Dennis and Kelly worked hard at the G8 in Italy this week not only to make sure our voices had a presence at the G8 but also to help make sure that all of use that were not able to be in Italy for

The G8 Summit opened today amidst the rubble of the earthquake affected city of L’Aquila, Italy. The process leading up to this G8 is a bit of a disaster as well.

While some progress is expected on food security, with an announcement on a big new push to invest in agriculture in poor countries and boost food aid expected on Friday, agreement on a new effort to tackle maternal mortality seem to have stalled.  We need a last ditch action now to press the G8 leaders for action on this critical issue.

A woman dies in child-birth every minute and 80% of these deaths could be easily prevented if basic health care were available.  Please send a message today to Prime Minister Stephen Harper at http://www.makepovertyhistory.ca/everymothermatters

by:  Gerry Barr, Chair, Make Poverty History
         and Dennis Howlett, Co-ordinator, Make Poverty History

How do we persuade Stephen Harper to do the right thing?

On Wednesday our Prime Minister joins seven other leaders of the world’s richest nations at the G8 in L’Aquila, Italy.   It seems eerily fitting that they will gather at the scene of a devastating earthquake in April.   The lives of millions of the world’s poorest have been devastated as well, by a tsunami of economic forces not of their making.   We have all been affected by this very man-made crisis, but the poor bear the brunt.    Rising food and fuel costs, cataclysmic climate change and the global downturn have meant 100 million more have swollen the ranks of those who go to bed hungry to a record one billion.  And we may be about to add to their misery.