By: Chris Michael, Posted: Sep 25 08

Global

Environment, Food & health & development, Poverty

comic relief, develoment, Environment, equality, GCAP, hunger, MDGs, Oxfam, Poverty, save the children

As I write, world leaders are shuffling to their seats at the UN General Assembly to renew commitments to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and to set out concrete plans and practical steps for action. This year is the half-way point of the MDGs and though there have been some successes, we have a long way to go before we reach the benchmarks - or the preferable leaping over them. To keep the focus on action and accountability to reach the MDGs by 2015, the Global call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP), Oxfam International, Save the Children and Comic Relief have launched the in my name campaign.

The in my name campaign is off to a great start - and their use of video to inform, engage and inspire individual and collective action is worth noting. Firstly, the MDGs as a campaign focus is massive - a holistic analysis and call for action to address eight systemic issues ranging from poverty and hunger to gender equality and environmental sustainability. For anyone to quickly understand each issue and the commitments therein that governments made in 2000 is a significant hurdle in the first place - but to try with video!? That's a fantastic challenge that the in my name campaign took on and in Be the Generation have created one of the better campaign videos that I've seen in a while, despite its (understandable) length at just under eight minutes.

It has a Story-of-Stuff style to it, which resonated with millions despite its online video marathon length of 20 minutes. With help from snazzy graphics and a host of artists and activists from Angelique Kidjo, Annie Lennox and Will.i.am to former Presidents and members of The Elders Mary Robinson and Nelson Mandela, the video explains the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and commitments made by governments in 2000 and asks if this generation can be the one to dramatically change the current direction to create a more just, equitable and sustainable world.

In particular, I like how the video calls for individual action and links to the onus of responsibility on the individual to stand up and take action to pressure and ensure governments uphold their commitments. With a nice 'in my name' theme throughout the video, the website that we are driven to allows us to sign-on to the petition with a quickness - or dig a bit deeper with our online and offline actions, or start their own in connection with at GCAP's fantastic new campaign website Stand Up*.

Video plays a central role on the site, with Will.i.am of Black Eyed Peas welcoming us to the site and inviting us to learn more and take action and throughout the site the Be the Generation video is prominent. For now, we encourage you to check out video and get involved with the campaign. Additionally, we're hoping to meet-up with some of the architects of the video, site and campaign to pick their brain and learn more of their process creating the video and how they hope to use video throughout this campaign (again, we're only now at midfield of the MDGs). Stay tuned...

*Stand Up is a global mobilization from October 17-19 to end poverty and inequality and for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Last year, 43.7 million people joined Stand Up worldwide, setting a new world record. This year, they are hoping to break the record again with over 50 million. Learn more and join the masses online and offline at Stand Up.