laszlo-photo's Flickr photostream/Creative Commons

Access to safe and clean water is a right that should be afforded to everyone, but unfortunately pollution, climate change and privatization, among other obstacles, prevent one billion people obtaining this vital necessity.

This upcoming Thanksgiving week, SYRV, a non-profit that connects travelers with volunteer opportunities in developing countries, will be traveling to Jiquilillo, Nicaragua, one of the many places that lacks access to clean water.  There they will help build desperately needed water-purifiers as well as other community support projects.

And if you happen to be in Los Angeles this evening, you should head down to Venice to attend the SYRV fundraiser where you can learn more and help support the amazing work they do.

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Participant Media presents entertainment that inspires and compels social change. Behind these films and issues, there are thousands of people nationwide who work tirelessly on campaigns that use the films as inspiration to make a difference. As a member of the company’s Social Action team, which develops initiatives that are inspired by the films, I’m excited to announce the first posting of a weekly blog of Sarah’s Social Action Snapshot, which will offer the latest updates on our campaigns and offer specific actions and tools, from our campaigns, for people to get involved in issues in the news.

Food, Inc.
Do you want to know about rGBH dairy, issues facing small farmers or organic yogurt? If so, check out our recent online chats with some of the leading food advocacy organizations from our campaign and Stonyfield Yogurt.

We learned this week that obesity rates continue to climb with an expected 103 million Americans to be obese by 2018. Scary? Yes. Preventable? Yes. Take action by supporting menu labeling and check out our campaign’s 10 tips for healthy eating.

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I will never understand how anyone could abandon a baby. Luckily there are folks like Debbe Magnusen around to help care for those children left behind. In 1996 after reading a newspaper article about the discovery of a dead baby in a file cabinet in Yorba Linda, Calif., in 1996, Magnusen started a hotline called Project Cuddle and announced on TV that women unable to care for their newborns could drop them off on her porch in Costa Mesa, California. Over the past 13 years Magnusen has rescued 661 babies finding most adoptive homes.

And now her life will be the topic of a made-for-TV movie. Tonic.com reports that John Stamos, National Spokesperson for Project Cuddle (best known as Uncle Jesse from Full House) is producing the film about Magnusen and her wonderful work.

Project Cuddle doesn’t just help house unwanted infant, it also offers needed resources such as job and other assistance to allow a mother to keep her baby and shelter and medical aid. You can help Project Cuddle by contributing to their organization wish list or you can volunteer to be a rescue family anywhere in the country. Learn more by clicking here.

Today, November 20 marks the 20th anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), the most widely ratified international human rights treaty. The UNCRC laid out the civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights for children all over the world. The documented has been ratified by 193 countries including every U.N. Member State but the United States and Somalia.

I was surprised to learn that the U.S. was not included in the 193 supporting nations. VOA News reports: Despite the success of the Convention in raising awareness of children’s rights worldwide, one of the largest and most influential countries in the world has not ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The United States has not approved the Convention because it fears government interference in family life and the possible loss of its sovereign rights.

But ratifying a treaty doesn’t always promise results as many are acknowledging that 20 years later, children’s rights are still being violated. Many nations that ratified the Convention have not taken all the steps to protect children leaving many children victim to preventable diseases, malnutrition, violence and exploitation. Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF, Saad Houry, calls the Convention a milestone, but notes the reality does not always live up to the document’s vision of a world made safe for all children. He says millions of children remain excluded from that dream saying “despite remarkable economic growth in scores of countries over the past 20 years, shocking disparities are also growing, with the poorest children left further behind.”

However many are hopeful that the anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child will serve as a reminder to countries to keep their promise and take action to protect our littlest citizens. Click here for a list of worldwide UNCRC anniversary events.

Photo: Getty Images

More little resonant treats from the disastrous Bush administration: a ruling was just made by Judge Stanwood Duval which accuses the Army Corps of Engineers of neglicence for its shameful mismanagement of the Hurricane Katrina flooding.

It’s a well-supported idea that much of the damage and lives lost in New Orleans could have been prevented by timely acting from the Corps. The Judge ruled after an examination of three cases of families whose livelihoods were crushed by the hurricane. The ruling opens the possibility of a potential 100,000 victims seeking settlements that could amount to an estimated 100 billion dollars. Read the rest of this entry >>

The first thing that got me excited about Defamation is the fact that one of the main characters in the film is infamous college professor and author Norman Finklestein.  (When I was in college at DePaul I took a class with Finklestein and it was one of the best classes of my entire college career.) When I started to learn more about the film it looked like it would be a pretty fair and balanced look at anti-semitism and Judaism in general.

The trailer below is pretty loose and doesn’t really name who the experts will be but I kind like that.  It paints a portrait of a film and makes it clear what you’ll be spending your time delving into a film about religion, persecution and power.

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On June 20, 2009, while Tehran was engulfed with the flames of protest and political upheaval following its much contested presidential election, a young woman in her mid twenties got out of her car to observe the demonstrations which she hoped to be a part of.

Without warning this bright young person was shot dead by government agents seeking to quell the near revolution-level dissent that was spreading across the Iranian Republic. That young woman was Neda Agha-Soltan, an aspiring singer/musician who was compelled to join the sea of her countrymen calling for the government mandated “results” of the political contest be overturned. Read the rest of this entry >>

Tonight on PBS’s Frontline they explore the recent conflict in Iran and the death of the Iranian protester named Neda with a piece called A Death in Tehran.  From the PBS website:

FRONTLINE investigates the life and death of the woman whose image remains a potent symbol for those who want to keep the reform movement alive. The film also explores a number of unanswered questions in the aftermath of the greatest upheaval in Iran since the 1979 revolution: How many were arrested and killed as the security forces attempted to contain the growing protest movement? To what extent was the presidential vote manipulated? What is the future of the movement that seems to have been silenced?

It sounds like an amazing and inspiring piece of journalism.  It airs tonight at 9pm in most places and a trailer for the show is below. Read the rest of this entry >>

Last week the one story that had me fuming more than any other was the one about the Catholic Church saying they would cease their social service programs in Washington D.C. if a same-sex marriage bill is passed there. As someone who was raised in the Catholic Church it sickens me to think that the Church would attempt to further their social/political agenda at the expense of the poor.  I’m pretty sure that isn’t what Jesus would do.

Well, last night on The Colbert Report’s The Word segment Stephen Colbert commented on how screwed up the above scenario is and religious persecution of gays in general. I love Jon Stewart’s more straight forward brand of comedy but sometimes you need the satire of Colbert to really put things in perspective.

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Need a little inspiration to get your Monday started? Want a little reminder that we all need to stand up for what we believe in?  If so you’ll want to meet Will Phillips, an extraordinary 10 year old who has waged a war on his school by refusing to say the pledge of allegiance until gays have the same rights as everyone else.

The below interview with him is kind of amazing and makes me want to find a way to do something for gay marriage rights amidst my daily actives. If we all were able to protest in some way maybe things would change (faster than they already are). Read the rest of this entry >>