LMAO, this is too good. Every year, Bill Clinton hosts the Clinton Global Initiative to coincide with the opening of the United Nations General Assembly. World leaders, philanthropists, activists and politicos are already in town for the UN, and many make their way to CGI’s meeting to attend speeches, Q&A sessions and forums. Many world leaders appear at both the UN and CGI. This year, one of those world leaders will be Prince Harry.
Prince Harry, actor Matt Damon, and World Central Kitchen founder Jose Andrés are set to speak at the 2024 Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting in New York on Sept. 23 and 24, the Clinton Foundation announced Thursday.
The theme of this year’s gathering of political, business and philanthropic leaders is “What’s Working” – an effort to shine a spotlight on potential solutions and effective aid in a tumultuous period marked by war, increased income inequality and food insecurity.
Former President Bill Clinton said this year’s Clinton Global Initiative would “double down” on the progress made on the climate crisis, global health, gun violence, and other important issues.
“We started CGI because we wanted to have a meeting where people didn’t just talk about big problems, but where we could roll up our sleeves and get something done,” he said in a statement to The Associated Press. “It’s more important than ever to be optimistic and realize we all have the ability to make a difference.”
Since returning in 2022 after a six-year hiatus, CGI has tried to maintain an optimistic tone, while also developing new ways to help, including the launch last year of The CGI Ukraine Action Network, a collaboration between former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Olena Zelenska, the first lady of Ukraine.
The Duke of Sussex plans to discuss the launch of The Archewell Foundation Parents’ Network, an initiative supporting parents whose children have suffered or died due to online harms. He also plans to address his nonprofit’s collaboration with the World Health Organization and others to end violence against children, an issue he and his wife Meghan outlined on a recent trip to Colombia.
Water.org co-founder and Oscar winner Damon is expected to discuss the status of the $1 billion plan he announced in 2022 to give 100 million people in Africa, Asia and Latin America lasting access to water and sanitation.
Harry is rolling with the Clintons, WHO, The HALO Trust, Save the Children, Travalyst, African Parks, and on and on. And all week, his brother has been throwing a very public tantrum, spreading lies about how Harry is desperate to return to the UK to do ribbon-cuttings. It’s just too good. What’s next, is Harry going to address the UN General Assembly? Will he do a Q&A session with Bill Clinton? Will he take actual meetings in the UN building? Also: now I’m kind of bummed that Meghan won’t be joining Harry on this trip, because that would really make Salt Islanders’ heads explode.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images and Backgrid.