The focus of the second annual Blog Action Day 2008 is poverty.
On October 15, the blogosphere is raising awareness for this year’s Blog Action Day with facts about poverty and ways to eliminate the suffering that poverty brings to neighbors in our own community and millions around the world.
Global Issues for social, political, economic and environmental issues that affect us all publishes comprehensive poverty facts.
It might be shocking to those who live in industrialized nations, but three billion people (or half the population of the world) must live on less than $2.50 dollars a day. Almost 80 percent live on less than $10 dollars a day.
Almost 30 percent of children are underweight or suffer from stunted growth. Daily, up to 30,000 children die as a result of poverty.
In addition to hunger, malnutrition and premature death, poverty creates a barrier to education and proper medical care. It is unfathomable to imagine, but a million people who reach adulthood cannot read or sign their name. HIV/AIDS and malaria continue to claim millions of lives each year.
How does the world spend money? According to Global Issues, this is the breakdown of global spending priorities in US dollars:
- Cosmetics in the US: 8 billion dollars
- Ice cream in Europe: 11 billion dollars
- Perfumes in Europe and the US: 12 billion dollars
- Pet foods in Europe and the US: 17 billion dollars
- Business entertainment in Japan: 35 billion dollars
- Cigarettes in Europe: 50 billion dollars
- Alcoholic drinks in Europe: 105 billion dollars
- Narcotics drugs in the world: 400 billion dollars
- Military spending in the world: 780 billion dollars
What would it take in dollars to make certain all of humanity received basic social services?
- Basic education for all: 6 billion dollars
- Clean water and sanitation for all: 9 billion dollars
- Reproductive health for all women: 12 billion dollars
- Basic health and nutrition: 13 billion dollars
From your own community to reaching out in doing what you can in fighting poverty on a global scale, the Blog Action Day 2008 posts 88 Ways to DO Something About Poverty Right Now. From donating to your local food bank, supporting Doctors Without Borders distribution of Plumpynut or making a KIVA loan to help someone start a small business and lift their family out of poverty, there are ways to reduce and eliminate poverty. Talk about it, write about it, take action. Not just on Blog Action Day 2008 for poverty, but from this day forward until we finally make a real difference.