Global Conference on Maternal and Child Health 2018. The Way Forward

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Conference purpose:
The United Nations has established eight Millennium Development Goals, and Footprints Foundation focuses on goals 3 (empowering women), 4 (reducing child mortality) and 5 (improving maternal health). University of Miami’s Miller School has also worked toward achieving the Millennium Goals through the Integrated Community Development Program. The UN has indicated that its post 2015 goals include continuing with the Millennium Development goals in addition to advancing sustainable development and addressing gaps related to health and gender, among other things. We expect to address these issues head on in the conference where we will collaborate with nongovernmental organizations, civil society groups, governmental organizations, the medical community and social entrepreneurs.

Topic.Maternal and Child Health-Beyond the Millennium Development Goals.
Date: 2018
Venue: TBA

CALL FOR PAPER SUBMISSION COMING SOON.

Conference Accommodations 

Coming Soon

Immigration

 

Anyone seeking to enter the U.S. to attend the conference must either qualify under the Visa Waiver Program, or must apply for a tourist visa (B1/B2).  Tourist visa applicants must overcome a “presumption of immigrant intent,” in other words, you must actively prove to U.S. Immigration when applying for your visa that you do not intend to remain in the U.S. permanently.  You may do so by demonstrating strong ties to your country (having a good job; owning real estate; having close family ties).  If you are worried about your ability to get a visa, submitting an invitation letter from the conference organizers may help your chances.

First, determine if you qualify under the Visa Waiver Program, which allows citizens of 27 countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business, for 90 days or less, without obtaining a visa. You may read about the Visa Waiver Program and the qualifying countries.

If you do not qualify for the Visa Waiver Program and need to obtain a Visa, you may learn about Visa procedures at U.S. Department of State Temporary Visitors and Destination USA.

Locate your nearest U.S. Embassy or consulate.

Complete an electronic visa application that you can print and bring to your Visa interview.

After you fully register for the conference with payment, we can provide you with a letter confirming that you have registered and paid for attendance at the conference. You would bring this letter with you to your Visa interview.

 

Sponsorship packages:

 

CONFERENCE TITLE SPONSOR- $10,000- CONSIDER WHETHER THERE WILL BE ANY CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS WITH DRUG COMPANY

Cocktail reception sponsor- $5,000

5 complimentary conference registrations

exhibitor table for literature

premium placement for logo on printed material and conference background screens and website; link from Footprints and conference website to sponsor website

advertisement in conference syllabus

branded material in conference takeaway bag

 

Gold: $3,500  

5 complimentary conference registrations

exhibitor table for literature

premium placement for logo on printed material and conference background screens and website; link from Footprints and conference website to sponsor website

advertisement in conference syllabus

branded material in conference takeaway bag

Silver: $2,000

3 complimentary conference registrations

exhibitor table for literature

placement for logo on printed material and conference background screens and website; link from Footprints and conference website to sponsor website

advertisement in conference syllabus

branded material in conference takeaway bag

 

Bronze: $1000

1 complimentary conference registration

placement for logo on printed material and conference background screens and website; link from Footprints and conference website to sponsor website

advertisement in conference syllabus

branded material in conference takeaway bag

Additional Promotional Opportunities: 

Exhibitor:

Connect with over 150 students and professionals in the global health and funding field.

Corporations: $500

Academic Institutions: $250

NGOs $150

Program Advertising:

Advertise in the conference program and connect participants with your resources for improving health. Materials to be approved in advance by conference organizers. B/W only.  

Full page

$500 

Half page

$250 

PATRON LEVEL—ONE LINE IN PROGRAM- $50.00

Literature/branded products in takeaway bags-

$250- reach all attendees. Content to be approved by conference organizers.

 

 

 

 

 

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Clean Birthing Kit Assemble Day at St Stephens Episcopal Church

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Date: Saturday, September 20 2014
Time: 9 am- 12 noon
Venue:St Stephen’s Episcopal Church,Coconut Grove
3439 Main Hwy
Coconut Grove,Florida
305-445-2606

Cost Per Kit:$7.00

Cost To Register Team:$70.00
Team:10 persons

T Shirt.$15.00

 

Team Goal: 50 Clean Birthing Kits.

Name your team.

Goal for the Day: 2000 clean birthing kit for the Mothers in Africa

This is where they are delivering their Babies

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If you prefer to donate by mail, please send a check to :

Footprints Foundation 4000 Ponce Deleon Blvd. Ste 470,Miami Fl 33133

TEAMS

BOOM Committee​

​Barnes Circle​

​One Grove Foundation

Lorna Owens. Amazing Grace

Dr. David Farcy. Team Farcy Works.

Michelle Menendez. Robin’s Angel

Hialeah Rotary. TEAM HIALEAH MIAMI SPRINGS ROTARY

Hope Powell

Maria Estevez

Carolyn Johnson

Susan Karms

Women’s Club,Coconut Grove.

Robbie Bell

 

 

THE EVENT

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July Sip and Tweet Networker

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Footprints Foundation Networker

Complimentary Glass of Wine & Complimentary Passed Hors d’oeuvres Followed by Cash Bar

Thursday, July 31, 2014

6pm-9pm

Venue.TK’s at the Villa Mayfair
2901 Florida Ave
Coconut Grove, FL 33133
Cost:$10.00.Minimum Donation.www.footprints-foundation.
At the Door: $15.00

FOR DINNER RESERVATION

Contact (305) 774-1500 for reservation email:info@tksvillamayfair.com

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Host. Lorna Owens Esq, Bridgette Brooks Sharpton and Angelica  Jones  Esq.

Bring lots of Cards

RSVP info@footprints-foundation.org or 305-573-8423











If you prefer to donate by mail, please send a check to :

Footprints Foundation 4000 Ponce Deleon Blvd .

Ste 470 Coral Gables Florida 33146

Raffle. Dance Lesson from Fred Astaire Studios,Coral Gables
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Project Motherhood is a Blessing Town Hall Meeting Florida City

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CALLING ALL STAKEHOLDERS TO ATTEND TOWN HALL MEETING

Format: Community Discussion

Purpose: Reduce Maternal and Infant Mortality in Florida City

Where: City Hall

Date: Friday June 27,2014

Time : 6:30pm

Please bring a friend. RSVP 305-573-8423 or info@footprints-foundation.org

 

COME WITH FRESH IDEAS

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FOOTPRINTS FOUNDATION JUNE SIP AND TWEET

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Footprints Foundation Networker

Complimentary Glass of Wine & Complimentary Passed Hors d’oeuvres Followed by Cash Bar

Wednesday,June 11,2014

6pm-9pm

Venue.The Grove Isle Hotel & Spa
Four Grove Isle Drive
Coconut Grove, FL 33133
Cost:$10.00.Minimum Donation.www.footprints-foundation.
SPECTACULAR WATERFRONT DINING.THE ULTIMATE EXPERIENCE

FOR DINNER RESERVATION

Contact (305) 857-5007 for reservations or email dining@groveisle.com.

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Host. Lorna Owens and Jennifer Rosado

Bring lots of Cards

RSVP info@footprints-foundation.org or 305-573-8423











If you prefer to donate by mail, please send a check to :

Footprints Foundation 4000 Ponce Deleon Blvd .

Ste 470 Coral Gables Florida 33146

Raffle. Dance Lesson from Fred Astaire Studios,Coral Gables
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THE EVENT

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Simple Plastic Bags Save Lives of Premies

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In the United States, some very premature babies are swaddled in sterile plastic wrap to keep their body temperature from dropping dangerously. Now a study of newborns in Zambia suggests that the technique can be duplicated cheaply and effectively in poorer countries — using simple plastic bags.

“These are regular plastic bags, similar to grocery bags,” said an author of the study, Dr. Waldemar A. Carlo, a neonatal care specialist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. “We bought them for as little as 2 cents each. That’s the beauty of it.”

The skin of premature babies is very thin, and water evaporates quickly through it, sometimes leading to life-threatening heat loss, especially in a poor country where heat on neonatal wards can be unsteady.

In the hospital in Lusaka, Zambia, where the study was conducted, the average temperature in the birth wards was near 80 degrees, Dr. Carlo said, but it fluctuated when heaters were moved and windows were opened.

The babies were placed on their mothers’ chests right after birth in typical “kangaroo care,” he said. But kangaroo care is not always enough to warm a child, and when babies were taken to be weighed or observed or because the mother fell asleep or needed medical treatment, putting them in a plastic bag before wrapping them in a blanket did a better job of keeping them warm than a blanket alone.

In the study, published in the journal Pediatrics, there were no instances of overheating or of skin rashes from bag contact.

DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

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THE FIGHT AGAINST FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION

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If you prefer to donate by mail, please send a check to :

Footprints Foundation 4000 Ponce Deleon Blvd .

Ste 470 Coral Gables Florida 33146

HUMAN RIGHTS

The fight against female genital mutilation

Between 130 and 150 million women are victims of genital mutilation – most of them are Africans. Now, doctors, teachers and social workers in Germany are increasingly being confronted by this practice.

A worker with some of the tools used for FGM in Africa. (Photo: Ursula Düren/dpa)

Somalian Jawahir Cumar moved to Germany with her parents when she was a girl. Later, on a visit to her grandparents’ village when she was 20, Jawahir witnessed the funeral of young girl who had bled to death after being “circumcised.”

“And then I saw another case,” the now 36 year old says. “A pregnant woman was in labor. She had never been to a doctor, there was nowhere for her to get ultrasound in the area – the next hospital was 900 kilometers away, in Mogadishu. After the birth of the child, the woman was sewn up again.”

The midwife had overlooked the fact that the woman had been carrying twins, so she was still in pain. She was later transported to Mogadishu by car – a journey that took two days. And although she survived, the second twin died.

Severe health damage

Jawahir Cumar is the founder of an organization called Stop Mutilation (Photo: DW)Jawahir Cumar is the founder of the organization “Stop Mutilation”

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is currently practiced in 29 African countries, despite being illegal in some. It is usually done when girls are between the ages of four and eight – using varying instruments, ranging from razor blades, kitchen knives to broken glass and tin lids. And because these tools are used more than once, it also increases the risk of spreading diseases like HIV/AIDS and hepatitis.

Female genital mutilation includes procedures that intentionally alter or cause injury to female genitalia for non-medical reasons, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). These practices include partial or total removal of the clitoris, the removal of the labia and narrowing the vaginal opening by creating a covering seal to leave a small opening of about two to four millimeters.

About 15 percent of the women who have been cut (especially in Somalia and Sudan) have also undergone infibulation, which results in the vaginal opening being almost sealed completely.

“If the vagina is almost closed, urine and menstrual fluids can hardly be discharged and remain trapped as a result,” explains Dr. Christoph Zerm, a gynecologist who specializes in counseling and treating women who have undergone FGM.

“This creates an environment that is conducive for infections. It can cause severe illness in the urinary tract and even the kidney. The uterus, ovaries and the fallopian tubes can also get infected,” he adds.

And for these women, even urinating, which can take up to 30 minutes, is painful.

Raising awareness in Germany

A doctor treating a woman who has been mutilated A doctor treating a woman who has been circumcised

Jawahir was just a girl when she was cut. As a result, she had to have several surgeries in Germany to reverse the infibulation. She wants to prevent other girls and women from having a similar experience. That’s why she founded “Stop Mutilation.”

“The immigrants that come here bring this problem with them. That’s what made me create this organization in 1996,” says Jawahir, who is now a mother of three.

An estimated 30,000 women living in Germany have been been subjected to FGM and 6,000 girls are at risk, according to human rights organization Terre des Femmes. Pressure from families in their countries of origin plays a big role.

“Mothers-in-law and grandmothers, especially, call all the time, write letters and send messages,” says Jawahir Cumar. And the message is always the same, “[they say] you have to cut your daughters! Or just bring them to us and we will do it,” she adds.

Jawahir visits kindergartens and advises teachers on how they can raise awareness about FGM. She also targets African immigrants in her advocacy work.

“Many of them don’t know that [female genital mutilation] is prohibited in Germany. They are shocked when they hear that they could lose custody for their children,” Jawahir says.

She was able to prevent 17 girls from getting being subjected to FGM last year.

Getting Africans to ban FGM

Somalian Fadumo Korn also talks about FGM with immigrant families from Somalia and other African countries. She warns them that it can result in a prison sentence or deportation.

“It only works from one African to another,” she says, because Europeans are often not seen as the right people to raise awareness in Africa.

“It is easy for me because I am also a victim. No one can tell me that genital mutilation isn’t bad,” Fadumo adds.

Together with Nala, an association in Frankfurt, she was able to convince 18,000 people from a community in northeastern Burkina Faso to publicly renounce FGM.

“We got support from the local imam and the head priest of the Christian community, as well as the chief of this region for our campaign. These three men stood up and told their community that FGM is forbidden,” Fadumo explains.

Even though religion is often used to justify FGM, neither Islam nor Christianity demand it of their followers. Fadumo believes it is important for religious leaders to clearly speak out against the practice to change tradition in their communities.

“Whether it’s Islam or Christianity, we use all religions to tell people, ‘Your God will be angry with you, if you circumcise his children,'” she says.

Re-education is key

Plays about the effects of female genital mutilation help to raise awareness (Photo: Weltfriendensdient e.V.)Plays about the effects of female genital mutilation help to raise awareness

Both Jawahir and Fadomo, and activists in Africa face major challenges in the fight against female genital mutilation. Women practicing FGM have to be re-educated and families have to be convinced to let their daughters grow up without being cut.

“Men have to learn than a woman who is not cut can also have children and make her husband happy,” Jawahir Cumar says, while adding that families also need to recognize the importance of education for their daughters.

But there’s still a lot of work to be done in Germany as well, says Jawahir, pointing to how long it took for forced marriages and “honor killings” to be regarded as a criminal offence and not simply as the customs of immigrants.

Gynecologist Christoph Zerm would like medical students to learn more about FGM, so doctors can provide better care to women who are affected.

DW.DE

IN FOCUS: Putting a stop to female genital mutilation

Author Mirjam Gehrke / es
Copied from DW

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MUSIC BY TWILIGHT WAS VERY SUCCESSFUL. THANK YOU

 

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