Secretary Clinton's Foundation Work Update

podesta-emails 3,041 words email

P22 D6 P17 V14 V11

-----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- mQQBBGBjDtIBH6DJa80zDBgR+VqlYGaXu5bEJg9HEgAtJeCLuThdhXfl5Zs32RyB I1QjIlttvngepHQozmglBDmi2FZ4S+wWhZv10bZCoyXPIPwwq6TylwPv8+buxuff B6tYil3VAB9XKGPyPjKrlXn1fz76VMpuTOs7OGYR8xDidw9EHfBvmb+sQyrU1FOW aPHxba5lK6hAo/KYFpTnimsmsz0Cvo1sZAV/EFIkfagiGTL2J/NhINfGPScpj8LB bYelVN/NU4c6Ws1ivWbfcGvqU4lymoJgJo/l9HiV6X2bdVyuB24O3xeyhTnD7laf epykwxODVfAt4qLC3J478MSSmTXS8zMumaQMNR1tUUYtHCJC0xAKbsFukzbfoRDv m2zFCCVxeYHvByxstuzg0SurlPyuiFiy2cENek5+W8Sjt95nEiQ4suBldswpz1Kv n71t7vd7zst49xxExB+tD+vmY7GXIds43Rb05dqksQuo2yCeuCbY5RBiMHX3d4nU 041jHBsv5wY24j0N6bpAsm/s0T0Mt7IO6UaN33I712oPlclTweYTAesW3jDpeQ7A ioi0CMjWZnRpUxorcFmzL/Cc/fPqgAtnAL5GIUuEOqUf8AlKmzsKcnKZ7L2d8mxG QqN16nlAiUuUpchQNMr+tAa1L5S1uK/fu6thVlSSk7KMQyJfVpwLy6068a1WmNj4 yxo9HaSeQNXh3cui+61qb9wlrkwlaiouw9+bpCmR0V8+XpWma/D/TEz9tg5vkfNo eG4t+FUQ7QgrrvIkDNFcRyTUO9cJHB+kcp2NgCcpCwan3wnuzKka9AWFAitpoAwx L6BX0L8kg/LzRPhkQnMOrj/tuu9hZrui4woqURhWLiYi2aZe7WCkuoqR/qMGP6qP EQRcvndTWkQo6K9BdCH4ZjRqcGbY1wFt/qgAxhi+uSo2IWiM1fRI4eRCGifpBtYK Dw44W9uPAu4cgVnAUzESEeW0bft5XXxAqpvyMBIdv3YqfVfOElZdKbteEu4YuOao FLpbk4ajCxO4Fzc9AugJ8iQOAoaekJWA7TjWJ6CbJe8w3thpznP0w6jNG8ZleZ6a jHckyGlx5wzQTRLVT5+wK6edFlxKmSd93jkLWWCbrc0Dsa39OkSTDmZPoZgKGRhp Yc0C4jePYreTGI6p7/H3AFv84o0fjHt5fn4GpT1Xgfg+1X/wmIv7iNQtljCjAqhD 6XN+QiOAYAloAym8lOm9zOoCDv1TSDpmeyeP0rNV95OozsmFAUaKSUcUFBUfq9FL uyr+rJZQw2DPfq2wE75PtOyJiZH7zljCh12fp5yrNx6L7HSqwwuG7vGO4f0ltYOZ dPKzaEhCOO7o108RexdNABEBAAG0Rldpa2lMZWFrcyBFZGl0b3JpYWwgT2ZmaWNl IEhpZ2ggU2VjdXJpdHkgQ29tbXVuaWNhdGlvbiBLZXkgKDIwMjEtMjAyNCmJBDEE EwEKACcFAmBjDtICGwMFCQWjmoAFCwkIBwMFFQoJCAsFFgIDAQACHgECF4AACgkQ nG3NFyg+RUzRbh+eMSKgMYOdoz70u4RKTvev4KyqCAlwji+1RomnW7qsAK+l1s6b ugOhOs8zYv2ZSy6lv5JgWITRZogvB69JP94+Juphol6LIImC9X3P/bcBLw7VCdNA mP0XQ4OlleLZWXUEW9EqR4QyM0RkPMoxXObfRgtGHKIkjZYXyGhUOd7MxRM8DBzN yieFf3CjZNADQnNBk/ZWRdJrpq8J1W0dNKI7IUW2yCyfdgnPAkX/lyIqw4ht5UxF VGrva3PoepPir0TeKP3M0BMxpsxYSVOdwcsnkMzMlQ7TOJlsEdtKQwxjV6a1vH+t k4TpR4aG8fS7ZtGzxcxPylhndiiRVwdYitr5nKeBP69aWH9uLcpIzplXm4DcusUc Bo8KHz+qlIjs03k8hRfqYhUGB96nK6TJ0xS7tN83WUFQXk29fWkXjQSp1Z5dNCcT sWQBTxWxwYyEI8iGErH2xnok3HTyMItdCGEVBBhGOs1uCHX3W3yW2CooWLC/8Pia qgss3V7m4SHSfl4pDeZJcAPiH3Fm00wlGUslVSziatXW3499f2QdSyNDw6Qc+chK hUFflmAaavtpTqXPk+Lzvtw5SSW+iRGmEQICKzD2chpy05mW5v6QUy+G29nchGDD rrfpId2Gy1VoyBx8FAto4+6BOWVijrOj9Boz7098huotDQgNoEnidvVdsqP+P1RR QJekr97idAV28i7iEOLd99d6qI5xRqc3/QsV+y2ZnnyKB10uQNVPLgUkQljqN0wP XmdVer+0X+aeTHUd1d64fcc6M0cpYefNNRCsTsgbnWD+x0rjS9RMo+Uosy41+IxJ 6qIBhNrMK6fEmQoZG3qTRPYYrDoaJdDJERN2E5yLxP2SPI0rWNjMSoPEA/gk5L91 m6bToM/0VkEJNJkpxU5fq5834s3PleW39ZdpI0HpBDGeEypo/t9oGDY3Pd7JrMOF zOTohxTyu4w2Ql7jgs+7KbO9PH0Fx5dTDmDq66jKIkkC7DI0QtMQclnmWWtn14BS KTSZoZekWESVYhORwmPEf32EPiC9t8zDRglXzPGmJAPISSQz+Cc9o1ipoSIkoCCh 2MWoSbn3KFA53vgsYd0vS/+Nw5aUksSleorFns2yFgp/w5Ygv0D007k6u3DqyRLB W5y6tJLvbC1ME7jCBoLW6nFEVxgDo727pqOpMVjGGx5zcEokPIRDMkW/lXjw+fTy c6misESDCAWbgzniG/iyt77Kz711unpOhw5aemI9LpOq17AiIbjzSZYt6b1Aq7Wr aB+C1yws2ivIl9ZYK911A1m69yuUg0DPK+uyL7Z86XC7hI8B0IY1MM/MbmFiDo6H dkfwUckE74sxxeJrFZKkBbkEAQRgYw7SAR+gvktRnaUrj/84Pu0oYVe49nPEcy/7 5Fs6LvAwAj+JcAQPW3uy7D7fuGFEQguasfRrhWY5R87+g5ria6qQT2/Sf19Tpngs d0Dd9DJ1MMTaA1pc5F7PQgoOVKo68fDXfjr76n1NchfCzQbozS1HoM8ys3WnKAw+ Neae9oymp2t9FB3B+To4nsvsOM9KM06ZfBILO9NtzbWhzaAyWwSrMOFFJfpyxZAQ 8VbucNDHkPJjhxuafreC9q2f316RlwdS+XjDggRY6xD77fHtzYea04UWuZidc5zL VpsuZR1nObXOgE+4s8LU5p6fo7jL0CRxvfFnDhSQg2Z617flsdjYAJ2JR4apg3Es G46xWl8xf7t227/0nXaCIMJI7g09FeOOsfCmBaf/ebfiXXnQbK2zCbbDYXbrYgw6 ESkSTt940lHtynnVmQBvZqSXY93MeKjSaQk1VKyobngqaDAIIzHxNCR941McGD7F qHHM2YMTgi6XXaDThNC6u5msI1l/24PPvrxkJxjPSGsNlCbXL2wqaDgrP6LvCP9O uooR9dVRxaZXcKQjeVGxrcRtoTSSyZimfjEercwi9RKHt42O5akPsXaOzeVjmvD9 EB5jrKBe/aAOHgHJEIgJhUNARJ9+dXm7GofpvtN/5RE6qlx11QGvoENHIgawGjGX Jy5oyRBS+e+KHcgVqbmV9bvIXdwiC4BDGxkXtjc75hTaGhnDpu69+Cq016cfsh+0 XaRnHRdh0SZfcYdEqqjn9CTILfNuiEpZm6hYOlrfgYQe1I13rgrnSV+EfVCOLF4L P9ejcf3eCvNhIhEjsBNEUDOFAA6J5+YqZvFYtjk3efpM2jCg6XTLZWaI8kCuADMu yrQxGrM8yIGvBndrlmmljUqlc8/Nq9rcLVFDsVqb9wOZjrCIJ7GEUD6bRuolmRPE SLrpP5mDS+wetdhLn5ME1e9JeVkiSVSFIGsumZTNUaT0a90L4yNj5gBE40dvFplW 7TLeNE/ewDQk5LiIrfWuTUn3CqpjIOXxsZFLjieNgofX1nSeLjy3tnJwuTYQlVJO 3CbqH1k6cOIvE9XShnnuxmiSoav4uZIXnLZFQRT9v8UPIuedp7TO8Vjl0xRTajCL PdTk21e7fYriax62IssYcsbbo5G5auEdPO04H/+v/hxmRsGIr3XYvSi4ZWXKASxy a/jHFu9zEqmy0EBzFzpmSx+FrzpMKPkoU7RbxzMgZwIYEBk66Hh6gxllL0JmWjV0 iqmJMtOERE4NgYgumQT3dTxKuFtywmFxBTe80BhGlfUbjBtiSrULq59np4ztwlRT wDEAVDoZbN57aEXhQ8jjF2RlHtqGXhFMrg9fALHaRQARAQABiQQZBBgBCgAPBQJg Yw7SAhsMBQkFo5qAAAoJEJxtzRcoPkVMdigfoK4oBYoxVoWUBCUekCg/alVGyEHa ekvFmd3LYSKX/WklAY7cAgL/1UlLIFXbq9jpGXJUmLZBkzXkOylF9FIXNNTFAmBM 3TRjfPv91D8EhrHJW0SlECN+riBLtfIQV9Y1BUlQthxFPtB1G1fGrv4XR9Y4TsRj VSo78cNMQY6/89Kc00ip7tdLeFUHtKcJs+5EfDQgagf8pSfF/TWnYZOMN2mAPRRf fh3SkFXeuM7PU/X0B6FJNXefGJbmfJBOXFbaSRnkacTOE9caftRKN1LHBAr8/RPk pc9p6y9RBc/+6rLuLRZpn2W3m3kwzb4scDtHHFXXQBNC1ytrqdwxU7kcaJEPOFfC XIdKfXw9AQll620qPFmVIPH5qfoZzjk4iTH06Yiq7PI4OgDis6bZKHKyyzFisOkh DXiTuuDnzgcu0U4gzL+bkxJ2QRdiyZdKJJMswbm5JDpX6PLsrzPmN314lKIHQx3t NNXkbfHL/PxuoUtWLKg7/I3PNnOgNnDqCgqpHJuhU1AZeIkvewHsYu+urT67tnpJ AK1Z4CgRxpgbYA4YEV1rWVAPHX1u1okcg85rc5FHK8zh46zQY1wzUTWubAcxqp9K 1IqjXDDkMgIX2Z2fOA1plJSwugUCbFjn4sbT0t0YuiEFMPMB42ZCjcCyA1yysfAd DYAmSer1bq47tyTFQwP+2ZnvW/9p3yJ4oYWzwMzadR3T0K4sgXRC2Us9nPL9k2K5 TRwZ07wE2CyMpUv+hZ4ja13A/1ynJZDZGKys+pmBNrO6abxTGohM8LIWjS+YBPIq trxh8jxzgLazKvMGmaA6KaOGwS8vhfPfxZsu2TJaRPrZMa/HpZ2aEHwxXRy4nm9G Kx1eFNJO6Ues5T7KlRtl8gflI5wZCCD/4T5rto3SfG0s0jr3iAVb3NCn9Q73kiph PSwHuRxcm+hWNszjJg3/W+Fr8fdXAh5i0JzMNscuFAQNHgfhLigenq+BpCnZzXya 01kqX24AdoSIbH++vvgE0Bjj6mzuRrH5VJ1Qg9nQ+yMjBWZADljtp3CARUbNkiIg tUJ8IJHCGVwXZBqY4qeJc3h/RiwWM2UIFfBZ+E06QPznmVLSkwvvop3zkr4eYNez cIKUju8vRdW6sxaaxC/GECDlP0Wo6lH0uChpE3NJ1daoXIeymajmYxNt+drz7+pd jMqjDtNA2rgUrjptUgJK8ZLdOQ4WCrPY5pP9ZXAO7+mK7S3u9CTywSJmQpypd8hv 8Bu8jKZdoxOJXxj8CphK951eNOLYxTOxBUNB8J2lgKbmLIyPvBvbS1l1lCM5oHlw WXGlp70pspj3kaX4mOiFaWMKHhOLb+er8yh8jspM184= =5a6T -----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- Hi everyone- We have had several great events over the past few weeks advancing Secretary Clinton's Foundation initiatives that I wanted to share with you. Youth Employment * As you know from past updates, Too Small to Fail, our early childhood program, and No Ceilings: The Full Participation Project are both well underway, and now I'm happy to share that our third effort around youth employment will take center stage at the Clinton Global Initiative-America later this month in Denver. In advance of that, this past Monday, Secretary Clinton was in Denver where she visited a manufacturing company and met with small business leaders, young people, educators and nonprofits to discuss how to build better workforce pathways for at-risk youth. As part of her visit, she toured the facility and spoke with young trainees on the factory floor about their experiences getting into their jobs and moving up the career ladder. Throughout the visit, she heard personal, and often emotional, stories illustrating the importance of exposing young people to workplace environments for lifetime success. The event highlighted the scope of the workforce challenge facing young people and businesses today, as well as helped secure partners for the youth employment commitments that the Secretary will announce at CGI-America on June 24th. You can watch local Denver news coverage of the visit HERE<http://www.9news.com/story/news/local/politics/2014/06/02/hillary-clinton-to-speak-at-broomfield-event/9868653/>, read an article from the Denver Post HERE<http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_25882167/hillary-clinton-visits-denver-plastics-molding-factory?source=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+dp-politics+%28Denver+Post%3A+Politics%3A+All+Political+News%29> and read a blog post by the owner of the plant HERE<http://www.clintonfoundation.org/blog/2014/06/05/molding-better-world>. * Prior to her Denver visit, Secretary Clinton delivered keynote remarks at the New America Foundation's "Big Ideas" conference on May 16th in which she spoke about her Foundation efforts with an emphasis on economic mobility and empowering young people to more fully participate in the economy. She previewed the announcement she will make at CGI-America to engage businesses in providing new workplace-based training, mentoring and hiring opportunities to at-risk youth. You can find her remarks HERE<http://www.c-span.org/video/?319433-1/hillary-clinton-public-policy-address> and a New York Times article on the speech HERE<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/17/us/politics/clinton-calls-for-expanding-economic-opportunities.html?_r=0>. No Ceilings: The Full Participation Project<http://www.clintonfoundation.org/our-work/no-ceilings-full-participation-project> * On May 14, Secretary Clinton participated in a panel discussion with World Bank President Jim Kim and UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka to announce the release of the World Bank Report Voice and Agency: Empowering Women and Girls for Shared Prosperity. Data from this report will be included in the No Ceilings Progress Report which will be released in early 2015. You can read a Politico story on the event HERE<http://www.politico.com/story/2014/05/hillary-clinton-daughters-106693.html> or watch it in its entirety HERE<http://live.worldbank.org/voice-and-agency-empowering-women-hillary-rodham-clinton>. * On May 30, Chelsea Clinton hosted Education: A No Ceilings Conversation, a Google Hangout to discuss the state of girls' education globally. Chelsea was joined by Rebecca Winthrop, Director of the Center for Universal Education at the Brookings Institution, and Kennedy Odede, Founder of Shining Hope for Communities, in a wide-ranging conversation that touched on the importance of quality education, engaging men in the community to support education for girls, and ensuring the safety of girls who attend school. You can watch the hangout HERE<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meZARkiPqwE> and read an Elle Magazine piece on it HERE<http://www.elle.com/news/lifestyle/girls-education-clinton-foundation>. Coming up next will be CGI-America where, in addition to announcing youth employment commitments, the Secretary will mark the one year anniversary of Too Small to Fail. Stay tuned for that update and, as always, please do not hesitate to send any feedback, ideas, or other thoughts! -Maura Youth Employment Hillary Clinton visits Denver plastics molding factory By Jon Murray June 2, 2014 Denver Post Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's visit Monday morning to a Denver plastics molding factory focused on the need to recruit more young people into such work. Clinton, who is in town to give a speech in Broomfield Monday night and is considering whether to run for president in 2016, spent about 45 minutes on the factory floor at Intertech Plastics Inc. in northeast Denver. Her tour guides included Intertech CEO Noel Ginsburg. The visit at times had the trappings of a celebrity spectacle, with employees lining up with the media to capture photos of Clinton, who has focused on youth employment for the Clinton Foundation. And she will return to Denver later this month for the Clinton Global Initiative-America conference. A few times, she stopped to speak out of earshot with employees, including some, like Marissa Medina, who are in training programs. A smile washed over Medina's face after the encounter. Clinton then ducked into a conference room for a roundtable discussion about the need for training programs and recruitment efforts to draw more people into skilled trades. Ginsburg said it has been a challenge "to bring young people into our industry." "We just saw some great examples in our walk around the factory," Clinton said. Other participants in the session, which was closed to news coverage except at the start, included representatives from Intertech, area small businesses and Denver Public Schools. Also at the table were two young former Intertech interns, Kayden Garcia and Oscar Olivas. Olivas got a smile out of Clinton when he passed to her a photo of him posing with then-President Bill Clinton as a child. Clinton Calls for Expanding Economic Opportunities By Ashley Parker May 16, 2014 New York Times WASHINGTON - Hillary Rodham Clinton weighed in on the debate over income inequality on Friday, calling for policies intended to help the struggling middle class, in a speech that seemed suited to a campaign. Addressing the New America Foundation, a public policy group, Mrs. Clinton - a former first lady, senator and secretary of state, and a possible 2016 presidential candidate - appealed to the progressive wing of her party, calling for policies that would promote broad-based economic growth and help everyone from the so-called millennial generation to women gain the skills they need to succeed in a global economy. "The dream of upward mobility that made this country a model for the world feels further and further out of reach," Mrs. Clinton said, "and many Americans understandably feel frustrated, even angry." She emphasized the importance of education to help close what experts call "the achievement gap" and talked about "Too Small to Fail," a new early childhood initiative she began through the Clinton Global Initiative, the foundation her husband, the former President Bill Clinton, founded. She also called for more skills and work force training programs to help young Americans get and hold jobs. She added that the Clinton Global Initiative, for its conference in Denver next month, is assembling a network of businesses that are committed to "expanding hiring, training, mentoring - hopefully to create a virtuous ripple throughout the economy." Mrs. Clinton drew on personal accounts as well, talking about the belief of her mother, Dorothy Rodham, in what Mrs. Clinton called "the basic bargain of America." Mrs. Clinton described that view as, "No matter who you are or where you come from, if you work hard and play by the rules, you'll have the opportunity to build a good life for yourself and your family." But, she continued: "Unfortunately, it's no secret that for too many families in America today, that isn't the way it works anymore. Instead of getting ahead, they're finding it harder than ever to get their footing in our changing economy." Her speech, which was laced with statistics and details from economic and social studies, seemed to tap into a populist moment in the country, one that has been embraced in different dimensions: on the right by the Tea Party movement that sprang up during the financial crisis, and on the left by the prescriptions of Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, and Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York City. Mrs. Clinton said that some are calling the current climate "a throwback to the Gilded Age of the robber barons." Referring to the struggle of a generic single mother - one of "some 10 million single moms trying hard to make it in America today" - Mrs. Clinton painted a bleak picture: "Religious and community organizations are weaker, the schools never seem good enough, there are few quality affordable child care options. She doesn't just face ceilings on her aspirations and opportunities. Sometimes it feels as is the floor has collapsed beneath her. "Now," she added, "these are the kinds of daily struggles of millions and millions of Americans, those fighting to get into the middle class and those fighting to stay there." But Mrs. Clinton also took a detour to reminisce about the sunnier economic times during the presidency of her husband. "The 1990s taught us that even in the face of difficult long-term economic trends, it's possible through smart policies and sound investments to enjoy broad-based growth and shared prosperity," she said. Turning to a speech Mr. Clinton gave last month at Georgetown University, his undergraduate alma mater, in which he defended his economic legacy, she rattled off what she called his accomplishments: "23 million new jobs were created, raising the minimum wage, doubling the earned-income tax credit." "Yes, a rising tide really did lift all boats," she said. She briefly praised President Obama for his "years of painstaking work and strong leadership" to "get our economy growing again," and implicitly criticized the administration of the former President George W. Bush, without mentioning his name. Following her time as first lady, Mrs. Clinton recalled watching from a perch on the Senate Budget Committee, as New York's junior senator, how the "new administration" made "different choices" from her husband's. "The next eight years taught us different lessons about how by policy choices we can turn surpluses into debt, we can return to rising deficits," she said. "That's what happens when your only policy prescription is to cut taxes for the wealthy, and then to deal with the aftermath of a terrible terrorist attack and two wars without paying for them." No Ceilings: The Full Participation Project Hillary Clinton to leaders: Help all daughters By Katie Glueck May 14, 2014 Politico Hillary Clinton returned Wednesday to one of her favorite subjects, calling for a broader conversation about empowering women and girls, and urging world leaders to think not just of their own daughters but also of their "countries' daughters." It was a familiar subject in front of a friendly audience for the potential 2016 Democratic presidential contender, who has faced days of extra-intense scrutiny after Monica Lewinsky published an essay in Vanity Fair and GOP strategist Karl Rove questioned the former secretary of state's health. Clinton reflected on the progress women have achieved and the challenges that remain since she famously declared, at a 1995 conference in Beijing, "human rights are women's rights, and women's rights are human rights." "I am increasingly impatient with leaders who willfully ignore the injustice that accompanies the subjugation of women, and the upsides of change for them and for their societies," Clinton said during the discussion in Washington hosted by the World Bank. Clinton described higher education as an area where there has been progress, but barriers still remain. "Even in our country, we have more young women in higher education, more young women graduating, but that isn't necessarily demonstrated in equal wages for equal work; it isn't demonstrated in high level positions in the private sector or even the public sector," she said. In particular, she pointed to a lack of progress for women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics fields, often referred to as STEM. "Part of it is the unwelcoming atmosphere that those professions are offering and the way," she said. "Young women are made to feel as outliers, unwelcome, not given the same opportunities. We have to go back at it." The discussion, tied to a new report offering extensive data about women's global standing, often waded into academic territory, with plenty of talk about social and cultural "norms." Those norms can't be changed without aiming to "broaden the conversation" to policymakers and beyond, of both genders, Clinton said. "The leaders often move away from social norms when comes to their own daughters," she said. "They're extremely proud of their daughters who go to Oxford or Harvard, who are in business...but they do not go beyond that. So they've broken the social norm on an exceptional basis, and it gives you an opening to make the argument, not just for your daughters but for your countries' daughters." An animated Clinton offered several anecdotes from her time at the State Department in which leaders had initially been dismissive of prioritizing what they perceived as less weighty women's issues, and talked about the best ways to shift that thinking. That might have included bringing the issue to light in a public way or talking about the subject in economic terms - asking leaders, "What is the opportunity cost?" Through her family's foundation, Clinton is spearheading the "No Ceilings" project, an effort to help women and girls advance around the world. Next year, the Clinton Foundation is partnering with a number of other outlets to release a progress report examining how far the world has come on a slate of women's issues since the 1995 gathering in Beijing, where a platform to promote women was adopted. Clinton noted that she's a "glass half-full" person on the issue of empowering women and girls. "Don't be discouraged, enlist more and more people in this very noble effort, and make the case," she urged the room. "I think history is on our side." Chelsea Clinton on How to Make Global Education for Girls a Priority By Rebecca Moss May 30, 2014 Elle Imagine walking around your town and being unable to read street signs. Perhaps you are ill and go into a health care clinic but you can't understand the words on the forms you are given or the direction on the bottle of medicine you receive. Illiteracy makes your world feel small and inaccessible. "It is incredibly oppressive," said Rebecca Winthrop, director of the Center for Universal Education at the Brookings Institution, as she described illiteracy-one of the primary obstacles to consider for the more than 15 million girls (as of 2011) who had not attended primary school and were expected never to enroll. In America, 32 million people are illiterate. Worldwide, this number skyrockets to 774 million with 66 percent of that number composed of women. Winthrope joined Chelsea Clinton and Kennedy Odede, founder of Shining Hope for Communities in Kenya, to discuss the challenge of global education for girls in a Google hangout today sponsored by the Clinton Foundation: "Education: A No Ceilings Conversation." The conversation is the second in the year-long "No Ceilings" series intended to bring together global thinkers and create a dialogue about how to best support and expand opportunities for girls worldwide. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has partnered with the Clinton Foundation to assess the progress made and obstacles that still exist for women over the last 20 years. While the political, economic, and cultural environment all shape the access and interest in education for girls, Winthrop put forward four main objectives that are crucial: early childhood and secondary education; improving the quality of the education itself; safety; and transition into the workforce. This last point is most pertinent in Arab nations where women surpass men in secondary education, but only 18 percent of working age women are employed after school. The discussion today was spurred by the rise of the "hashtag activism" that brought global attention to the kidnapping of 300 girls in Nigeria by Boko Haram. Clinton asked: Just how effective is social media in a situation like this? "The hashtag has been powerful for awareness. The Nigerian government took their time before [the hashtag]," said Odede, who created the first tuition-free school for girls in the Kibera slum of Nairobi. "I love how the world is becoming global like a village-that something from Nigeria gets to the White House," he continued. Winthrop voiced concern about continued awareness: "Once the girls are returned, does the issue evaporate?" she asked. Violence-including school attacks like that in Nigeria-impact an estimated 500 million to 1.5 billion children each year. Nicholas Kristof summed up this issue in an op-ed for The New York Times. "Why are fanatics so terrified of girls' education?" He asked. "Because there's no force more powerful to transform a society. The greatest threat to extremism isn't drones firing missiles, but girls reading books." While a global effort is vital, in underdeveloped areas, Odede believed it was crucial to also change the community perception, especially among male leaders, surrounding what education for women and girls means. "Make it practical for the parents," he said, "[When you] educate your daughter, you are opening opportunities for you, and for you daughter, and for the entire community." Shining Hope for Communities opened the Kibera School for Girls in 2009, and made water, health care, and a library available to the entire community, which created an incentive for men and women to see the benefits of educating their girls. It's challenging to imagine ourselves, in any part of the world, as what we can't see," said Clinton. Which is why girls need women role models they can see and interact with. Even teachers, especially in the STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, math) can empower young women to pursue careers in those areas where women are underepresented. "The number of women in the parliament gives me a lot of hope," said Odede. In Kenya it was the female parliamentary leaders that had a powerful voice in objecting to a bill that would allow polygamy in the country. Women deserve to be equal players in politics, economics, and science. That cannot happen if we don't place a precedent on education for girls now.