The Big Picture and The Magnifying Glass

The United Nations Millennium Development Goals immediately attracted my attention, as a project that would require worldwide collaboration on a scale that has never been attempted.  I plan to use the skills I gain through WorldPulse to help further Australian partnerships for development. Communication is key and through communication peace will be established. By improving the networks between government, non-government organisations and the private sector, I hope that Australia will be able to contribute effectively to the collective worldwide effort.

Being a VOF correspondent would help me raise issues faced in Australia and begin forging partnerships by sharing effective programs run by Australians. Web 2.0 has facilitated the rise of the citizen journalist. WorldPulse VOF correspondents will make sure that the right voices are being heard.

I love to think big, so I often think about making the whole world a better place. There are a number of areas where I hope to see change, and I will use my voice to influence them if I can.

Poverty reduction
Worldwide, inequity causes poverty. As well as redistributing existing resources, improvement of economic freedoms will help developing economies lift themselves out of poverty.  Currently there it is much more expensive and difficult to set up a business in developing economies than elsewhere.  This approach favours big businesses, excluding small business operators, which discourages competition and prevents easy creation of jobs.  All governments should work towards extending property rights to the poor.  Developed economies that are providers of aid, should concentrate on further untying aid by laying aside their protectionist policies in favour of fostering a stronger global economy. Financial regulation should be strengthened to overcome the information deficiencies and corruption that undermine the aid and development assistance process.

Maternal health
Effective partnerships are necessary to enable a targeted and efficient approach to aid. Partnerships will facilitate training to enable women worldwide to receive skilled care before, during and after pregnancy.  Pregnant women are particularly susceptible to infectious diseases, so public sector availability of drugs and access to diagnosis should priorities.  By addressing health infrastructure and ensuring that all treatments are accessible to the poor, we can hope to improve maternal health worldwide.

Universal primary education
Effective partnerships will enable existing resources to be efficiently distributed to help achieve this goal.  One of the major obstacles preventing universal primary education is the cultural barriers that exclude education of girls and young women.  Another measure that will help achieve this goal is support for families of those living with HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and other infectious diseases.  Too often, it falls to the girls and young women to provide the full time care and treatment that these people need.  Wider accessibility to these treatments would enable girls to go to school by relieving the burden of care.  For any of these measures monitoring is vitally important.  By strengthening or adapting existing programs, aid can be delivered more effectively.

Climate change
There is a general lack of cohesion on the global stage when it comes to climate change.  Ideally, discussion to unite opinions on carbon emissions and trading schemes would culminate in a global climate treaty with binding emission reduction targets.  Inequity is another problem when it comes to climate change: the richer countries contribute the most emissions while the poorer countries feel the devastating effects.  Any global climate initiative must include a support fund for developing nations.

But that’s the BIG picture. The story closer to home is just as important, if not more so. I love to dream big about our future, when women are represented in decision making at all levels and each person is valued and all have access to the opportunities and and support that they need in all areas of their lives. My core motivation is that I can not only dream, but do something today; here and now. I try to use my voice to train other girls and young women to find theirs and use it responsibly. Most importantly, I hope to combine empowerment with skills development so that the vision and passion of the many amazing young women worldwide can be harnessed to create positive, effective and efficient change.