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Peg Willingham
Executive Director, Shot@Life Campaign
Peg Willingham joined the United Nations Foundation in January 2011 to lead Shot@Life, a new campaign to raise awareness and resources in the U.S. to support the work of the UN and other prominent partners to immunize children in developing countries against vaccine preventable diseases. From 2007 to 2011, Peg was the Senior Director of External Affairs at the Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation, overseeing advocacy, communications, and resource mobilization efforts. From 2003 to 2007 she was a senior director at the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, responsible for advocacy to the U.S. government regarding the need to accelerate a preventive vaccine against HIV/AIDS, particularly in the developing world. Previously, she was the Assistant Vice President for Latin America and Canada for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), responsible for advocacy to U.S. and foreign governments regarding intellectual property and other trade issues. From 1987-2000, Peg was a Foreign Service Officer, serving in Latin America and the Middle East. During her State Department career, she received five Superior Honor Awards. Peg received a BA from the University of Virginia and an MA from the University of Michigan.
Blog Posts by Peg Willingham
Counting Down to World Immunization Week
World Immunization Week 2012 is officially less than a month away. Taking place from April 21 – 28, this week is an opportunity to highlight the importance of immunization in saving lives, celebrate the achievements of immunization programs and partners in promoting healthy communities, and encourage families to vaccinate their children against deadly diseases...
March 27, 2012
Raising Awareness for New Vaccines on World TB Day
While Shot@Life focuses on accelerating access to existing vaccines to save children who so urgently need them, on World TB Day, we honor and thank the people working to create new tools to save even more children’s lives in the future...
March 24, 2012
Shot@Life featured at the Vaccines and New Media "Film Festival"
This Friday, Shot@Life will be participating in our first-ever film festival! Hosted by the CSIS Global Health Policy Center, the festival will focus on vaccines and new media. The event will explore how global health organizations and private foundations are making the case for U.S. investments in global immunization, using internet videos and social media to reach U.S. policymakers and the American public...
March 15, 2012
Remarkable. Dedicated. Strong. Global. Women.
On the eve of Women’s History Month, and just a week before International Women’s Day, March 8, I’m reminded that there are incredible women all over the world who are dedicated to saving the lives of children every day. To honor them, each day for a week leading up to International Women’s Day, Shot@Life will be featuring a “remarkable woman” working to reduce childhood mortality in under-resourced communities in developing countries and/or the U.S...
February 29, 2012
Thank you for taking action - but don't stop now!
Thank you to all of our supporters who took action last week to support global vaccine funding. So far, our action alert has resulted in Shot@Life supporters sending nearly 5,000 emails to Congress. This is a fantastic response rate! We couldn’t have done this without you and we really appreciate your help. By taking action, you are helping give children around the world the shot at life that they deserve...
February 23, 2012
Take action: Support funding for global vaccines
Monday, President Obama released his proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins on October 1. Now is the time for you to weigh in. Send a letter to your member of Congress and tell them that robust funding for global health and global vaccines is a priority for you. Take Action Now!
February 15, 2012
Your Voice is Powerful - Use it! Give a Child a Shot@Life
Shot@Life Champion and RESULTS Chicago Activist, Cindy Levin, reflects on the advocacy training at the Shot@Life Champion Summit last month. Watch this video to learn just how easy and effective advocacy can be!
February 13, 2012
Preparing to Take Action: Advocacy is Easy
Don’t let the word fool you. Advocacy is easy. Once you have an issue that you’re passionate about, an advocacy action can be as simple as educating a friend and expressing your support for a cause, idea, or policy.
January 26, 2012
How do you get to 100 percent?
Honduras, in the heart of Central America, is one of the poorest countries in the Western hemisphere, but it has one of the highest vaccination coverage rates in the world, averaging close to 99%. Compare this to the United States, where 93% of children receive basic immunizations. Worldwide, about one child in five, primarily in developing countries like Honduras, lacks basic access to life-saving vaccines. What is the secret of Honduras’ success?
January 23, 2012
Preparing to Take Action: Learn About U.S. Support for Global Vaccines
Shot@Life has produced this new educational blog series to show you the ways the US government engages in global vaccination efforts, and to prepare you to take action in support of the US’ role in global vaccines.
Let’s get started with a few questions you may have about why the U.S. supports global vaccine efforts around the world...
January 20, 2012
Shot@Life in Honduras, a Vaccination Success Story
We’ve hit the ground running in 2012! This week, Shot@Life, a movement to protect children worldwide by providing life-saving vaccines where they are most needed, is in Honduras with a delegation of U.S. policymakers...
January 17, 2012
Help the UN Help Haiti: Giving Haitian Children a Shot@Life
It has been two years since the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti. Progress has been made, but people are still struggling – children are still struggling...
January 12, 2012
Shot@2012
Happy New Year! I can’t believe that it has been a year since I joined the United Nations Foundation to lead the new Shot@Life campaign as Executive Director. 2011 was a busy and successful year full of all the excitement that goes into developing a new global vaccines campaign, but I can’t wait for all that 2012 has in store...
January 6, 2012
Imagine Me & You Contest: 12 Semi-Finalists Announced
Just last week, the Million Moms Challenge and Shot@Life, together with Disney Baby and internationally renowned photographer Anne Geddes, presented the Imagine Me & You photo contest – inviting expectant moms to tell us about their hopes and dreams for their new baby — in five words or less — and to write them on their baby bumps...
December 7, 2011
Thankful for Our Partners
As we celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday this week, Shot@Life would like to express our gratitude and admiration for the work of our partners, who are saving lives and improving the health of millions of children around the world every day...
November 22, 2011
A Shot@Childhood
Universal Children’s Day is November 20, a day when we reflect on and promote the rights and well-being of children around the world. While a great deal of progress has been made in the U.S. and globally to give children better lives, nearly 8 million children under the age of five still die each year mostly from preventable causes...
November 18, 2011
The Value of Vaccines
An American baby born a hundred years ago could expect to live to be 47. Babies born here today can expect to live more than 75 years, thanks in large part to vaccination, which has all but eliminated the infectious diseases that used to kill millions in our country...
November 9, 2011
Celebrate UN Day and World Polio Day with Us
Thank you for being one of the first to join the Shot@Life movement. Today, October 24, is UN Day and World Polio Day -- a day the world comes together to celebrate the work the United Nations and its partners do every day to eradicate polio once and for all...
October 24, 2011
Why I help to give children a shot at life
One of my earliest memories is getting ice cream as a reward for not crying (well, not too much) after getting vaccinated. My daughter does not even remember her first vaccine, because it happened the day after she was born. Throughout her childhood, I never gave much thought to how lucky we were to get these life-saving miracles on a regular basis.
September 19, 2011
