Design Pete Wentz’s Next Line of Shirts

Invisible Children Music is proud to announce that Pete Wentz has partnered up with MASScanvas to create five shirts benefiting Invisible Children. All they are missing is you- the designer. Submit your entries in before February 29th; voting starts in March. You can purchase the winning shirt starting March 22 (Want us to remind you?)

Want to enter?

Create an original T-shirt design that answers Pete Wentz’ challenge theme of “Power.” Think out of the box. Get deep. Let self-empowerment, the genesis or evolution of power, a powerful cause, amplification, etc., inspire you.

Artists: submit an entry for your chance at one of five $1,000 prizes. Everybody: let the artists and Pete know what you like or how the tee designs could be even better. Pete Wentz will pick the 5 winners from your top 20. Winning designs will be sold as limited-edition T-shirts with proceeds benefiting Invisible Children.

Schools for Schools: Taking it to the Next Level

Students at Sacred Heart School are in for a surprise when they return from the holiday break in February. The second floor of a three-story block of classrooms has just been completed, creating six bright, spacious classrooms.

Last week, Schools for Schools engineers made a final inspection of the building for quality and safety. With a few minor touches, the six new classrooms will be ready to be furnished and filled for the first time with smiling faces.  One more floor of six classrooms remains to be completed later this year.

Invisible Children partners with 11 schools in Northern Uganda to improve the quality of education through building projects, teacher and administrator training, and curriculum development. While many classrooms in Northern Uganda are in disrepair or subject to overcrowding, projects like this one at Sacred Heart are ensuring that students will have access to a healthy learning environment.

Building projects for 2012 are in full swing! Stay tuned for more updates.

-Bethany

Christopher Lowell’s photos for Invisible Children

These photos were taken by our friend Chris Lowell. He came with us to Uganda back in March of 2011, and insisted on taking a series of photographs using real film and candid subjects. What he produced are some of my favorite pictures from IC programs I’ve ever seen. – JJ

Frontline Reflections

Today is the last day of the Frontline tour. Roadies and interns alike, as well as some staff members will say their goodbyes and the doors of the office will shut for the holiday season. Some never to return, some to come back for the next adventure in January. So as the season winds down to an end, I gathered a few select people and asked them three questions to reflect on the Frontline Tour. These were their answers:

1) What set this semester/campaign apart from the others?

(more…)

ICGC gives a thank you performance for Frontline

As the Frontline tour winds down, we had to do them a proper send off. Here’s Invisible Children’s Glee Club singing The Head and the Heart’s, Rivers and Roads. Enjoy. -NS

One year later, Obama administration reports on the accomplishments of the strategy to help stop LRA attrocities

Today is the one year anniversary of the release of the strategy to help stop the atrocities being perpetrated by the LRA. As required, the Obama administration released an updated report on the accomplishments that have occurred since then, which just goes to show that thanks to Invisible Children supporters’ hard work, we were the only NGO mentioned by name in the entire report.  Read the update from the Resolve office below. -NS

One year ago – after acknowledging the “hundreds of thousands of Americans who have mobilized to respond to this unique crisis of conscience” – President Obama issued a landmark White House strategy to help stop atrocities being perpetrated by the Lord’s Resistance Army and support the communities in central Africa being targeted by the violence. Today, as required by law, his Administration released a formal report documenting what has been accomplished since.

You can read the five-page report in full here. Its contents include plenty of reason to be encouraged. As it says, “The United States remains committed to pursuing the multi-year, comprehensive strategy submitted to Congress last year.” It also underscores a number of key challenges – such as limited funding – that Resolve is dedicated to help address moving forward.

Some of the other highlights:

* As expected, the President’s recent announcement that he is deploying 100 advisers to help regional governments stop LRA atrocities plays prominently.

* The State Department is asking Congress to authorize payment of financial rewards to anyone who shares information that leads to the arrest of Joseph Kony and two other LRA commanders indicted by the International Criminal Court.

* The U.S. is funding the expansion of communications technology in LRA-affected areas to help provide early warning to communities at risk of attack and to help LRA abductees escape and return home; similar programs run by our friends at Invisible Children are notably commended.

* Since the LRA moved out of Uganda in 2006, U.S. investment has helped reduce the poverty rate there from over 60% to 46%, helping people overcome decades of violent conflict.

All in all, these are some amazing accomplishments. But more remains to be done. Yesterday, Resolve joined with partner groups to release the third LRA Strategy Report Card, providing our assessment of what President Obama has done in the past year, and highlighting the steps that need to be taken next.

Congress mandated both the White House strategy and today’s one-year implementation report in last year’s LRA Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act, and the release of today’s report fulfills the final provision from that Act. But the fight to see it fully implemented will continue.

- Michael

—-

Source

Invisible Children wins Most Effective Awareness campaign at Stay Classy Awards

This past year’s Stay Classy Awards awarded Invisible Children with the award for the Most Effective Awareness Campaign. Watch toward the end of the presentation of the award to hear COO Chris Carver give the credit for winning to the volunteers, particularly the Roadies. This is just one of the many reasons we love this guy. -NS

(more…)

DJ White Shadow Produces Lady Gaga & Frontline Fundraiser

Oh yes, you read that right. DJ White Shadow has teamed up with Invisible Children to help fundraise for The Frontline Campaign.

DJ White Shadow’s most recent work includes producing Lady Gaga’s Born This Way (album & single), Edge of Glory and the Mugler remix of “Scheiße”. Don’t believe us?

To thank him for producing the soundtrack of your summer, you should buy his exclusive charity bundle, proceeds benefitting his Musician Coalition fundraising page. For just $25 you can get the “DJ White Shadow X Invisible Children Charity Bundle” which includes the DJWS X Invisible Children shirt, limited edition signed & numbered DJWS “I’m Killing Me” Ep and 2 DJWS stickers.

Or you could donate $25 to his page and get nothing.

The Charity Bundle sounds like the perfect Christmas gift for anyone you love. But hey, that’s just me.
-LE

Alicia Silverstone features Invisible Children on her blog “Kind Life”

We love socially aware celebs. Alicia Silverstone featured Invisible Children on her blog the Kind Life. Check out her blog to learn more. -NS

kind orgs: invisible children

Posted by Alicia Silverstone on Nov 14, 2011

I recently discovered a really inspiring organization that all of you Kind Lifers might find interesting.

Invisible Children started as a documentary in 2003 about child soldiers in Uganda abducted and forced into the Lord’s Resistance Army headed by Joseph Kony. Three filmmakers (Jason Russell, Bobby Bailey, and Laren Poole), who later founded this non-profit, told the horror stories of these displaced children and their role in Africa’s longest running war of twenty-three years.

Invisible Children strives to rebuild the areas affected by the war and, specifically, the lives of the affected children.

How To Get Involved:

• Tell your friends and family about this organization.
• Donate new & used books or buy your next read here to help educate children in need.
• Wear a bracelet handmade in Uganda to support those who were displaced.

Top 5: What has been your most succesful fundraiser?

We loved hearing from our supporters for last weeks Top 5, so this week we decided to do it again.

We want to know from all of you, what has been your most successful and creative fundraiser? You might just win the top spot and have your brilliance featured on the blog.

Email communications@invisiblechildren.com with your story and a photo by Wednesday. We know you’ve had a couple of good ones.