We YGLs are a varied lot – with folks coming from the private sector, public sector and from various media as well. Whenever we get together for these Summits, many of us are tempted to ask the media leaders among us to promote the good work the YGLs are doing. But there’s a danger in asking them to take on the task of promoting that work, since there’s a risk that it’ll be seen as propaganda, not fact.
So imagine my delight when my CEO, Karl Hofmann, joined me at WEF today for a morning filled with meetings with journalists from some of the world’s top newspapers and magazines. At each and every meeting, the focus wasn’t on our PSI Ambassadors, whose celebrity status generally draws the media crowd, nor was it on the poverty and sickness that we see almost every day in our work.
Instead, it was on solutions – what we can do now to help people suffering in so much of the developing world. To add to my delight – they asked about what was needed to specifically help women and children: Why wasn’t reproductive health on the global agenda? How much would it cost to provide those services to a young woman? What’s the return on investment?
So it got me thinking of a question I want to ask them and you: How much is one year of a girl’s life worth to you? How much would you be willing to spend to give your daughter, niece or granddaughter one more year of healthy life? In the developing world, an organization like PSI can provide access to reproductive health products and services and protect a girl from disease for less than $35. Is $35 worth it to you?
