How the Clinton Global Initiative Helped Us Save Lives– Even in the World’s Toughest Places

(Editor’s Note: The following post is adapted from remarks delivered by Raj Panjabi at the Clinton Global Initiative’s 12th and final Annual Meeting. Dr. Panjabi is the recent recipient of the 2017 TED Prize. Follow the Clinton Foundation’s publication on Medium for more reflections on the impact and legacy of CGI.)

I had the privilege of being born in Liberia, West Africa. But when I was 9 years old, civil war erupted and devastated our country. We lost what we had, but my family and I were still lucky. We escaped and were resettled in High Point, North Carolina. But I never forgot the people I had left behind.

Thanks to the generous help of those who took my family in and helped us get back on our feet in North Carolina, I was able to pursue my dream to become a doctor. Over a decade ago, while still in medical school, I returned to Liberia to start Last Mile Health, an organization working to employ a health worker for everyone, everywhere, every day and extending health care to thousands of people in Liberia’s most remote communities.

My life was nearly destroyed by Liberia’s civil war. We lost what we had. But we were fortunate to rebuild our lives. And, it’s through rebuilding that I discovered a fundamental truth about the human spirit. I believe we are not defined by the crises we face; we are defined by how we respond. And this is a lesson all of us in the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) community have proven again and again.

Since its inception, CGI has laid out an approach with partners to focus not only on immediate response, but to create solutions for a more successful, more resilient recovery through long-term investments in impacted regions.

Two years ago we faced a crisis in Liberia: Ebola. Outbreaks were spreading like wildfire all over West Africa. We were told as many as 1.4 million people could be infected within weeks. We were told most of them would die. But CGI responded. Over 27 CGI members made commitments, training thousands of frontline health workers and equipping them with over 500 tons of medical supplies transported to Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone. These efforts touched the lives of more than one million people — especially women and girls, who as caregivers have been most severely impacted by the disease.

And when some called for a travel ban to and from West Africa, President Clinton and Chelsea got personally involved. They flew over to Liberia to meet with Ebola survivors and stand with health workers on the frontlines of the epidemic — while Ebola was still active. If that’s not real commitment, if that’s not real leadership, I don’t know what is.

Today, Ebola has been brought under control. But our response is not over. Several CGI members are now partnering on initiatives, including the Government of Liberia’s historic National Community Health Assistant Program to deploy over 4,000 paid community health workers to reach each and every corner of the country. This is a frontline defense that could help stop the next local outbreak from becoming the next global epidemic.

We know that crises are not unique to West Africa. Here in America, we have faced our share. One month before the first CGI meeting, Hurricane Katrina devastated the city of New Orleans in 2005. The CGI community came together to rebuild the Broadmoor Neighborhood, which had been slated for complete removal. The objective was to salvage the neighborhood and address specific issues such as improving the schools and library, providing access to jobs and skills training, and eradicating the poverty that had escalated over the years. A development plan was born and education corridors were constructed. By bringing together nonprofits, businesses, and faith-based organizations, the groundwork was laid, the work was completed, and now the community is thriving and their commitment goals were not only met — they were exceeded.

Haiti is a primary example of what happens when CGI partners come together. After a series of four hurricanes struck the island in 2008, and the earthquake hit in 2010, more than 300 corporations, NGOs and government entities joined together and made 99 commitments — not only to repair Haiti’s infrastructure, but to improve it. Together these members have served over 3,700 amputees who lost limbs in the earthquake; they built 155 schools; and they addressed deforestation and food insecurity issues by creating an agroforestry program. They are also rebuilding Haiti’s tourism industry by providing new jobs and skills training for over 300 professionals in the industry.

Now we know that even today the world faces crises. The conflict in Syria resulted in a massive outflow of refugees, and nearly five million people have fled to the countries of Egypt, Iraq, Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan. The scale and depth of the refugee crisis has placed an unprecedented challenge on the host countries and required immediate response and assistance from the international community. The country of Jordan, which had generously opened its borders, was one of the first countries to experience the impact. It is estimated that more than 1 million Syrian refugees have fled to Jordan, bringing with them acute healthcare needs that have placed increased pressure on the hospitals and health services across the country. However, Jordan lacked the finances and the resources necessary to replace outdated and inadequate medical equipment.

To continue support for Jordan and other countries impacted by the crisis, CGI members partnered on a commitment to provide mechanisms of funding to all CGI members participating in the Syrian refugee crisis. Tens of thousands of dollars in funds are coming in from work-place giving, and other partners have joined together to solve problems with business solutions and technology solutions, as well as other innovations that benefit the Syrian refugee community and the economy of Jordan. You will hear more about the global refugee crisis in this session and this afternoon, and you will also learn more about how the CGI community is working together to address the issues surrounding the crisis in very innovative and very humane ways.

CGI held its 12th and final Annual Meeting in September 2016. For any of you who have worked to respond to these crises or, like I have, lived through them, you know that from the world’s toughest places, come some of the world’s toughest, most resilient people.

And we too, the members of CGI, have been nothing but resilient. So as we reflect on our last meeting at CGI, I want to challenge us. We can still commit. We can still commit to respond to crises — whether it’s the Ebola crisis, the refugee crisis, or the every-day crisis of poverty and inequality. We can still commit to believe in one another, and to believe in each other’s dreams. And as President Clinton says, as we try to change the world, we can still commit to “get caught trying.”