All discussions of global development are prefaced with staggering statistics: Three billion people worldwide live on less than two dollars a day; 1 billion global citizens do not have access to safe drinking water; 40 million men, women, and children are afflicted with HIV/AIDS; 77 million children are denied access to primary education worldwide.  These conditions are not only unjust, but also contribute to social and political instability.  These statistics sum up both the challenges and imperatives for us—as students—and for our generation. 

As students, we have both a unique and promising opportunity to redress these problems and become active participants in the development process, in instilling a sense of hope in the lives of millions, and in charting a path that ensures dignity for all global citizens.  In fact, students are often better positioned and effective in fostering development than policy makers due to their passion, energy, and the environment in which they work—namely, their universities.

The following toolkit serves two purposes: 
1) It will provide background information on a variety of development issues, and
2) It will present students with the tools necessary to become involved and take action. 

From HIV/AIDS to fair trade, from maternal and child health to potable water, and from debt relief to environmental sustainability, the components of development are varied and complex.  These issues are presented in this toolkit as mini-campaigns—empowering students to educate ourselves, raise awareness in our respective communities, and then take dictions that will have a positive, tangible impact in our local communities as well as in the lives of millions of poor who lack access to power in their societies.

To help undertake these campaigns, Americans for Informed Democracy offers a diverse set of resources, including assistance with film screenings, video conferences, speaking events, rallies, and general organizing support and mini-grants.  Guides to all of these activities can be found in this toolkit.  Also, if you have other ideas for innovative campaigns and activities on your campus, contact us and we will help you organize them.

We, as youth, have the ability and opportunity to play a substantive role in global development.  We are inextricably linked to others throughout the world, and our actions have broad repercussions.  Let us work together across the country and across borders—using the connections and technology now available as well as our energy and zeal to construct a more equitable, sustainable world.