Saving the Lives of 16 Million AUGUST 2012 In Focus: Young People Standing Up for Women’s and Children’s Health   Young People Standing Up for Women’s and Children’s Health August 12th is International Youth Day. Today’s youth make up the largest generation of young people the world has ever known: about 1.8 billion people that hold vast potential, yet face great challenges. They need access to knowledge, skills and services to thrive, drive economic growth and effect positive change around the world. More importantly, as they are entering their reproductive years, a growing number of young people are crucial actors in the fight to improve access to reproductive health services and to further advance women’s and children’s health in their communities. Image of adolescent girls in Ethiopia courtesy Johnson and Johnson's Project Mercy, Inc.       In this Issue Young People Standing Up for Women's and Children's Health Updates from July Partner Spotlight: International Federation of Medical Students’ Association News and Opinion Publications Twitter Calendar of Events Publications A monthly roundup of pertinent resources. Please submit your recent reports via email for consideration. UNAIDS Report: Together We Will End AIDS Grow and Know: The Girl Puberty Book Project UNICEF State of the World’s Children Report. Adolescents: An Age of Opportunity UNFPA:  Framework for Action on Adolescents and Youth UNFPA:  The Case for Investing in Young People Report of Consultative Meeting: Revitalizing the Partograph Health Sector Budget Advocacy: A Guide For Civil Society Organizations 2012-15 PMNCH Strategic Framework and Workplan Read More Publications and Resources » Quote of the Month "Youth are more than a demographic force; they are a force for progress. With eyes wide open, today’s young people are connected and engaged in the events around them….However, youth today need more than just hopes; they needed food, jobs and health care, and especially access to reproductive health services, with 6 million adolescent girls becoming mothers every year, and more than 2,000 young people contracting HIV daily.  More than 100 million adolescents are not in school, and more than 75 million young people are unemployed.  We need to ensure that young people have their place in the international agenda." United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at the opening of the Commission on Population and Development, April 2012. Calendar of Events August 12 International Youth Day August 29 Pan African Parliament Meeting of the Women Caucus Bureau View full calendar »   Updates from July At London Family Planning Summit, Global Leaders Pledge to Provide 120 Million Women with Access to Family Planning by 2020 — On July 11th the government of the United Kingdom and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation together with the United Nations Population Fund and partners hosted a groundbreaking summit, in support of Every Woman Every Child, to provide an additional 120 million women in the world’s poorest countries with lifesaving contraceptives, information, and services by 2020. PMNCH, in collaboration with the Innovation Working Group and the United Nations Foundation hosted a parallel session during the Summit to highlight the role of the private sector with a special focus on advancing this agenda. For more on the Family Planning Summit, visit the microsite, download the outcome document, or read the press release. The full list of commitments generated will be available soon at everywomaneverychild.org.  UK Prime Minister David Cameron, Melinda Gates, and UK International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell speak with advocates at the July 11th London Summit on Family Planning. Photograph: Carl Court/AP . Emphasis on Women and Children, Integration at XIX International AIDS Conference —  The International AIDS Conference (IAC) took place July 22nd – 27th in Washington, D.C. During the Conference, leaders from around the world called for greater attention to women's and children's health in the fight against HIV/AIDS. U.N. officials urged action to turn the tide against the epidemic. Read remarks by UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the Conference. Read a statement by United Nations Foundation CEO Kathy Calvin calling for increased integration of sexual and reproductive health services and HIV/AIDS programs. Watch the conference video and view tweets from Every Woman Every Child on Twitter for updates and news from the conference. World Health Organization Issues Call for Nominations to the iERG — The World Health Organization (WHO) is soliciting nominations to the independent Expert Review Group (iERG), a body that was created by the WHO following a recommendation of the UN Commission on Information and Accountability that will operate through 2015. Applications will be accepted through 31 August 2012. Learn more and apply. Partner Spotlight: International Federation of Medical Students’ Association The International Federation of Medical Students' Association commits to work with key stakeholders in learning institutions to review medical curricula on reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health (RMNCH) in 10-12 countries by September 2012, and further high burden countries by 2015. The group works to strengthen curricula in order to optimize learning on local and national RMNCH and health systems’ needs, as well as the global consensus on essential RMNCH interventions. Learn more. News and Opinion July 31 Post-2015 High-Level Panel Announced   July 30 Celebrate Solutions: Iran’s Family Planning Success Story   July 25 Women Need More Help in AIDS Battle, Experts Say   July 25 African Countries Laud Ghana’s Health Insurance Scheme   July 24 Health Versus Wealth (India)   July 24 To attack HIV and AIDS, put an end to TB (by Desmond Tutu)   July 24 Why social health insurance? (Philippines)   July 23 Celebrate Solutions: Convenient, Lifesaving HIV Testing in Tanzania   July 21 RESULTS Holds International Conference in Washington   July 16 African Leaders Advocate for Increased Financing of MDGs   July 12 MDG Health Alliance Announces New Initiative to Save Lives by Accelerating Access to Family Planning for Women Around the World   July 11 AIDS-free Generation? Not Without Women   July 9 Financial Times Report on Sexual and Reproductive Health is Testament to Power of Partnership   July 5 Family Planning Faces Hurdles in Uganda   July 3 MDG 4 & 5 “Open Health Initiative” holds Validation Workshops     See All News » Every Woman Every Child aims to save the lives of 16 million women and children by 2015.  It is an unprecedented global movement that mobilizes and intensifies international and national action by governments, multilaterals, the private sector and civil society to address the major health challenges facing women and children around the world. 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