Prominent leaders to address global hunger in special Day1 series
As a way to commemorate its 65th anniversary of weekly broadcasts, the "Day 1" national radio program hosted by Peter Wallace will air a special four-part series beginning June 13 focusing on "Faith & Global Hunger" in support of the Millennium Development Goals. Four prominent leaders will address the issue, and a wide range of audio, video, and text resources for individuals and church groups will be available on a special website at http://hunger.day1.org.
The speakers are:
W. Hodding Carter III , Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs and State Department spokesman under President Carter, journalist, author, former president of the Knight Foundation, Professor of Leadership and Public Policy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, speaking on the scope of the problem of world hunger today (airdate June 13).
The Rev. Dr. Barbara K. Lundblad , the Joe R. Engle Professor of Preaching at Union Theological Seminary in New York, Lutheran clergy, former pastor and frequent Day1 preacher, on the biblical foundation for serving the poor (airdate June 20).
The Rev. David Beckmann , President of Bread for the World since 1991, Lutheran clergy, former World Bank economist, author of books and articles on Christian faith, economics, poverty and hunger, on specific ways of addressing the problem of poverty and hunger particularly through the Millennium Development Goals (airdate June 27).
The Right Rev. Michael Curry , Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, issuing a call to serve the poor individually and corporately (airdate July 4).
A fifth program tentatively airing Sept. 12, with a special speaker to be announced, is also planned in anticipation of the global High-Level Millennium Development Goals Review Summit convening Sept. 20-22, 2010, at the United Nations.
The series and supporting resources will examine global hunger through a Christian social justice perspective, in order to spark increased awareness and support of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) among people of faith.
A comprehensive, simultaneous outreach campaign utilizing social media and the Web will be executed collaboratively by "Day 1," the United Nations Millennium Campaign's global communications program, and other allies including Bread for the World and The Micah Challenge.
The idea for the series came from a regular "Day 1" listener and supporter in Chapel Hill, N.C. Charles Browning heard Lundblad say in a "Day 1" sermon that "Jesus knew long ago what economists and hunger activists tell us now: We have everything we need to end world hunger." Browning, a retired farmer, and his wife, Margaret Knoerr, a librarian, were inspired to do something in response. He contacted the producers to suggest the idea of the series to raise awareness and encourage listener response to the problem.
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) represent the historic promise made by 189 world leaders at the United Nations Millennium Summit in 2000. In the Millennium Declaration, the first global compact in which rich and poor countries recognize a collective responsibility to end poverty and its root causes, the world community resolved to achieve substantial improvements in the lives of the world's poorest people by 2015. The eight MDGs target global hunger, universal education, gender equity, child health, maternal health, combating HIV/AIDS and other disease, environmental sustainability, and comprehensive development planning.
Ten years after the Millennium Declaration, significant progress has been made toward the realization of the MDGs. In 2010, the UN member states will convene to assess progress and accelerate achievement at the High-Level MDG Review Summit, scheduled for Sept. 20-23 at the United Nations as part of the 65th UN General Assembly. The year 2010 therefore offers a unique opportunity to catalyze public discussion and policy development on the MDGs in anticipation of the Review Summit, which stands as the most important event on the 2010 global policy calendar.
Formerly known as "The Protestant Hour," "Day 1" celebrates 65 years of weekly broadcast in 2010. Distributed to 200 radio stations across America and overseas, it is produced by the Alliance for Christian Media in association with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, the Episcopal Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the United Church of Christ and the United Methodist Church. The program has received numerous awards, including the George Foster Peabody Award and the Communicators' Award for Excellence in inspirational radio.
For more information, call toll free 888-411-Day-1 or visit the program's website, http://day1.org. In addition, audio, video, and text resources for individuals and church groups will be available on a special website at http://hunger.day1.org.