Balitmore Mayor Martin O'Malley and Mayor Williams Establish a We are the Future Partnership with West Africa

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Balitmore Mayor Martin O'Malley and Mayor Williams Establish a We are the Future Partnership with West Africa

February 3, 2005 -- BALTIMORE, MD - Mayor Martin O'Malley and Mayor Anthony A. Williams of Washington, DC, were joined by Glocal Forum, His Excellency Ibrahim M. Kamara, Ambassador of the Republic Sierra Leone to the United States and Dr. Bonnie S. Copeland, CEO, Baltimore City Public Schools, today to officially announce the We Are the Future partnership between Baltimore, Maryland and Freetown, Sierra Leone and Washington, D.C. and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. To commence the partnership between the cities, Mayor O'Malley and Mayor Williams sent a container filled with school furniture and supplies to We Are the Future child centers in Sierra Leone.

"The mission of city government to improve the quality all of life for all citizens and improve the quality of education for our children is the same throughout the world," said Mayor Martin O'Malley. Partnerships like We Are the Future, allow cities to learn from each other, share resources, and increase understanding in this era of globalization."

Mayor Williams added, "organizations like Glocal Forum are helping to build understanding among cities throughout the world, transforming the global economy into a global community where resources are shared to improve the quality of life for people across the globe."

The shipment of excess school furniture for the children of Freetown, Sierra Leone included 100 various size box style desks, 30 various size classroom chairs, 40 teacher/classroom chairs, 20 tables, and 28 metal teacher's desks.

"Participating in this project fulfills our mission in the broadest sense: helping all children learn," said Dr. Bonnie Copeland, CEO of the Baltimore City Public School System.

In addition, the shipment will include letters of support to the students of Freetown from students of the Franklin Square Elementary BOOST program. The students will participate in the event by reading their letter of support to the students of Sierra Leone.

Holly Muldoon, executive director of Glocal Forum stated, "Today's event marks the first step of an important process toward city-to-city diplomacy between two American cities and two African cities. The We Are the Future program is highly dependent upon the support of partner cities as well as that from our private sector partners. Mayors Williams and O'Malley are setting a momentous precedent in the diplomacy of cities."

The We Are the Future (WAF) program was created by Glocal Forum to help children who struggle daily to survive in conflict and post-conflict areas. WAF's mission is to establish We Are the Future Child Centers in cities striving for stability after years of violence.

Six pilot WAF Child Centers have been launched in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Kigali, Rwanda, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Nablus, Palestine, Kabul, Afghanistan and Asmara, Eritrea. Partner cities from the US and Europe help support these centers. These child centers rely on a network of city mayors, World Bank offices, experts and local youth to enrich the lives of post- conflict children through training in nutrition, health, ICT, sports and the arts.

Glocal Forum, USA, (GFUS), is a non profit organization dedicated to creating close relationships between cities and linking them to global resources and assets in order to pursue peace and economic development. GFUS strengthens inter-city relationships through forging public/private partnerships. By creating this "glocal" network, Glocal Forum hopes to create a new balance between the global and the local.

For more information on Glocal Forum and the press conference, please contact Shannon Murray or visit www.glocalforum.org.