Charitable Organization News Archives

American Cancer Society : ACS' Asian Initiatives Unit this week is hosting an Asian Initiative health fair in recognition of Colon Cancer Awareness Month, India Post reports. via MediLexicon

“RIF's new relationship with AudibleKids is especially exciting because it's a generation-relevant way to motivate children to read and improve their literacy skills.”

Downloads for children.

Audible Inc. on Monday launched a Web site where families can choose from over 3,500 children's listenable books that can be purchased and downloaded.

Listeners can also use the site, http://www.audiblekids.com, to share recommendations.

The audio books can be downloaded directly from the Web site onto mobile devices.

'At the very least, we're igniting a young person's love of reading through digital audio books,' said Donald Katz, founder and chief executive of Newark-based Audible. 'Beyond that, we believe that AudibleKids will help to develop critical literacy skills such as improving reading ability and comprehension among young people.' Read more

“These data suggest that, when possible, a patient with a normal cytology and initial positive HPV result should be managed with watchful waiting because a 12-month follow-up can safely exclude more than 50 percent of infections as transient”

Some types of HPV cause cervical cancer. Persistent infections with these HPV types are more likely than transient infections to induce precancerous lesions. via Science Daily

“It is a bellwether statement, and it is now time for our school board, our county commissioners and our business and private sectors to join them in giving as much support as we can”

A $1.4 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will help Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools tailor lessons to students in five low-performing high schools, officials said this morning.

The grant, announced today at West Charlotte High, will pay for data analysts at West Charlotte, West Meck, Garinger and Waddell, as well as the new Midwood High, serving freshmen who didn't pass eighth-grade reading or math exams.

CMS already has reams of data documenting low test scores, high dropout rates and other woes at the schools, all of which have high poverty levels. The new analysts will help principals and teachers track individual students' and teachers' accomplishments, allowing schools to revamp lessons and learn from teachers who succeed. Read more

“WeA're excited by the promise of more opportunities for them to be involved in hands-on conservation efforts.”

The National Audubon Society and Toyota today launched TogetherGreen, a nationwide Audubon program to fund conservation projects, train environmental leaders, and offer volunteer opportunities to significantly ... via Paddock Talk

“These ongoing mass arrests of opposition activists, on top of the military trial, are a shameless bid to fix the upcoming elections”

Egypt's "shameless" roundup of Islamists ahead of municipal elections is a bid to fix the vote and casts serious doubt on its legitimacy, Human Rights Watch said on Sunday. via The Daily Star

“It looks at our community through a different lens”

From the smiling faces of kids at a street rally to the troubled expression of a city police officer to a triumphant grin of a local volunteer - there is a lot of emotion behind the work done by the city's ... via Battle Creek Enquirer

In this photo released by the World Wildlife Fund shows the lights on the Golden Gate Bridge are turned off. via Susan Polgar Chess Blog

Sonny Perdue Email this story to a friend Do no harm. It may sound like a simple concept, but it is one that I am afraid supporters of Sunday alcohol sales may have forgotten. via Rome News - Tribune

The Humane Society of the United States wants a federal judge to prevent the capturing or killing of sea lions feasting on salmon a Columbia River dam.

The group said in a motion filed in U.S. District Court on Friday that agents could begin taking the sea lions as soon as next weekend, and asked for a permanent injunction. If the request is denied, the group said it would likely would seek a temporary restraining order to be effective before Friday.

In January, the National Marine Fisheries Service authorized the taking of up to 85 sea lions a year for five years from the Bonneville Dam, although it recommended a lower number. Read more

“The Human Rights Council again favored platitudes and politics over steps that could actually protect people”

Council Fails to Act on Tibet and Remains Timid on Darfur Geneva - infoZine - The UN Human Rights Council showed little resolve to take on states responsible for serious human rights violations in its session ... via Kansas City InfoZine

“That's something I don't think people truly grasp.”

Imagine therapies that could cut cancer deaths in half. Well, these "breakthrough" treatments are here, according to a recent American Cancer Society report that said as many as 50 percent of cancer deaths ... via Health Scout

A rare antelope species already under threat from poaching in Mongolia is facing a new danger _ worsening traffic.

As affluent residents acquire motorbikes and cars in parts of western Mongolia, they are clogging roads that run along a key migration route for the saiga which, if not addressed, could reduce their already low numbers, Kim Murray Berger, an ecologist with the Wildlife Conservation Society, said Saturday.

'As we get more and more traffic through the corridor, it would potentially discourage the saiga from using it,' she said, adding that could lead to the reproductive isolation of the species, reducing its genetic diversity. Read more

“As a Department, we recognize that responsibility and are participating in Earth Hour and Earth Day events, as well as continuing our green initiatives. We urge everyone to do their part and protect our environment.”

Governor Rod R. Blagojevich announced today that the State of Illinois will participate in Earth Hour from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday. via Free Republic

“Mock execution is the epitome of torture”

The US Senate should reject Steven Bradbury's nomination as head of the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel because he authorized torture, Human Rights Watch and the Open Society Policy Center said in ... via Human Rights Watch

Issue date: 3/27/08 Section: News In 2007, the World Wildlife Fund organized the first ever Earth Hour in Sydney, Australia. via The Strand

“The Canadian government is telling the world there is a new humane way of killing seals in Canada. But at this point there is no video evidence as to how they are actually conducting themselves out there.”

- A familiar scene is being played out on the ice floes off Eastern Canada as sealers and seal hunt opponents take up their positions and ready their clubs and cameras for another season of tension on the ice.

About 16 boats carrying roughly 100 hunters headed out Friday from Iles de la Madeleine toward a large herd of seals in the Cabot Strait between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador.

At the same time, animal rights activists from such organizations as the Humane Society of the United States and the International Fund for Animal Welfare took to the skies in helicopters to observe and document the controversial hunt. Read more

“The emerging data for VX-770 represents the most exciting results we've seen from a Phase 2 trial and increase our confidence that we're on the right track.”

The drug is being developed by Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated. Patients who took the drug for 14 days showed significant improvements in several key indicators of cystic fibrosis, including lung function, ... via Rehab Management

“It really spans the spectrum of folks that want to plan for their health-care expenses in a more robust way”

Insurance companies are increasingly shifting a larger portion of medical and dental costs onto patients. via San Gabriel Valley Tribune

“I am sure the government will make the appropriate explanation to the international community”

A human rights group urged the United Nations on Thursday to take the Philippines to task for failing to prosecute soldiers suspected of involvement in a string of extrajudicial killings.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said the Philippines has done little to implement recommendations made last year by Philip Alston, the U.N. special envoy on extrajudicial killings, as well as the government's own fact-finding commission.

Both have linked soldiers to hundreds of deaths and disappearances of mostly left-wing activists belonging to political organizations that the military brands as fronts for communist rebels. Read more

“And we stand with you, the rest of the world, in trying to make a difference.”

Saturday night, Chicago joins dozens of cities all over the world shutting off their lights in observance of Earth Hour.

It started last year with 2 million people participating in Australia and now it's a global movement.

CBS 2's Steve Baskerville reports America hasn't had voluntary blackouts since World War II when we turned off our lights so that invading planes wouldn't find cities to bomb.

The enemy then was the Axis Powers; now, the battle lines are drawn against climate change. Read more

Toyota has hooked up with the National Audubon Society, a conservation charity devoted to restoring natural ecosystems, to launch TogetherGreen, a new program that in part will help train a new generation of ... via TCC Confidential

“But for us this is not the end of the story - we are going to watch these children closely and work with our partners to help the millions of children of the region who need us.”

Main Category: Public Health Article Date: 24 Mar 2008 - 3:00 PDT newsletters Four and a half months after the failed attempt by a French NGO, Zoe's Ark, to fly them out of Chad to France, 103 children have ... via Medical News Today

Backers of different ballot initiatives to increase tax payments by oil and gas companies said Tuesday they've agreed to work together on one proposal that would provide about $120 million a year for the state's colleges and universities.

The plan to get rid of a property tax credit for energy companies would bring in an estimated $200 million a year, with 60 percent going toward higher education funding. The rest of the money would be spent on renewable energy, protecting wildlife habitat and transportation projects in communities where wells are being built. Read more

Toyota Motor Corp. is giving the National Audubon Society $20 million for conservation projects and training of environmental leaders. via WMAR

“Although randomized data concerning use of HRT for symptomatic intervention in breast cancer survivors are still sparse, it seems that the harmful side effects of HRT have finally been clearly demonstrated”

Hormone replacement therapy for peri- and postmenopausal symptoms increases disease recurrence in breast cancer survivors, according to an article published online March 25 in the Journal of the National Cancer ... via Huliq.com

“The army will not cover up any wrongdoing if officers are found guilty of misconduct”

An international rights watchdog said Wednesday that the death and apparent torture of a Thai Muslim cleric in military custody highlights the army's mistreatment of Muslims in Thailand's restive south.

Human Rights Watch said Yapa Koseng, a 56-year-old Muslim prayer leader, was arrested March 19 for suspected involvement in bombings blamed on insurgents in the southern province of Narathiwat, and two days later relatives who went to visit him were told he had died.

Yapa's body was 'covered with bruises and burn marks, and his ribs were fractured,' the New York-based rights group said in a statement, citing accounts from family members. Read more

“We look forward to working with Dr. Kawaoka and his expert team on this exciting project”

Prevention of a flu pandemic is the goal of a $1.3 million grant to the UW-Madison from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. via The Capital Times

“Saudi Arabia should urgently enact a penal code to protect all criminal suspects against arbitrary arrest”

Saudi Arabia needs to enact a penal code to prevent abuse in its justice system, US-based Human Rights Watch said in a report issued on Tuesday. via The Daily Star

“Somalia shows that when communities are engaged, children everywhere can be reached”

In what is being described as a major victory in the global fight against polio, the United Nations health agency announced today that the disease has been eradicated in strife-torn Somalia thanks to the ... via United Nations

“Our review doesn't tell us why larger women are not getting screened as frequently for these cancers”

A review of cancer screening studies shows that white women who are obese are less likely than healthy weight women to get the recommended screenings for breast and cervical cancer, according to researchers at ... via Newswise

“The males' perception of how well they function physically in some ways depends on the support they get from their partner”

When a couple is dealing with cancer, a partner's psychological distress might drag down the well-being of either person, according to a new study of 168 married couples. via Medical News

“The 102 is just a field of tall whitetop now”

Another section of the east Truckee River is to be brought back to life in a $5.2 million project at the 102 Ranch, giving the river two new bends, five series of riffles, nearby wetlands and native plantings ... via Reno Gazette-Journal

The Internal Revenue Service will open some 320 offices on Saturday, March 29, to help low-income people including some retirees and veterans get the checks they are eligible for under the economic stimulus ... via The Morning Call

Washington State University officials say a $25 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will help build a new school dedicated to studying infectious diseases affecting animals and humans. via KEPR 19

“You know that's the first thing to go is donations to charities.”

The Greater Washington Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society has cancelled April's five mile MS walk. via KIMA

“Detainees should be released immediately or charged with a crime and accorded all their rights, including immediate access to a lawyer and a hearing before an impartial judge to determine the lawfulness of their detention”

The Chadian government has continued to detain an unknown number of people without charges since rebels invaded the capital N'djamena for two days in early February, despite lifting a state of emergency on 15 ... via IRIN

Chaska Middle School West??'s fundraiser, Pennies for Patients, came in first place for the Minnesota Chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society chapter. via Chaska Herald - Newspaper and online ...

It seems almost everybody wants a piece of Britney Spears, and at least six pieces are officially for sale. via Hugh Hewitt

“If we can find a safe, well tolerated drug, then a person at risk could be placed on a drug regime to help prevent onset. It is much easier to stop something happening than having to treat it once it has started.”

Research funded by the Wellcome Trust has provided a number of promising new drug targets for Huntington's disease, a neurodegenerative disease. via EurekAlert!

New Jersey lawmakers are considering a plan that would provide health insurance for all state residents by 2011. via Home News Tribune

“Scientists and activists worldwide had agreed that high fertility was to be treated as a disease, and that birth control for nations made individuals expendable.”

The first large-scale scientific test of family planning took place in Khanna, India, beginning in the early 1950s. via StarNewsOnline.com

“If we are able to shorten treatment and introduce one or two powerful new vaccines, then maybe the days of TB are numbered”

Janine September extends her slender arm toward a nurse's syringe, hoping that the hundreds of vials of blood extracted in the past six months will help conquer a 4,000-year-old curse: tuberculosis, which kills ... via Baltimore Sun

“Tenants will pay a maximum of 30 percent of their adjusted gross income (medical expenses are deducted)”

A nonprofit organization plans to complete a three-story apartment building for low-income residents age 62 or older by October 2009. via The Greenville News

“These deadly incursions by the Chadian army further destabilize an already precarious region.”

The Chadian army has launched numerous cross-border raids on villages in northwestern Central African Republic in recent weeks, killing civilians, burning villages, and stealing cattle, Human Rights Watch said ... via Human Rights Watch

“She's just really nice and down-to-earth”

Emily Welsh is building big, benevolent dreams. The 18-year-old Mercyhurst Preparatory School senior's service projects already have taken her to missions work in places ranging from the hills of Appalachia to ... via The York Daily Record

TRENTON, N.J. _ New Jersey lawmakers are considering a plan that would provide health insurance for all state residents by 2011. via Courier News Online

Amritsar, Mar.21: The family of Sarabjit Singh, the Indian detenu to be hanged in Pakistan on April 30 this year, has approached the United Nations and human rights watchdog Amnesty International to save him ... via Daily India

“Whether it is my own or my partner's, psychological distress may impact my quality of life”

When a couple is dealing with cancer, a partner's psychological distress might drag down the well-being of either person, according to a new study of 168 married couples. via Newswise

Cool 'School'

Put the popular characters of Disney's High School Musical on a dance floor on ice and you'll create what undoubtedly will be a fan frenzy. Demand has already sparked the show to add three more performances to its Dallas stop. Expect plenty of jumps and spins set to the chart-topping songs of the Disney hit and its sequel, High School Musical 2. The Wednesday performance will benefit the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, with $1 of every ticket sold going to the group.

Disney's High School Musical: The Ice Tour Read more

The Washington State Board of Regents on Friday approved creation of a new school that will focus on research and treatment of diseases passed from animals to humans. via KOMO News

“The absence of adequate sanitation has a serious impact on health and social development, especially for children.”

The vast majority of Africans have no access to a toilet, according to preliminary data from a World Health Organization report to be published later this year. via CNN

A faith-based group is suing the state for allegedly barring religious charitable organizations from receiving money from a state donation program. via KTVO

The group says protestors in Nepal who regularly held rallies against Chinese rule in Tibet were often beaten by police who also used tear gas on them. via Tajikistan News.Net

Published 12:00 am PDT Friday, March 21, 2008 Story appeared in EDITORIALS section, Page B7 We've all seen or heard about them. via Sacramento Bee Newspaper

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's trust will sell more than half of its nearly 1 million shares of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. via BusinessWeek

“We are all here to support the cause.”

MAHOPAC - It was 8:30 a.m. and members of the Nardini family stopped by Mahopac Middle School to eat their way to a good deed before heading off to church on Palm Sunday. via Journal News

“To create significantly shorter and simplified approaches to treatment, we must improve our understanding of this disease and how current drugs are localized at the site of infection.”

Main Category: Medical Malpractice / Litigation Also Included In: Infectious Diseases / Bacteria / Viruses Biology / Biochemistry MRI / PET / Ultrasound Article Date: 20 Mar 2008 To develop new strategies to ... via MediLexicon

“People knew that (ODM leader) Raila (Odinga) had been robbed of the presidency. People started fighting. I saw them go. I couldn't stop them. They would have attacked me.”

An influential Kenyan elder accused of masterminding post-election ethnic violence has denied any involvement and accused authorities of a witch-hunt against his Kalenjin community. via AlertNet

“We are bounded by our limitations”

Recent days have seen protests by monks in Kathmandu US-based pressure group Human Rights Watch has condemned Nepal's government for using what it calls excessive force against protesting Tibetan exiles. via BBC

“We are thrilled that the world will see these images for the first time in People magazine.”

Singer Marc Anthony and singer/actress Jennifer Lopez attend a reception to benefit UNICEF hosted by Gucci during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Fall 2008 at The Salon at Bryant Park on February 6, 2008 in New York ... via CW28 Providence

“Given the uncertainty of how global climate change might affect specific regions and how and where species might persist, prudent conservation strategies must take into account the movements of highly mobile species like saiga.”

Saiga, an Asian antelope, isn't only an endangered species but is threatened by development in Mongolia that might cut off a key migration route. via Daily India

“We are proud of the efforts of all providers in the adult CF care center community”

The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation has announced the launch of a new $5 million initiative to enhance care for the growing adult CF population. via MediLexicon

“One of the most challenging issues in treating TB and stopping its spread is the length of time it takes to adequately stem the infection”

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation gave $11.4 million to the University of Pittsburgh Center for Vaccine Research for tuberculosis research, Pitt said today. via Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

“While there are four candidates running for president and many political parties involved, the election process itself is skewed.”

President Robert Mugabe's supporters have used violence to intimidate opponents in the run-up to next week's Zimbabwe election, undermining chances of a fair poll, Human Rights Watch said on Wednesday. via Reuters

“They changed it to an Earth Hour reception, so it was all candlelit.”

The Sydney Opera House is lit up prior to Earth Hour on March 31, 2007 in Sydney, Australia. via The Epoch Times

Police in Kenya are rejecting claims made by Human Rights Watch that they used excessive force in responding to post-election violence. via Voice of America

State and federal officials say they have done all they can to stop protected California sea lions from munching on threatened salmon at the base of Bonneville Dam on the Columbia River, using pyrotechnics, ... via The San Diego Union-Tribune

“We are currently working with a number of them to develop a code of conduct that would minimize that complicity”

A code of conduct addressing how major Internet service providers and portal operators should deal with Internet censorship in China is in the final stages of preparation by Human Rights Watch and the ... via Infoworld

“Rural South African women's lives are scarred by persistent violence in their families, homes and in under-policed, unsafe communities”

Poor rural women living with HIV and AIDS in South Africa face discrimination in relationships and communities because of their gender, HIV status and economic marginalization. via Amnesty International

“These awards strive to improve the inclusiveness of cancer research so that no pool of talent goes untapped.”

Minorities in Cancer Research , a 3,000-member group within the American Association for Cancer Research , has selected the winners of two scholar awards for scientists working in underrepresented areas of the ... via Newswise

The Humane Society of the United States is offering up to $2,500 for information leading to an arrest in the fatal shooting of a horse on the southeast side of Indianapolis. via WFIE-TV Evansville

Kenya's newly formed coalition government should prosecute those responsible for a wave of violence following its contested election, Human Rights Watch said. via The Post Chronicle

“Given the uncertainty of how global climate change might affect specific regions, and how and where species might persist, prudent conservation strategies must take into account the movements of highly mobile species like saiga.”

Take a deer's body, attach a camel's head and add a Jimmy Durante nose, and you have a saiga - ' the odd-ball antelope with the enormous schnoz that lives on the isolated steppes of Central Asia. via Huliq.com

“Close to a third of New Jersey's most important commercial and recreational saltwater fish and shellfish are depleted or are being overfished”

A legislative initiative that would give environmental activists authority over fisheries management decisions in New Jersey waters has drawn the ire of recreational and commercial fishermen. via Home News Tribune