Terrorism Isn’t the Only Global Threat

World AIDS Day (Dec 1, 2001)

By Timothy E. Wirth

 

The senseless, monstrous acts of September 11^th have awakened us to the interdependent nature of the world in which we live. The degree to which each of our lives is connected to individuals and events all over the world has never been clearer. No nation can wall itself off from the rest of the world. Global issues are not “over there” to be put off for “later”, they are “here” and they must be dealt with “now.”

 

These global issues extend beyond terrorism - and are equally important to

preserving the values that Americans have defended over generations. Today, we must stand up to protect human rights and the more than 20 million refugees around the world. We need to work to end poverty, expand global trade and implement effective action to confront our global environmental decline. And as we mark another World AIDS Day this week, we must confront the most devastating health crisis in human history - HIV/AIDS.

 

In rural communities throughout the developing world, the AIDS epidemic has a devastating impact not only on family health, but exacts untold misery on entire communities. The causes and consequences of the HIV/AIDS crisis are closely linked to wider development issues, including poverty, malnutrition, exposure to other infectious diseases, gender inequality, and insecure livelihoods.

 

When a rural farmer in Botswana contracts HIV, an inadequate healthcare infrastructure may mean that he lives with the disease for a decade or more before being tested. In that time, he will likely bring it home to his family - infecting his wife and perhaps children. Even if a testing infrastructure is available, lack of access to effective treatment may serve as a powerful disincentive to testing. Because AIDS commonly effects young and economically active segments of the population, the economic impacts cause further desperation.

 

When the infection in that same rural Botswana community spreads to a third of the people, the resulting loss of workers alone can cripple the entire local economy. Land falls out of production; tilling, planting, and harvesting are put off; creating further food shortages. Overwhelming numbers of orphaned children are now raised by the elderly, further straining local communities.

 

Imagine now, that one-third of everyone in the community: teachers, soldiers, policeman, healthcare workers and even politicians become infected. This pandemic can cripple economic development, erode environmental protection, increase already devastating poverty and possibly erase decades of social investment and gains in political stability.

 

As individuals, as organizations, and as nations, we cannot sit idly by and

watch as this epidemic explodes. The UN Foundation, a private nonprofit

organization created to support the work of the United Nations, has

committed nearly $50 million to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS and help

individuals effected by the disease around the world. We are working in

partnership with the UN to support community-based programs - especially

those that emphasize the importance of empowering adolescent girls to reduce their risk of contracting HIV. The international community has extensive experience with these efforts - but to date there have not been sufficient resources or political commitment.

 

Currently, a little more than $1 billion a year is spent globally in the fight against AIDS. Experts from Washington think tanks like CSIS to international health organizations like the WHO believe that even conservative estimates require expenditures to more than quadruple in the next four years in order to avoid an all out human catastrophe.  In the five months prior to September 11^th more than $1.5 billion was pledged to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. In the two months since the terrorist attacks, the pledges have dwindled to less than $2,000. Certainly, as we reach out to help those affected by September 11^th, we must also continue to support those facing a different, urgent threat to their lives, families, communities and nations, and ultimately, to political stability and economic freedom.

 

In the post- September 11^th world, we have an opportunity to understand the

nature of long-term, trans-national challenges like HIV/AIDS. And, we have a

responsibility to bring to such long-term global challenges the same

persistent, dedicated, and purposeful campaign that has been brought to bear in the war against terrorism.

 

Timothy Wirth is the President of the United Nations Foundation and Better World Fund. These organizations were founded in 1998 through a major financial commitment from R.E. “Ted” Turner to support and strengthen the work of the United Nations.

 

Wirth began his political career as a White House Fellow under President

Lyndon Johnson and was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Education in the Nixon Administration. In 1975, Wirth returned to his home state and successfully ran for the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Colorado’s 2^nd Congressional District from 1975-1987. In the House, he concentrated his efforts in the areas of communications technology and budget policy. In 1987, Wirth was elected to the U.S. Senate where he focussed on environmental issues, especially global climate change and population stabilization. After a successful term, Wirth chose not to run for

re-election. Following those two decades of elected politics, Wirth served in the U.S.  Department of State as the first Undersecretary for Global Affairs from 1993 to 1997. In this position he coordinated U.S. foreign policy in the areas of refugees, population, environment, science, human rights and narcotics.  As President of the UN Foundation since its inception in early 1998, Wirth has organized and led the formulation of the Foundation’s mission and program priorities, which include the environment, women and population, children’s health and peace, security and human rights. The Foundation also engages in extensive public advocacy, resource mobilization, and institutional strengthening efforts on behalf of the UN.  Prior to entering politics, Wirth was in private business in Colorado. He is a graduate of Harvard College and holds a PhD from Stanford University. The recipient of numerous awards and honorary degrees, he also served as a member of the Harvard Board of Overseers. Wirth is married to Wren Wirth, the President of the Winslow Foundation; they have two grown children.