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Background

This campaign has its roots in the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. These are eight goals that provide clear, measurable targets and deadlines for improving the lives of the world’s poorest people. In 2000, 189 world leaders at the UN Millennium Summit committed to ending poverty by 2015 (learn more). They signed what became known as the “Millennium Declaration,” which included meeting these eight goals.

These goals are supported and reinforced by the United Nations Millennium Campaign (UNMC). Launched in 2002, the UNMC is a U.N. initiative to support and encourage people’s involvement and actions to realize the eight MDG’s and hold their government accountable for the millennium promise. It supports and inspires people to be part of the generation that puts an end to poverty.

The "Stand up & Speak Out" challenge was launched in 2006 as part of the UNMC. Organized around the world, it is run by NGO’s appointed by the UNMC and has at its heart, the symbolic gesture of getting civilians to stand up at a designated time in support of a goal. Though small, this symbolic gesture is a way that ordinary people - of all nationalities, ages and social categories - urge their leaders to respect their commitment to the MDG’s.

For 2008, the UNMC has invited the NGO’s coordinating the campaign locally to focus on the development goal of their choice (any one of the eight) and encourage their participants to not just stand up and speak out, but also Take Action in support of that goal. Three days have been allocated for this challenge: October 17th, 18th and 19th, 2008.

Did you know . . . the Stand Up campaign aims at breaking the Guinness World Record for the largest number of people standing up altogether in support of a cause! So far it has been very successful.