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Global Citizen Fellowship Fights Poverty

Global Citizen FellowshipThe Global Citizen Fellowship is dedicated to creating solutions that will help alleviate global poverty. The program is based in Nigeria and South Africa. It focuses on encouraging members of the younger generation to join the fight in ending extreme poverty. Some members of the Global Citizen Fellowship have gone far and beyond to help achieve this goal. The program’s #MoveTheWorld Mondays social media movement inspires more people to get involved in ending extreme poverty.

What to Know About The Global Citizen Fellowship

The Global Citizen Fellowship began in 2018 and is open to citizens ages 21 through 25 who reside in Nigeria and South Africa. The inspiration behind creating the program was based on young citizens of Africa suffering from barriers such as unemployment. As a part of the BeyGOOD Initiative, the Global Citizen Fellowship prioritizes a focus on extreme poverty. The purpose of the Global Citizen Fellowship is to provide experiences that will help young people fight to end extreme poverty. One of the components of the Global Citizen Fellowship includes skills development. The 2021 program began in July and will continue through the year.

Global Citizen Fellowship’s Advisory Council

Some of the young people involved in this year’s program are currently members of the advisory council. Bonang Matheba founded the Bonang Matheba Bursary Fund, which advocates for issues such as providing free sanitary products. Aisha Yesufu is involved in the Bring Back Our Girls Movement and has held an entrepreneurial role for more than two decades. Charmaine Houvet is Cisco Africa’s public policy director and works with projects like the Global Broadband Plan for Refugees Project. Hamzat Lawal dedicates efforts to supporting the younger generation and is the leader of Connected Development. Nozipho Tshabalala is a phenomenal leader in the broadcasting field and works with Global Citizen, Learn Reflect Mobilise Grow and the World Bank. Tumi Sole is a corporate attorney fighting for social justice with his organization #CountryDuty.

One Way to Support Global Citizen

One trend created by Global Citizen Live will be beneficial to supporting the fight to end extreme poverty. Global Citizen recently created #MoveTheWorld Mondays to post on social media platforms. The purpose of #MoveTheWorld Mondays is to share one action weekly on Global Citizen’s accounts that can help end extreme poverty. People will have the opportunity to participate in the cause by taking actions shared in each post. One of the benefits of participating in #MoveTheWorld Mondays includes being able to attend events.

The Global Citizen Fellowship, a program created in 2018, encourages young people to join the fight to end extreme poverty. Many Africans, especially the younger generation, suffer from unemployment and other barriers. Therefore, it is important for people to contribute to fighting extreme poverty. Members of the Global Citizen Fellowship’s advisory council express their passion for helping their communities through their occupations. Global Citizen’s #MoveTheWorld Mondays can inspire more people to participate in ending extreme poverty.

– Chloe Moody
Photo: Flickr

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Elon Musk’s Starlink Satellite System

Starlink Satellite System
As the world progresses through the 21st century, the internet has become an invaluable tool. In the United States, people widely use it for educational purposes. Unfortunately, the developing world is not so lucky. With Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite system, people across the planet should be able to gain access to high-speed internet.

The primary challenge with providing high-speed internet across the globe lies with the cost of fiber optic cables. It is very expensive to obtain and supply to certain areas of the world. On the other hand, using a satellite system to create connections in a vacuum is around 47 percent more efficient and does not require the use of fiber optic cables.

How Starlink Will Connect the World

Musk’s plan is to send 42,000 satellites into orbit. This substantial goal by SpaceX might be a dream, but a large number is necessary to ensure fast and widespread connections across the planet.

People who use the Starlink satellite system would require a device called a Starlink Terminal in their homes. It is a simple tool that they would plug in and point towards the sky. For those in hard-to-reach areas and whose internet connections are slow, this is fantastic news.

Ultimately, the hope is to provide all those who cannot obtain a strong internet connection with the means to connect with the world. The first step of the plan is to provide broadband internet to the west first and expand it into the developing world shortly thereafter.

The Global Impact of a Connected World

Global connectivity would provide an opportunity for anyone to receive the same education despite geographical location. Some of the latest reports regarding primary school-aged children in sub-Saharan Africa have indicated that 59 percent drop out of school.

Additionally, the quality of education is poor; many children across the globe are unable to read at a basic level. The main concerns surrounding the lack of education include cost, quality of teaching and a lack of schools and teachers. Fortunately, the Starlink satellite system could provide connectivity to reduce cost, provide proper tools and improve access to education.

The Starlink Terminal would cost between $100-$300 and several people could conceivably share it. A shared cost between multiple people, perhaps a school, would increase the affordability of the Starlink satellite system and terminal.

A growing global economy would likely also result from the Starlink satellite system. Specifically, the system has an extremely low latency for information transfer. This could give people in developing areas of the world more opportunity to participate in local and global stock markets.

Further, since the Starlink satellite system would likely be the fastest internet connection in the world, most of the financial markets would undoubtedly use it. Financial organizations using the system would provide customers the ability to send and receive money at the same rate, no matter the geographic location. Ultimately, the use of the Starlink satellite system would aid in the fight against global poverty by allowing the communities to participate in activities that developed nations regularly have access to.

The Timeline

As of right now, 362 Starlink satellites are orbiting the world and more should launch every other week. However, the recent pandemic might slow down the time frame.

Prior to COVID-19, the expectation was to have all 42,000 satellites orbiting by the end of 2021. Eventually, there will be enough satellites in orbit to provide global coverage. Even if the Starlink satellite system implementation takes more time than Elon Musk originally intended, the potential benefits are difficult to ignore.

The Starlink satellite system has the capacity to connect the entire world, changing the way people around the globe interact with one another.

– Drew Pinney
Photo: Wikimedia