ONE is 10

WASHINGTON— Today, The ONE Campaign launched “10 Years Together”, an interactive timeline created by award-winning production house Wondros that combines images, video and text from some of the key moments throughout ONE’s last 10 years – from Nelson Mandela’s landmark “Make Poverty History” speech in London’s Trafalgar Square in 2005and the creation of ONE’s division (RED) in 2006, to the 2014 music video, “Cocoa na Chocolate,” featuring 19 of Africa’s top recording artists urging their leaders to invest in agriculture.

On May 16, 2004, in a ceremony at Philadelphia’s Liberty Bell – one of the world’s enduring symbols of freedom – ONE was born, launched by a diverse group of American, European and African activists, students and faith leaders, musicians, sports stars and politicians from left, right and center. They were all inspired by the belief that one voice, coming together with many others, can change the world.

Michael Elliott, President and CEO of ONE, said:

“In our first decade, ONE has brought together millions of activists around the world committed to the belief that where you live shouldn’t determine whether you live.

We are proud that our advocacy has played a part in the collective progress that has been made over the years—from cutting malaria deaths in half in 13 countries in Africa to increasing the number of people globally on lifesaving HIV/AIDS medications from 300,000 in 2002 to nearly 10 million today. Working with partners from all over the world, we have proved that together we are so much stronger than the sum of our parts.

We know we can make change happen, but our work is not done. Let us continue to fight poverty, injustice and gross inequality; let us be that “great generation” Nelson Mandela spoke of nine years ago in Trafalgar Square and bring an end to extreme poverty.”

Jamie Drummond, co-founder of ONE, said:

“ONE is entirely a product of those who inspire us, fired by the same ideals: Desmond Tutu [ONE’s International Patron], Zackie Achmat and Noerina Kaleeba on AIDS, Zie Gariyo, Ndungane Nyerere on debt, Bill and Melinda Gates on malaria and vaccines, George Soros, Mo Ibrahim and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on fighting corruption, and above all Nelson Mandela and now Pope Francis on the fundamental fight against the injustice of extreme poverty.

We all believe injustice in the world is a preventable, treatable condition, one that can be cured by dealing with an underlying malaise – something called apathy. ONE is an experiment in anti-apathy on a global scale.”

The timeline features an exclusive animation film by award-winning artists Oliver Jeffers and Mac Premo, highlighting the fact that the number of people who live in extreme poverty worldwide has been cut in half in just over two decades. If current trends continue, the world could see virtually the end of extreme poverty by 2030. But this will not happen if we do not redouble efforts to fight inequality, apathy, and corruption, as Bono outlined in his 2013 TED talk—highlights of which are on the “10 Years Together” site.

Among other work, over the last decade ONE and its members, working with wonderful partners, have:

• Helped support frontline health worker’s efforts to save millions of lives by fighting for the creation and funding of global health programs such as the US PEPFAR program and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.
• Helped push through legislation to expand farming capacity and fight malnutrition in Africa.
• Helped pass tough laws in the US and EU to fight corruption and increase transparency in the oil, gas and mining sectors so that the citizens in developing countries rich in natural resources can see what their natural resources are being sold for, and where the money has gone.

For more about ONE and its history, read co-founder Jamie Drummond’s article in The Stanford Social Innovation Review.