Last week the UN Foundation, Girl Up, and the Global Conversation hosted a Google+ hangout. Girl advocates and champions shared stories, discussed challenges adolescent girls face in their communities.

My dad was a Kabila soldier. He was killed in a mission. One night in 2003, after my dad had passed, the rebels attacked our house. They arrested my mom, beat her, and took her to jail where we couldn't see her.

What do High School Musical, a private wealth advisor, and “philanthro-teens” have in common?  The first ever Girl Up Leadership Summit!  Celebrities, female leaders, and more than 100 fabulous young women from across the country came together last weekend to learn about their peers in developing countries and gain the tools necessary to support them.

On Thursday, August 4th, I attended a discussion on a teen's perspective on development. It was very interesting and brought different views on development that I had never thought of!

Rainn Wilson talks about his trip to Haiti with Girls United, a project sponsored by the United Nations Foundation, Full Circle Learning, and the Meridian Health Foundation.

When a massive 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck the Caribbean nation of Haiti in January 2010, the lives of many of Haiti’s women and girls changed almost overnight. Hospitals, schools, and other public buildings were leveled, and social services were almost instantly disrupted.

It’s not every day that you get the opportunity to sit down with someone who truly inspires you, but for me, last week I had one of those days. Rosie Schaack, head of THINK Women’s Empowerment Center (Touching Humanity In Need of Kindness) in Liberia, and a partner of the United Nations Foundation, came to our  office in Washington, DC to chat with us about her work with teen girls who were victims of war.

I just got back from Ethiopia where 1 in 5 girls is married by the age of 15. For just a $40 donation, you can you can change this statistic. While I was there, I was able to catch up with Tigist — an incredible girl with an inspiring story who we first introduced you to last year.

Wow! Since last week, the Girl Up community has rallied behind the Stop Child Marriage Petition to take a stand for the millions of girls in developing countries who are forced into unwanted marriages. Thank you for uniting with us to say “Child marriage is unacceptable and unfair!”

Girls in developing countries are facing a crisis; 1 in 7 of them is married by the age of 15. So if I imagine this reality in my school, of the 47 girls in my 11th grade class, about 7 of us would already be married...and maybe even have kids of our own. 

Last week I was lucky enough to be invited to speak to the women’s circle group of the Trinity United Methodist Church in Richmond, Virginia.

Everyone loves to get a letter from someone special. And nothing is more special than a new friend from far away who cares about your health and your happiness. I watched this happen as I saw some very special letters brighten the hopes of girls in the Liberian village of Careysburg last week.

You will not believe the news I have for you!  This holiday season, we asked you to help send 1,000 girls to school in Malawi. Thanks to all of your hard work, we have completely exceeded our goal just days before 2010 ends. So far, you have given enough to help give more than 4,000 girls an education!

Wow, what a year it has been for Girl Up! I cannot believe we started this campaign just a few months ago.  We all know time flies when you’re having fun!There are so many things we’ve done and achieved this year, but before we start 2011, we want to share some of our favorite moments of 2010!

You and I know that in the U.S., school girls like you grow up to have so many opportunities – think of your moms, aunts, or our government leaders! But girls in other countries like Malawi don’t always have that chance.

Over the past few weeks, you may have seen some of our blogs on violence against girls. Every day, a woman or girl is a victim of violence. Did you know that violence kills or harms as many women and girls between the ages of 15 and 44 as cancer?

This week, we are talking about the issue of violence against girls and what Girl Up is doing to help make a difference. Some of the most at-risk girls are forced into marriage or relationships when they are still young children.

I grew up in the U.S., in a small house with a backyard and a dog, in a safe neighborhood (as a kid, I thought it was kind of boring) in Tampa, Florida. I knew the basic rules about safety — don’t talk to strangers, never get in a car with someone you don’t know, look both ways before you cross the street, and as I got older, there were of course all sorts of rules about boys.

One of the UN’s jobs is to keep peace around the world, and this is a big job.  In the United States, we can vote in an election once we turn 18 and know that our vote will be counted.  We don’t wake up on a daily basis worrying that the building we go to school or work in will be bombed.  But some people do.

When I tell people that I work for the United Nations (UN) Foundation, one of the most common questions I get is, “Do you work in the UN building?” I don’t. And in fact, many people who work for the UN work in office buildings other than the UN headquarters building located on the East River in New York City.

When I was little, my sister and I would sit down after trick or treating and would spread our candy all over the living room floor so that we could count and sort it.

We are so excited here at Girl Up that the 65th United Nations Day is this Sunday, October 24, so for this High Five Friday, we want to High Five the United Nations!

I’ve spent more time away from home than at home lately, but I’m so fortunate to have the chance to meet some incredible people on my trips to Africa to meet with our UN, government, and NGO partners. 

One of the Girl Up campaign’s strongest partners in its work to improve the lives of girls living in developing countries is the United Nations (UN)... With more than 600 million adolescent girls globally – each of whom has tremendous potential to impact their family, community and our world – it’s critical that the UN address the rights and needs of girls.