Stand Up 2009 is a global initiative organised by the United Nations Millennium Campaign in collaboration with the Global Call to Action Against Poverty. A year ago, nearly 117 million people from 131 countries, including Singapore, "stood up" to call for a world without poverty and to remind global leaders of their commitments to the Millennium Development Goals.

From Afghanistan to Zimbabwe - from farmers in rural Nepal to students in Africa to entrepreneurs, students and celebrities here in Singapore – global citizens literally and symbolically stood up to call on world leaders to do the right thing -- more and better aid, debt relief, fair trade, gender equality, public transparency and accountability. Locally, more than 14,500 people stood up.

This year - from 16-18 October - even more concerned citizens are expected to join the call and in the process set a new Guinness World Record.

Where can you Stand Up?

Stand Up events can take place in schools, mosques, churches, temples, businesses, theatres, community centres, restaurants and even in your own home, basically anywhere!

Why Stand Up?

The resources and the technology exist in the world today to transform the hopes and dreams of an entire generation. At the dawn of the new millennium, leaders from 189 countries - including Singapore - signed the Millennium Declaration, a plan to halve extreme poverty by 2015 and end it altogether by 2025.

But today - in 2009 - a child dies from extreme poverty every three seconds. More people die from poverty every year than war. It's like a tsunami every week. But it doesn't have to be this way. We are now past the halfway mark to 2015. In a time of rising food prices when millions more are being pushed into poverty, we need to re-dedicate ourselves and remind global leaders of their commitments to end poverty. Otherwise, the world will miss these crucial targets.

Standing Up is a powerful symbolic action that can have real impact. Just a few years ago, global leaders meeting at a G8 meeting in Scotland listened to voices like yours and canceled the debts of 17 of the world's poorest countries. The result? Funds were freed up in these countries for free vaccinations, to eliminate school fees, to clean up drinking water and much more.

By Standing Up, you can also make a commitment on a personal level to help achieve the Millennium Development Goals and create a world without poverty.

Stand Up is a simple yet meaningful and very importantly, powerful message that global citizens can send. With bigger numbers, a greater sense of unity, compassion and urgency can be really felt.

We envision a Singapore where every citizen and resident is compassionate, where people have empathy and and are aware of the world around them, both on the island and outside our shores. Stand Up 2009 is aligned with the challenge laid down by Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew to "uplift our people . . . and truly create a gracious society" ahead of the 2010 Youth Olympic Games.