ambassador in the u. S. And conversely to represent all the great values i learned here. I feel powerless. However, i believe so much in the power of music to remove their ears between people and nations. Today im delighted to perform meditation. Through this music, i would like to get to tell the story of my suffering country and people. They music one day get a peace platform for everyone. Thank you. [applause] [applause] please welcome katie meyer, founder of more than made and 2014 person of the year. She is my promise, so i am back in at the middle of the night again. Flashes of your face keep you again. You have seen my soul. A city street worker . Its a sex worker . You tell me what is the politically correct way to say that my 11yearold friend abigail is a war or offend. Yes, this 2dollar hooker. She opens her legs so she can you live. I dont have the words to describe her. She is nowhere to be found in when i call her name, nobody knows her. Her coming in to matteroffactly she spanish. Its not good for their reputation. My country tells me not polite to talk about her. A corrupt government that people know nothing about. Here she is just another abstract it would never cross someones mind to purchase a cup of coffee that costs more than she would make selling herself one day. Just another facebook cause because its trendy or because its easy. She is the bottom of the earth, to a world that has been brutal to her, but as beat her up and ways that people could never pronounce. This small child is gone and i promised her that i would come and find her. And i cant. So on this bathroom floor, its the middle of the night again and i need to scream her name. Abigail, where are you . Im trying to find you. I havent forgotten you. People here are offended by you havent disturbed by you. I am, too. You keep me up at night and i hope that you always do. You are my vow, my promise and im coming to get you. So i moved to liberia thomas 12 years ago. I was 23, my first job out of college. It was almost like a peaceful situation. They said youre going to liberia. I got there and i was in charge of running Adult Literacy programs. I came to the city to be honest to do probably because i wanted to get a visa. Pizza. Id come to the city and i would make kid like agnes and abigail and we became friends. I would hang out with the children in lieu of trial like donkeys in the sand. I would ask these kids, if you could have anything in the entire world, what would it be . Over and over again, they said the same thing. We just really want to go to school. They kept coming. I was using my speech to tell stories. People from my hometown, church, sending me money and the new York City Tax attorneys like you really need to make this an organization. I remember feeling like i am not qualified. I dont have a masters degree. Im not smart enough, not a celebrity. I cant do it. My friend said get over yourselves, not about you. I say that over and over again and they say its not about you. So thats where they may more than me ended up coming round. I figured if i cant do all these things i can get other people to help me. Theres no time. We have to help abigail and girls like her get to school to the president of liberia is the first email president of africa, she heard about what i was doing and she invited me to her house and said as long as youre serving the children of liberia for free, you get this building and she gave me the building it i said how my going to fix this thing out. And i ended up on the Primetime Television show and we ended up getting the most amount of links to this campaign called i am abigail. It went viral or facebook and insta graham and we won a Million Dollar grant. We ended up winning this Million Dollar grant. We ended up writing the first for all girls school and a mother flew in from new jersey. It was like the best day of my entire life. It wasnt just school. We were cutting the ribbon and we addressed every challenge that young women face to getting an education. Two meals a day and afterschool programs for the Community Involved and it was a time there were so excited about their future and many bullet hit. And we didnt have a choice. We couldnt on the sideline and wait and see what would happen. I never heard of a bowl love. But before we knew it, a bowl of the site designer the epicenter of the whole epidemic of where my students lived in this area called west point. We couldnt just sit there and wait. They might not have a school, might not have been a gross out there returned our school into an Ebola Outbreak center. We were able to work with the community to help quarantine families. Our school nurse became we hired all these nurses. I will never be the same. I dont have time to get into all the stories, but afterwards we realized that the root cause of exploitation is similar to the root cause of this hole that ebola has which is a broken infrastructure and how you build infrastructure in the health heh care system can adjust the system. Hardeeville systems have begun a basic education for all . I went to the minister of education. Literally one of the strongest statistics, 100 of people failed the Entrance Exam to the university. I went to the minister of education and that how can i help you, partner with you to help rebuild the Education System . Hes like a new pope which you got in the pool, your academy so that ended up turning into something called Partnership Schools for liberia. This year we went from one school. This year we have seven. Next year our goal is to have 18 to 30. We are about to get allocated. We have a plan of getting 500 schools in the next five years in partnership with the ministry of education. [applause] we have to. Together we can. So every girl, where boys and girls in our Public School and the motto is safety, health and quality education for every child. Its exciting. The way we are doing it is there something called ever grow collective and we believe that young women the mobility had their basic right. You have to rebuild the Education System. If youre interested in being involved, theres no better time like today. And the country the United States outperform in the ebola epidemic. Theres no time like today to get an partnership in fight with liberia to help them. We refuse to take no for an answer on behalf of abigail and for those children. Theres no time like today. If youre interested in learning more, you can look up more they may face the page. Thank you all. Please welcome back michelle nunn, president and ceo of care. Lets give a big round of applause for tv. Amazing. We cannot get over ourselves. And also, lets join again and thinking extraordinary performers that we party heard. Lucia, mario elie, they gave us the wisdom, experience and dave. Thank you. [applause] so, for 70 years as ive said, care has been a part of responding to the needs of the most Vulnerable People on the planet and with the support and leadership of american citizens weve rescued people from the devastation of earthquakes. Weve helped people rebuild after typhoons and tsunamis. We protected people facing war and violence and that also been a critical actor in the longterm work of overcoming poverty. Care has partnered with usaid for over six decades to implement programs in over 80 countries and together we saved lives, empowered women in growth and fosters stability and some of the worlds most difficult and challenging places. Weve seen amazing results. I think its good to be reminded that there is a lot of progress. There was recently a poll put out and asked people how many of you think poverty has been decreased in the last 25 years . Only 70 70 of the people said they thought poverty had increased. You all know that in the last 25 years its been cut in half in the number of children who are surviving to age five has doubled. We have a lot to be thankful for. For the last 15 years, care advocates have gathered together to learn about his work, this progress and lift up your voices to congress to dance Critical Resources and often reform to continue to save lives and lift millions of people out of poverty. Our advocacy work, which is your voices dramatically multiplies their impact in our ability to create scale in our reach. Let me ask, how many of you all have been to the conference before . Can you stand up . All right, amazing. Stay standing for just a minute because i want to thank you or extraordinary commitment. You know that when we sit together that we really make important progress. You help us advance issues around half the mistake become the wellbeing of women and girls, men and boys around the globe. Youve seen you all know that we passed the global Food Security act through the results of your work. [applause] boosting adoption of the adolescent Growth Strategy in this Tax Administration and we see an important food aid reform and has literally enabled us to feed hundreds of thousands of additional people at the same level of investment. Thank you very much for all that youve done. But its not enough. You can sit down, but we need you to keep standing up with us. Is karen in the room . Karen who i met earlier. I want to say this is her ninth conference. Shes 15. [applause] so, we need the next generation of energy and a lot more and the experiences before us because we stand at a critical juncture. I have to say is one that i think is truly new in our history. It is a moment when americas role as a humanitarian leader is being called into question. Its really an existential question. So once again, if u. S. Citizens and not the case who will define our path forward. We face a real threat to the progress i talked about earlier and at the same time we have these enormous challenges before us but are really unparalleled in the last 70 years. The administration has proposed budget cut that would dramatically reduce foreign assistance. It would better ability to globally fight poverty and threatens millions of lives. At a time when 20 Million People in four Different Countries are facing starvation because of famine like conditions. Thats unprecedented. This is also a time when the refugee crisis, the worst ever recorded, 65 Million People displaced and creating enormous suffering and dislocation. So this week, this time, this moment, in fact tomorrow the budget will be released in the full extent of these cuts will be known. Its much better than the attempted travel plans that prevent people from unimaginable horror from coming to our land of opportunity. We set it was untenable to zero out when millions of people are facing famine. Through this work and advocates in organizations, we have seen meaningful results. We have to know this does make a difference. We have good news at this time. Two weeks ago, thanks to the work of care and our advocate and many partners theyve passed the spending bill with almost 1 billion earmarked for famine relief. [applause] that will go to south sudan and somalia and yemen and nigeria. Also 1. 7 billion worth of food aid. Its the First Time Congress has passed additional humanitarian aid that has not been asked for by the white house. Its a huge victory. It would not have happened without the coalition of care and others and citizens like yours. This response to crisis and this additional funding really embodies the American Values and the bipartisan leadership that we are working and must fight to achieve. Our leaders should be applauded for what theyve done, but we cannot stop with this victory. The reality is we still face massive general cuts in foreign assistance in the 2018 budget. It would cripple our aid efforts and millions of people would suffer as a result. By now you know this conference is titled, now more than ever, for a very good reason. That is because now more than ever your voices are critical to preserve americas leadership in Global Development. Now more than ever we are facing problems we can solve if we stand up instead of stepping aside. Now more than ever we need our congressional leadership to know we will not be silent. We must lift up our voices. We need your voices to lift up and to lift up the voices of people weve heard from today. People you will hear from later today, and that voice, that request is dont cut food for people who are starving. Dont cut medicine for people who need the life saving assistance. Dont cut girls and women out from opportunity and equality, and dont cut hope, and dont cut lives. Are you ready to lift up your voices . [applause] thank you very much. [applause] when i was growing up in rural alabama, 50 miles from montgomery, i would see those signs that said white waiting, colored waiting. I asked my father and my grandparents and great grandparents why and they said thats the way it is, dont get in the way, dont get in trouble. I was inspired to get in the way and get in trouble. I said we can do it, we can bring down those signs those signs will be in a book and in a museum so when someone tells me changes in possible and they cannot bring about change, i said come and walk in my shoes. You must never give up, you must never given, you mus must keep the faith and keep your eyes on the prize. Carry the message. Stand up. Speak up. Speak out. Find a way to get in the way. There are too many people all over our world depended on us for food, for shelter, education for their minds we need to use our limited resources to take care of the needs here at home and around the world. As doctor king said, you must learn to live together as brothers and sisters. If we can get it right, maybe it will serve as a model for the rest of humanity. [applause] nobody says it better than john lewis. We have to get in the way. I think all of you have come in here to get in the way and to live out your own calling to follow your moral compass. You have chosen to be the change you want to see in the world and i believe that choice will make all the difference. Your voice in washington and your home district has resonated and has already saved and changed lives. It is hard to quantify the differences in the world between when we gathered here last year end today. I think we need new tools and new forms of inspiration and connection and partnership and we need to pair that with the wisdom and experience of history with voices like john lewis. Today weve organized leaders and change agents to help us navigate this new world. We want to engage them in a conversation to help us focus on what it will take to help women and girls at the forefront and maintain our commitment to overcoming extreme poverty and social injustice. I have the honor of bringing you together with an amazing panel. I will introduce them quickly and we will have a dynamic conversation. President and ceo of the global fund for women which is an organization providing support for Grass Roots Organization that focus on women around the world. She is also a care board member and her accomplishments and awards are too many to name peerage she has spent her entire life fighting for the rights of women and those who are marginalized. She is the founder and editorinchief of muslim girl. Com and she raises the voices of muslim women and helps define them in our society. She is a vocal supporter of marginalized communities and the author of muslim girl, a coming of age. Barbara pierce bush is the ceo and cofounder of the Global Health core, globalizing to helping emerging leaders to build a movement for Healthcare Access and equity around the world. She is a huge proponent of female leadership both in her own organization. She has worked to combat aids in africa and a supporter of the lgbt ui community and of marriage and equality. Chelsea clinton has helped lead Vital Development initiatives worldwide, including years of work on behalf of women and girls and on a project dedicated that the promotion of women and girls is vertical to Global Development and security. On top of that she has completed her third book which is coming out later in may called persistence and its a portrait of 13 inspiring women. Please join me in welcoming these extraordinary change agents to a conversation. [applause] so, we have a challenge because there is so much wisdom in this group. I want to make sure we get to hear as much of it as we can. I wanted to see if at least a couple of you might share a vignette of something that is maybe a personal touchstone for you that inspires you and might inspire our advocates and the work they do. Thank you. Every time i visit a country and meet a girl or a Woman Working on a project or problem, i see myself. I grew up in a village just like most of the girls that we meet. My mom was a midwife and at the age of nine i accompanied her when she was helping a woman give birth to a child. I saw the birth of a child at the age of nine years and i saw many kids thereafter who survived and many who didnt survive. I do the work that i do because it reflects my life and the most important thing about whats inside of me is because i know that Everyone Needs an opportunity. When people have opportunities, they try. They find alternatives and they become who they may never have become without the opportunity. Think of all of the girls that look like me in bangladesh and new guinea and in oakland and in california and in columbia where i visited three weeks ago and i said those little girls can be on a platform just as i am today if they get an opportunity. I love what i do. Barbara, how about you. I think im really lucky in that the work that i do, i get to work with Young Leaders from around the world that are passionate about social justice and believe that health is a human right. Ive worked with almost a thousand Young Leaders and i know some of them are here. I have 750 Different Reasons that i am excited and thats because every morning i wake up, i know all our 750 fellows and alums are waking up and i know we are here to talk about activism and it looks different for each person. For instance, one of our alums said im recently proud of her because she got a lot of media attention. She is nigerian and when she was giving birth she needed a blood transfusion and there was a shortage of blood in nigeria, something that should be a tool in making sure that women can survive childbirth. She had her baby and she started a Company Called life bank. She had to work really hard to change prejudiced and stereotype around giving blood in nigeria. I am proud of her because this was her passion. It wont be everyones passion but it is her passion and she started the company and she was just on a forbes list and Mark Zuckerberg just visited nigeria and she was one of two women he called out. That is her form of activism and problem solving and it looks different for each one of us. If everyone of us does that and i know our alums are all figuring out there way of contributing, thats how you make a different world. Thats wonderful. Following your passion and your special gifts. Did you all know this is being live streamed on cspan . [applause] tweeted, facebook it, i say that because i have a intricate relationship with cspan. I remember when i was in high school, i was just under a lot of extreme alienation from all of the islam a phobia unfolding around me, especially in the media and the fact that every single time i turned on the television, it was always a conversation about muslim and muslim when women but it was never a woman that looked like me that was doing the talking were included in the conversation. I remember when i was in high school, i would watch a cspan religiously. I would keep it on my tv for hours, im talking during the height on the war on terror when all the conversation was about islam and i was aggravated because it was white, nonmuslim people who couldnt speak to my experience or how this was impacting me and i remember i would call nonstop to try to get on the line. I had really great aspirations. It was really exciting. I would just want to have my voice in the conversation as theyre doing these conversations live, and finally one time i call got through was in 2008 on the first night of the Democratic National convention when Michelle Obama was giving her speech. I made a comment about how i believe having a strong woman of color in the public eye is going to have a tremendous impact on girls like me and how i felt about myself. Fast forward to last year, Michelle Obama invited me to be a speaker at the woman summit here in washington d. C. I remember within my first five minutes, a muslim mother recognized me and iran up to me with her daughter around four years old and she said, excuse me, can i take a photo of you with my daughter because i want her to know she can be anything. [applause] and now you are a regular on cspan. Cspan, you can call me after this. [laughter] thank you for sharing that, and thank you for hosting this conversation today. All of the conversations that im sure will catalyze important work over the next few days, and most important way for all that you are doing every day to ensure not a lot i was listening to your remarks earlier and you said something i reflect on often which is that behind every statistic are as many stories as represented in the numbers. Listening to barbara share her story about the young woman who continues to galvanize her passion for Public Health in nigeria and around the world, i was thinking about our work at the Clinton Foundation and how fiercely proud i am of the fact that weve helped almost 12 Million People access drugs around the world and close to two thirds of the children on pediatric and retrovirals access them through agreements we helped negotiate. There are still more people who arent on them than our, adults and children alike. For me, its always what more can and should we be doing. I think once you have figured something out, whether its how to ensure you make yourself visible or that people know how too do things or issues like marriage are not on the sidelines and left in the shadow because it should make us uncomfortable. I think once we know how we have to keep doing more of it. I think every nominal success reveals how much more work there is to be done. Also, it creates opportunities for us to bring more people into the work which is something you and i were talking about earlier. Just to end briefly with a direct answer to your question, i recognize many people here today and i know you have all heard me talk about my grandmother before. My mothers mother had a life i couldnt imagine perch she was born to unwed teenage parents and they abandoned her many times, for the last time when she was eight years old and they put her on a train with her 2yearold sister. Right before her 14th birthday they told her as soon as she turned 14 she had to support herself because they considered her to be an adult. She went and worked as a maid and nanny in someone elses home and she still managed to graduate from high school with honors. What made biggest difference in her life was a counselor who repeatedly told her you have value and repeatedly brought an extra sandwich for lunch that she just happened to have because she didnt make my grandmother feel stigmatized for her hunger and she didnt make her feel stigmatized for the fact that she had to work to support herself, but she kind of gave her the dignity of a shared meal and a shared faith and ultimately what became her confidence that she could this is a particularly different moment in time for activists, so its different than it was five years ago in terms of mobile technology and equipping people to be change agents individually and globally, more young people are global citizens than ever before. Its also particularly difficult from a political perspective as it relates to the agenda for foreign assistance. Can you speak to how you see this moment as being different as an activist, and what do you think is called upon for all of us to Carry Forward . I want to talk about technology and how it tran transforms the lives of women and children. We have to know the immense in immense nest of what this means to the world. If i told you the place where i was born, the rivers have dried because of lack of rain but almost everyone has a phone. What do they do with them . I think thats the more important question. People are able to get Health Information and information about their own conditions. When i see a global sign for women, we support women and girls in more than 175 countries. One of the areas that is most exciting is the ability to support women to use technology in the way that is most suitable to them. Its access and use that are really important and appropriately. The second thing that i have found that technology has done for a lot of young people that we work with, it has gotten them excited to do something because they do not remember a world where there was no technology. There is no status quo. They just belong to the era of technology. This lack of fear to use technology has really broken the barriers. We iran a program and it was women talking about their own life and it was just amazing. I do want to say, for any other time in the life of the world, we have opportunity to really reach out and expand and have connections all over the world. The other side of this is that its also a time of great dange danger. Great danger of Different Things that are happening. Migration, i think we have to really take into account what is happening in terms of Climate Change and disaster. My own continent is going through famine now. Thats a reality and that really affects the lives of people. We have to take into account the fact that more than 66 Million Girls dont have access to schools and we have to ask why is it that we have technology that can do everything and we can celebrate it and yet the simple things people really need in life, they still dont have but they dont have clean water or schools, they dont have safety and security. These are things we should think about now more than ever we can do something about it because we know we can be changemakers in these areas. I would say two things in response your question. One, i think we all have to segue, not mistake progress for success. That doesnt mean we shouldnt feel validated in our efforts when we are able to make progress on various Development Goals, but we cant confuse the two. The second i would say is we cant take progress for granted either. Progress has to be defended as well as advanced and i think we are seeing that challenge in many ways, including here in our own country. The third reflection is one that im sure we each struggle with on a daily, sometimes even minute by minute basis, which is to be able to carry multiple concerns in our head and our heart. Im just listening to the concerns around education and Climate Change, Womens Health, child marriage, access to technology, all of those are interconnected. We have to focus on each of them in their interconnectedness and also as individual outreach that demand our attention. While that can be exhausting, i just dont think we have time to be exhausted right now, particularly because of some of the human suffering unfolding across the globe and also the real threat to Womens Health and girls in particular around the world, but also here in the United States. I would end by saying for those of us who spend a lot of our time thinking about the rest of the world, i think we also have to think about whats happening in our own country because as you talked about the potential cuts to foreign assistance or the global gaggle and the effects it will have for Womens Health around the world and we have to look at the cuts to medicaid and Health Insurance program. What are the consequences that could have in world health. This is a moment of great challenge, partly because there is so much to focus on, but we know we can and must focus on it because of all the young advocates ive met in the people i know that continue to inspire all of us. I am optimistic by how many people continue to surge forward even though we have a tremendous amount of work to do. We do have a lot to hold and i do think, as an advocate you can sometimes feel like you are competing with one another around different agendas and i wonder if you have any thoughts between domestic agenda and the global agenda for social justic justice, and how we might create more solidarity in our efforts and articulation. Absolutely. First of all, i think we as a country, our founding principles were built upon activism and yet the American People embody the spirit of activism though historically, institutionally, america has always been very reluctant toward accepting activism. We tried to drive it out. Not just at home but overseas. If anything, i feel like i and muslim girl. Com are a direct product of this huge problem that we as americans have and i feel like its time for us to finally own up to it if we actually are committed toward advancing women and girls in global good which is our issue with american exceptionalism. We have activism going on right here at home. A lot of things get lost in translation about what the tenets of it are. I see it, i was personally victimized by the stamping out indirectly through our policies on the war on terror and the way that we kind of soak it on the backs of so many people around the world. If we are going to be involved internationally, we have a mission and responsibility to provide resources and empower communities around the world. When talking about afghanistan. And in doing so, regardless of this we forgot about the activism of afghan women on the ground that was taking place. Yesterday President Trump gave a speech basically saying that the middle east is a place where people should flock to and iraq is a beacon of modern civilization but we dont talk about the fact that we literally bombed that region and cause a lot of those problems to happen and thats part of the reason we created the platform because were hoping by cultivating a presence for a voice in western media and especially for people like me, im a jersey girl boy and raised in new jersey. We can prevent that from happening. Especially american women and how these policy issues impact us than it would be impossible for our voices to be heard again. And that maybe in the long run we would be impact those policies of the next domestic and abroad. I think michelle in some ways the possibility always has to come with danger. And so i think it is tremendously important when you asked about solidarity is that we have to stick with one another because when i talk about Womens Health or girls education, that may mean the same thing when i talk about segregation so if i am wanting to help advance that around the world have to listen to what people kind of think really are those right answers that prevented certain human rights parameters to help in the human race as a starting point. So i think what you say is so clearly have a globalmandate. Our volunteers live in the United States and work in the United States so when we were starting Global Health core, we currently work in five countries but one of them is the United States and people would be so surprised when i would tell them we were working here. Global Health Issues only affected other parts of the world and we are part of the globe. And we have those so theres that right there so it was his eventual for us to start here and in other countries because if were going to address Global Health issues, we need global groups of young people so our fellows are from 40 countries working together and thats part of the beauty that you mentioned that your question about what agenda do i prioritize, we cant really. He saw what happens in west Africa Matters in the United States. Same goes for everything and hopefully the luxury of living in such a connected age is that we can learn from at least the Global Health models that have worked in nigeria with the health core and implemented them in new jersey and theres humility and understanding there are answers everywhere and we certainly need to know them too but i think a lot of the dialogue and this is something you are implying slightly leads to an us versus them which doesnt make sense that we are all human beings really. I think understanding that we are part of the world is the first part perhaps. Of understanding the connection and the imperative for us. So i want, you all have at some level had girls as a centerpiece in your work so as we move forward, any thoughts about how we keep it in the center and what we need to do to ensure that women and girls are a priority, not just for the United States and its policies but also an institutional sense . I think we are, at this time when we have to build these contacts, and develop those goals and the drifting about our center of Development Goes to the part of the world. So the question of our Development Goes to all countries, not only the western part, and there we have many opportunities, the opportunity, we have opportunities to walk outside and make change and we had the gender inequality, a direct area because theres our Development Goals did come up on goals which caucuses, there are women in gauze and it enables us to see those things that we know about women in india and expend these issues, when we did these and perhaps for me what is exciting about being able to do this Global Compact is this that so many people are walking on this Global Compact. Thats from governance, from business, from nongovernmental organizations and their Womens Movement is really tough and walking in the Global Development goals so we have some things that unite us here and we can actually make it down to areas where we are strongest, while also expanding other people in other areas. I didnt remember that theres falling and therefore being committed to finding global and the essence of walking outside to priorities for the world and i think that this is where the us could, more strength because its the more that you place, the more that thats conductivity. The one thing that i was going to add as we are talking at a macro level about things too. We, i we have a problem at Global Health where the team is only women, like we need some guys. And 70 percent of our fellows and alums are women and thats who wants to work on Global Health and were hiring on talents. But i think the reason that i say that is sometimes it can be such a big thing, how do we do this on a macro level with each of us needs to invest in our daily lives and its not hard to find really talented women everywhere. So we only have a couple more minutes. I want to see if maybe each one of you, and lets start with you would just give a word of wisdom, one word of wisdom to our advocates around the journey ahead. In just a few seconds. Wisdom and in a few seconds. All right, i would say that basically i dont believe that anyone is voiceless. I believe everybody has a voice and some it can be silenced. My conversations, i think its their responsibility of those of us with a platform to share that platform by elevating those voices, passing the mic, inspiring each other on their behalf and allowing them their own presentation. I want to use the trouble to go fast. And also to add literally one collaboration. Barbara . Lets see. Theres a quote i really love , i might get it wrong but its something along the lines of theres no one you can love once you know their story and its important for all of us to come close to the idea of listening but authentically sharing our histories and not thinking of the way people should know us. You will not know them until you look into their story to and thats where the connection happens. Im going to have you close us out and you have a new book that might fit into this game. Im going to add a spike to what i said but end on a more optimistic note. I completely agree that we have to always start by listening and calling out and giving and encouraging those who are and have been structurally disempowered and often forcibly silenced. And i think we all have a vested interest in really to a money to our First Principles always moving toward a more perfect union. I think though that we also have to recognize particularly at this moment that sexism is not an opinion. Racism is not an opinion. Homophobia is not an opinion. So i think that we and our posture of listening also have to get comfortable with standing up and speaking out because i also agree that those of us that have been blessed and by definition all of us on the stage today have been blessed. There is a responsibility with giving voice to the voiceless but also using our own voices. So you are good enough to mention a book that i recently wrote called she persisted. Inspired by this in the United States and one of the women that i highlighted that i have admired as long as i can remember, sally ride who was the First American woman in space. I had the pleasure of hearing at myspace can hydration when i was a super awkward 13 or 14yearold and she said something that he had said before and said this throughout her all too brief life, it is hard for each of us to imagine what we cant see. Ive just been incredibly grateful that all of you on the stage for helping us see what might be uncomfortable because there are too many People Living in circumstances that should be unimaginable and im so grateful to all of you women on the stage for showing us the most affirmative positive things what is possible so michelle, thank you somuch. Thank you all, please join me in thanking these extraordinary changemakers. You. [applause] i think we have roy and together and story and persistence and just an ongoing quest for justice so thank you very much, each of you. [applause]. [applause] thank you. We have a very special recitation now, each year we present the deliver lasting change award to an individual who serves as a beacon of hope and progress in his or her individual community so this individual exemplifies the termination and strength and ingenuity and persistence and serves as a role model for others. So here, tara is honored to present this award for young women whose defied the odds, whose inspired her own community and will inspire all of us and who had never taken opportunity for granted. So please meet brea chorus on. [applause]. [music]. [inaudible]. [inaudible conversation]. Speaking foreign language. [speaking foreign language]. [applause] please join me in presenting the 2017 everlasting award to briand. [applause] thank you. [speaking foreign language]. [speaking foreign language. I belong to a very poor family. It doesnt matter the age between 12 to 14, it means they have to take the responsibility of their family. And they get at a very early age and. [speaking a foreign language. [speaking foreign language] right now im working to also to stop the early marriage. Of a girl and im feeling very happy that im feeling this kind of work. Around, this is. [speaking foreign language. [speaking foreign language] in the situation im happy that im working with these kids and im trying to control them, taking them stronger which i want to give , i would like to tell them all the younger kids that if you want to reach your goals, you can reach it by working very hard. [speaking foreign language]. I would ask at a very early age. At the age, of my parents and i dont want to get married at this early age. I was very happy that my parents were understanding and i would thank them for that and giving me this opportunity to go ahead. And i want to thank miss ray nazi and the whole program to let me get this opportunity to go ahead. [speaking foreign language] again i would like to thank area usa and nepal and hassan, thanks so much for giving this opportunity to me. Thank you so much. [applause] beautiful. Thank you. [applause] what you all stay with me because they will be inspired if youre here. You all can sit down though but were almost done. We relaunched care act and itspart of a reenergized effort that im sure you all have the tools , that we have the power as citizens who are ready to move forward on the issues that we talk about here today and not only is the work that youre doing here over the next few days critically important to your voice in congress but we want you to go home and to talk to your representatives in your home county so we launched last year amplify your voice. Last year we had over 80 meetings so given what weve heard today and what you know is coming tomorrow, if for instance, i hope we will be able to double that and i love to say that, lets go. I really think, i want you all to think about what can we do to extend your voice, bring somebody else into this movement, take some of the lessons we heard and be an inspiration in the persistence of beyond thatand so many girls like her to lift up that voice. So this is incredibly important today and this week , this is incredibly important for us all so again, now more than ever we need your voice that can change lives and you can make an extraordinary difference in this world, thank you for being a part of this and we look forward to the opportunity of working together and going far together in our aspirations, to please be sure that everyone, beyond that and all the girls around the world have the opportunity to realize their full potential. I want to ask you to give me one more round of applause for our delta, gap, tmc and walmart and then, lets just do a standing ovation for all of you or your extraordinary readership and your commitment. [applause]. [applause] if you missed any of this conversation you can watch it in its entirety on our website at cspan. Org type global challenges facing women in the search bar. The arabian president bonnie has pledged to further open and ran to the International Community and today relations with the United States saying he hopes the trumpet ministration will settle down enough for his nation to better understand it. This morning we covered the discussion on the iranian election which you can find on our website, cspan. Org. President trump is in israel today and recently held a News Conference saying israelis and arabs share a common cause against iran. This is the second stop on his trip through the middle east, heres a look at that News Conference. Good to see you again. I know you went to the western wall. And youre the first acting american to do that and i have to. Say not only that but also your friendship with the state of israel. And the understanding of our story, our desire for peace. [inaudible]