The Clinton Global Initiative reconvened Monday in New York after a six-year hiatus, with a variety of CEOs, government officials and Hollywood figures focused on global issues such as climate change and the war in Ukraine.
The event’s theme this year is “Keep Going,” with political, business and philanthropic leaders assembling to take “action on the world’s most pressing challenges,” according to the Clinton Foundation, the nonprofit established by former President Bill Clinton and his wife, former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
The Associated Press reported Monday that a key priority this year is the launch of the CGI Ukraine Action Network, a collaboration between Hillary Clinton and Ukraine’s first lady, Olena Zelenska.
The effort, set to be announced Tuesday, “is designed to mobilize existing CGI partners, as well as new leaders from around the world, to create and finance new commitments for Ukrainians,” the AP said.
The report said “numerous monetary commitments” for Ukraine also would be announced at the event.
As of July, the Biden administration and Congress had directed more than $75 billion to Ukraine, according to the Council on Foreign Relations — and that number has continued to grow.
Save Ukraine, a nonprofit that established community centers across that country to assist children and families impacted by the war, hopes the Clinton Foundation event will continue raising awareness about the human costs of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“We know that we have no choice — we must work hard and we are ready for that. But we also have this feeling of, ‘Guys, please don’t leave us because we want to be with you.’ If we are not with you, Russia is going to just erase us from the map of the world,” spokeswoman Olga Yerokhina said, according to the AP.
Several actors are using their influence in support of the Ukrainian effort.
Liev Schreiber, co-founder of BlueCheck Ukraine, which vets organizations assisting the country, spoke at the Clinton Global Initiative on Monday.
“I’m super proud of the global community,” Schreiber said, according to the AP. “This is a test for us. Do we really care? I think so far we’ve had remarkable success so far in supporting them. So many countries did something extraordinary to help. That’s significant. We can’t forget that.”
Actor Orlando Bloom, who serves as UNICEF’s goodwill ambassador, also spoke on a panel Monday and announced his commitment to raise $20 million to buy 50,000 laptops for Ukrainian children.
In addition to the focus on Ukraine this year, Hillary Clinton proclaimed that “gender equality” is now the fourth pillar of the Clinton Global Initiative.
“It is time to close the wage gap once and for all,” the former first lady said. “It is time to protect and expand access to reproductive health care, abortion and quality maternity care once and for all. It is time to ensure that every girl everywhere can get the education she deserves.”
While the former first lady argued for abortion, Pope Francis discussed “the care of children” during a panel discussion Monday with Bill Clinton, according to the AP.
“We are in need of a great and shared assumption of responsibility,” the pontiff said. “No challenge is too great if we meet it starting with personal conversion and the personal contribution that each of us can make to solve it. …
“No challenge can be overcome alone — not alone, only together, sisters and brothers, children of God.”
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