For
Immediate
Release

September
15,
2009


Contact:
Na
Eng,
917‐623‐8749,
neng@nyc.mercycorps.org

Joy
Portella,
206‐437‐7885
jportella@sea.mercycorps.org


Mercy
Corps
and
Reach
Out
To
Asia
Join
Forces
to
Expand
Youth
Activist

Network


Portland,
OR
–

The
global
relief
and
development
agency
Mercy
Corps
today

announced
a
bold
new
initiative
with
Reach
Out
To
Asia
(ROTA)
to
truly

internationalize
the
Global
Citizen
Corps,
an
initiative
that
equips
high
school
and

college
students
with
critical
skills
to
fight
global
poverty
and
mobilize
others

toward
peaceful
change.

This
partnership
with
ROTA
brings
in
$2
million
of
support
for
the
next
three
years,

and
will
allow
the
youth
activist
network
to
broaden
its
reach
significantly
across

continents.
The
program
will
bring
youth
together
from
the
United
States,
United

Kingdom,
Indonesia,
Pakistan,
Iraq,
Lebanon
and
Gaza.



“We
are
pleased
to
work
alongside
Mercy
Corps
to
help
prepare
young
people
for

the
great
global
challenges
of
their
generation,”
said
ROTA's
Director,
Omnia
Nour.


“By
sharing
our
collective
resources,
we
can
make
a
powerful
difference
in
young

people’s
lives.”


The
Global
Citizen
Corps
uses
social
networking
and
video
conferencing
technology

to
facilitate
dialogue
that
encourages
mutual
respect
and
advances
cross‐cultural

understanding.
Together,
Global
Citizen
Corps
leaders
from
different
countries

study
global
issues
such
as
climate
change,
health
care,
conflict,
water,
education

and
human
rights.
They
not
only
discuss
these
issues
in
vibrant
forums
online
but

they
also
act
on
what
they
learn.


Last
year,
Mercy
Corps
formed
a
strategic
partnership
with
Reach
Out
To
Asia,
a

Qatar‐based
organization
with
years
of
experience
in
education.
In
addition
to
co‐
operating
on
other
development
initiatives,
the
two
organizations
are
committed
to

offering
young
people
around
the
world
the
knowledge
and
the
management
and

communication
skills
to
succeed.
They
are
particularly
interested
in
increasing

opportunities
for
young
people
in
the
Middle
East,
where
65%
of
the
population
is

under
the
age
of
30
–
many
of
whom
have
limited
prospects
for
education
and

employment.



ROTA’s
support
jumpstarts
an
effort
to
take
the
Global
Citizen
Corps
to
more

countries
around
the
world.
Founded
five
years
ago
as
a
program
for
American
high

school
students,
the
Global
Citizen
Corps
later
expanded
past
US
borders
into
Iraq,

the
Gaza
Strip
and
the
UK.
To
date,
thousands
of
Middle
Eastern
and
American
youth

have
engaged
in
educational
and
local
advocacy
projects
that
transformed
the
way

they
see
their
role
in
society.
Their
activism
has
had
a
multiplier
effect
on
hundreds

of
thousands
more
of
their
peers.



“The
Global
Citizen
Corps
is
an
incredibly
powerful
force
for
peaceful
social

change,”
said
Robert
Sherman.
Sherman
is
Executive
Director
of
the
Action
Center
to

End
World
Hunger,
and
he
oversees
Mercy
Corps’
youth
engagement
work.




Sherman
added,
“We
are
using
the
latest
social
media
technology
to
directly
link

students
in
the
US,
UK,
Middle
East
and
Asia
to
one
another
–
and
thereby
opening

up
eyes
and
dispelling
myths
in
the
process.
They
may
live
in
different

circumstances,
but
they
all
need
to
develop
the
confidence
and
the
leadership
skills

to
become
engaged
global
citizens.”

To
learn
more
about
the
Global
Citizen
Corps,
visit
www.globalcitizencorps.org.


About
Mercy
Corps:


Mercy
Corps
helps
people
in
the
world’s
toughest
places
turn
the
crises
of
natural

disaster,
poverty
and
conflict
into
opportunities
for
progress.
Driven
by
local
needs

and
market
conditions,
our
programs
provide
communities
with
the
tools
and

support
they
need
to
transform
their
own
lives.
Our
worldwide
team
of
3,700

professionals
is
improving
the
lives
of
16.7
million
people
in
more
than
40

countries.
For
more
information,
see
www.mercycorps.org.


About
ROTA:


Reach
Out
To
Asia
(ROTA)
is
a
Qatar‐based
non‐profit
organization
that
empowers

local
communities
by
providing
access
to
quality
primary
and
secondary
education

to
children
affected
by
crisis
across
Asia.
ROTA
operates
under
the
auspices
of
the

Qatar
Foundation
for
Education,
Science,
and
Community
Development
and
is

chaired
by
Her
Excellency
Sheikha
Al‐Mayassa
bint
Hamad
bin
Khalifa
Al
Thani.

Since
its
founding,
ROTA
and
its
partners
have
built
or
rehabilitated
more
than
60

schools
in
five
countries,
provided
educational
access
to
more
than
13,000
students

and
trained
more
than
1,000
teachers.

For
more
information,
see

www.reachouttoasia.org.