The US government wants to talk with anyone who has ideas and or solutions to some of the pressing global challenges, but persons interested in the discussion must have access to the internet or a Facebook and/or Twitter account.
Global Pulse 2010 is a three-day virtual event which the US government is planning for March 29-31, with the aim of bringing together thousands of people from across the world to discuss pressing challenges within specified fields-women and girls; education; partnerships; political and civil rights; global health; a sustainable planet and entrepreneurship, trade and economic opportunity among other areas.
Mission Director of USAID Carol Horning said yesterday at a press briefing that local participation is critical to the initiative as is that of stakeholders across the world. She said the discussion on a sustainable planet is timely, noting that Guyana can certainly contribute by advancing its Low Carbon Development Strategy and what also came out of the countrywide consultations.
Horning said Global Pulse was created to enable listening, learning and sharing ideas. She quoted Administrator of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) Dr Rajiv Shah, who said the US wants to hear from individuals who are not normally seated at the table with key decision-makers. She said also that a respected field of international leaders from government, private industry and civil society organisations, along with other influential individuals will log onto the forum to guide the live conversations, encourage participation, provoke deeper thinking, and offer insight into the topics at hand.
Horning said too that the US government is hoping that motivated individuals join the global conversation and that online ideas are turned into real action. The initiative is being sponsored by USAID, but is part of the strategy of the Obama administration in reaching out to partners across the globe.
According to Horning, the ideas submitted are likely to take weeks or maybe a month for summarising and later circulating. She said the discussions will kick off at 10.30 am on March 29 on www.GlobalPluse2010.gov, and are also expected to dominate social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter around the same time.
Registration for the live discussions at the Global Pulse website is free and is open to anyone who is interested, but the number of virtual seats is limited so people are being encouraged to sign up early. Some individuals will receive direct invitations to sign up and reports are that several persons in this country received invitations yesterday.