Social Good Summit 2012: Ericsson builds commitment to Technology For Good
- Ericsson sets high engagement ambitions for its initiatives during global sustainability event
- Building on successful partnerships with Mashable, United Nations Foundation, and 92nd Street Y and others following last year's Social Good Summit and Rio+Social
- Focus on education, refugee family reconnection, conflict resolution and peace, as well as development where mobile broadband is a key enabler
As the only private-sector partner involved in the Social Good Summit 2012 in New York, Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) will participate in discussions on how mobile broadband can be used as a tool for change in helping to tackle global challenges.
The event, which takes place in New York on September 22-24, will be complemented by Social Good Summit hub events on September 24 in Nairobi, Kenya and Beijing, China as well as "meet-ups" in nearly 100 countries.
At the Social Good Summit as well as other related events in New York during the same week, Ericsson President and CEO Hans Vestberg will discuss the impact mobile broadband can have on a range of initiatives, and outline the key role technology can play in meeting global challenges.
Vestberg says: "Broadband is proven as a key infrastructure for social and economic development. It positively impacts GDP, employment growth, and supports a low-carbon economy. During this week in New York we hope to raise awareness of the role mobile broadband and ICT can play on the global agenda."
At the Social Good Summit, Vestberg, who is a Broadband Commissioner, will highlight the release of the Broadband Commission for Digital Development's report, The State of Broadband 2012: Achieving Digital Inclusion for All, together with Dr Hamadoun Touré, Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union. The report will be recognized by the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, on September 23, at a meeting of the Broadband Commission.
Vestberg will also discuss the role of technology in development and peace with UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Forest Whitaker, Founder and Chair of PeaceEarth Foundation and Professor Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University
The global education initiative "Connect To Learn" will also be highlighted during the week, with new announcements and an outline of the milestones achieved to date. Ericsson's Vice President of Sustainability and Corporate Responsibility, Elaine Weidman-Grunewald, will appear on a Social Good Summit panel to discuss ways to improve access to a 21st-century secondary education for girls on September 24.
Later that day, Weidman-Grunewald will also introduce a session at the Summit on refugee reconnection. Based on the successful introduction of the mobile reconnection platform developed by Ericsson on behalf of Refugees United, she and co-founder Christopher Mikkelsen will discuss the importance of public-private partnerships in achieving scale. This initiative will also be represented at the Clinton Global Initiative in New York later in the week, which has the theme of Designing for Impact.
Vestberg and Weidman-Grunewald will also participate in the launch of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network on September 22, the network recently announced by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and directed by Jeffrey Sachs, in his role as special advisor to the UN Secretary General. This initiative is part of the UN initiatives in support of the post-2015 development agenda and the outcome of the Rio+20 Conference.
The Social Good Summit will be webcast at www.mashable.com/sgs and on www.ericsson.com.
NOTES TO EDITORS
Link to media and blogger kit:
www.ericsson.com/mediakits/technologyforgood
Photos Hans Vestberg;
http://www.ericsson.com/thecompany/press/photolibrary/management
For more information on the Social Good Summit and for press to register, please visit: http://mashable.com/sgs/
All sessions will be webcast.
Ericsson participation highlights at the Social Good Summit:
September 22
16.00-16.30 EST
Venue: 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Ave, New York
The future is broadband - a panel of the Broadband Commission
Hans Vestberg and Dr. Hamadoun Touré, Secretary-General, ITU. This session will delve into what it takes to build the Networked Society, a future where people benefit from this transformative tool, and channels of innovation are opened. The panelists will illustrate how broadband is already making a positive impact on communities around the world, and look at what the future might hold, based on The State of Broadband 2012: Achieving Digital Inclusion for All, a report by the Broadband Commission which will be recognized by the UN Secretary-General on September 23.
This session will be webcast.
***
September 23
16.30-17.00 New York time
Venue: 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Ave, New York
Session_ Peace, development and technology
Hans Vestberg, Forest Whitaker and Jeffrey Sachs discuss technology, development and peace. The panel will talk about ways in which today's modern technology can support and facilitate peace and development around the world, be it troubled urban neighborhoods in the US, border issues between the US and Mexico, or rural conflict areas in Africa such Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Sudan.
This session will be webcast.
***
September 24
14.30-15:00 EST
Venue: 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Ave, New York
Session: Connected girls around the world
Elaine Weidman-Grunewald, Sarah Brown, wife of former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and Holly Gordon, Executive Director of the 10x10 campaign on girls, education and technology. The panel will focus on the importance and impact of girls' education and how technology and advocacy can help meet this global challenge.
This session will be webcast.
September 24
16:55-17:05 EST
Venue: 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Ave, New York
Session: Refugee reconnection
Elaine Weidman-Grunewald will introduce a session with Christopher Mikkelsen, co-founder of Refugees Reunited, on the refugee reconnections made possible by his organization's mobile platform.
This session will be webcast.
***
Download high-resolution photos and broadcast-quality video at www.ericsson.com/press
Ericsson is the world's leading provider of communications technology and services. We are enabling the Networked Society with efficient real-time solutions that allow us all to study, work and live our lives more freely, in sustainable societies around the world.
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