World Vision ACT:S is a network of young people committed to exploring what our faith says about poverty and injustice, using creative activism to bring issues to life and change hearts, and using our voices to advocate on AIDS, malaria, hunger, and child slavery.
If you are not already a member of ACT:S, we encourage you to check out our About page and join the ACT:S network for bi-weekly e-mail updates.
Below are the latest stories, resources, and campaigns. If you would like to contribute, e-mail acts@worldvision.org.
URGENT! Call your senator NOW to save the Child Protection Compact Act!
We just received word that the Child Protection Compact Act was taken off the agenda for the upcoming Senate Foreign Relations Committee meeting. No reason was given for the removal but we need to let our leaders know this is unacceptable.
Call the following senators NOW and tell them to put the Child Protection Compact Act (S3184) back on the schedule for the Foreign Relations Committee.
Emergency in the field: Pakistan flooding
Islamabad, Pakistan - World Vision is planning a rapid response in Pakistan as unprecedented monsoon rains have triggered flash floods killing more than 1,300 people. With hundreds of people missing and more rain expected, World Vision fears the death toll could rise further. The relief group hopes to begin distributions of food and clean water as early as tomorrow, but can only use small trucks to transport aid because roads and bridges have been damaged and remain blocked by standing water.
Children and women who are suffering from poor health and unhygienic conditions are most at risk, the aid group warns. World Vision’s response will target families in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North West Frontier Province), where thousands of mud houses have been washed away, leaving people living along roadsides, roof tops and seeking refuge on higher ground. The heavy rains and flooding have also caused significant losses to livestock and damage to agricultural crops, fields and warehouses for grain storage.
"There is now a real danger of the spread of water-borne diseases and possibly cholera, as well as complications such as respiratory problems and skin allergies," said Shaharyar Bangash, World Vision's program manager, from Peshawar.
Tips for Recruiting New Students: The Grass is Green
By Jonathan Lo, ACT:S Faith and Justice Fellow
Here are a couple things we know about the first week of school:
1. Campuses spend good money ensuring their grass is green and healthy for all the students.
2. There is a buzz at school as students return to their respective campuses.
3. Students hang out a lot on the grass from #1.
Remember when you first took a step on campus?
After you moved all your big boxes into your little dorm room, did you sit there waiting and hoping that your new roommate will be fairly organized, respectful and hygienic? After the school-organized parties that you went to with the guys or girls on your floor, did you still return to your room feeling lost and overwhelmed?
How to write to spark action
By Lauren Seibert, ACT:S Advocacy & Campaigns Fellow
The truth is, writers want their readers to become temporarily OCD. We want them to follow an inescapable compulsion to finish the article. We want them snared to the very end. And then we want them to respond.
When writing about issues like human trafficking or malaria, which are ruining millions of kids’ lives as we speak, of course we want to glue readers to our words with the same level of interest that gets “Charlie bit my finger” 200 million views on YouTube—a number that multiplied fast as people told their friends about it. But that doesn’t always happen. Why not?
There’s a big difference between writing informatively about an issue and creating a piece that becomes a catalyst in itself, reacting with readers on a level that sparks them into action.
Get published as an ACT:S Contributor!
Looking for a way to spread the word on issues you care about and get some writing published? Want your writings to become a resource other activists can use? Join World Vision as an ACT:S Contributor!
World Vision ACT:S needs a range of voices to enrich our content and you’ll get published with one of the world’s largest international humanitarian organizations.
We’re looking for creative, well-written articles on any of the issues we cover—human trafficking, malaria, HIV/AIDS, poverty and hunger—as well as faith and justice stories and reflections, “creative activism” pieces, or articles on advocacy. The door’s wide open.
Sign up HERE to become an ACT:S Contributor! You’ll receive our writer’s guidelines via email—and then you can start writing. Also, you will recieve an e-mail once a month on the type of content we are looking for that month!
The perks (if your article is selected):
• Publication on our website - and possibly through other media partners
• Inside scoops on the issues
• We send you tips for writing hard-hitting articles on topics that matter… and getting people to read them
• Free stuff (we’ll mail you a useful book that’s actually good)
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Connect with us at: acts@worldvision.org or 1-888-876-2004.
ACT:S is the activism network for World Vision. World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice. |
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