Sunny Side Up

John Mayer concert: Check
Lots of 'catch up' sleep: Check
Weekend off: Check
Thank You Notes: Check
Uploaded Pictures: Check
Media Releases & Interviews: Check
Formal Report to GCAP & UN-Millennium Campaign: Check
Tabulated Figures: Check
Collect Event Data: Check

What an incredibly crazy 10 days it has been, Stand Up is just about done. And the immensity of what we just did is slowly starting to sink in. Never in my wildest dreams did i imagine it would turn out the way it did.

I remember talking to Jaser (my good friend and colleague) days before 'Stand Up', when things were as hectic as ever and telling him that i hoped we would have atleast 5 thousand people a part of this amazing initiative. Look what happened...

So what exactly happened?
20 THOUSAND people 'stood up' against poverty in the Emirates alone. An incredible figure, by any stretch of your imagination, especially when you think about how tiny this country is. (second only to Syria in the region in terms of participation)

But here is the big number, the final number, the global number:

23, 542, 614

The largest single coordinated movement of people in the history of the Guiness World Record.

That is how many of us there were! In just twenty four hours a breathtaking 23 and half million people in more than 100 countries around the world set a new Guinness World Record for the largest number of people to "STAND UP AGAINST POVERTY".

And if that doesnt qualify as making a very 'global sttement' nothing will. We broke a record, sure. We did a great job of it, definitely. But that wasn't what we were trying to achieve (ofcorse it was a part of it but you see where im going with this...)

What impact did we have...time will soon tell. But our message was extremely clear: ' The World is watching and growing impatient'

Remember though that the fight against poverty is not a sprint but a marathon. And as incredible as 'Stand Up' was, it will take more of the same to see our demands achieved on a global scale. I guess it is a really good sign that we, as a movement, are only growing in numbers and not loosing any momentum.

Together we will put those people & governments, with the capacity to do so, in a position that they cannot dismiss and will have to take action, so that the world will come to a point where we will no longer be 'Waiting, Waiting on the World to Change'

--

AK,

National Coordinator