Mayor McGinn proclaimed Monday Nov 1 “Global Action Day” in the City of Seattle, to raise awareness of the size and impact of the global health and development sector in Seattle and Washington State. This day coincided with Global Washington’s 3rd Annual Conference, “Opportunities and Obstacles in Turbulent Times”. Mayor McGinn provided opening remarks at the event.
Global Washington is a membership organization comprised of 140 organizations in the region that focus on global development work. They are a Seattle based organization that is spearheading the campaign to raise the profile of the sector and its reach and significance.
Mayor McGinn took the opportunity to talk to the conference attendees about his values and how our local decisions and actions directly affect the world at large. There is no longer a forced choice between the local and the global, they are now one and the same. Decisions which increase our dependency on fossil fuels result in continuing carbon emissions which generate conditions around the world that cause people to flee their homes and look for other places to live.
He also talked about Seattle’s large and diverse immigrant and refugee population, many of whom come from the same parts of the world that the global development organizations are operating, and provide a wonderful resource for them. Merging and convening these communities is an important task for the future.
This article by Tim Hanstead of Landesa perfectly captures the importance of the global development sector to Seattle and WA.
Global Washington Raises Awareness Of Global Health And Development Work
Seattle.gov | April Thomas | November 9, 2011