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Over the coming months, Devex will host a global conversation on each of the eight Millennium Development Goals - we want you to share your success stories, thoughts on what obstacles remain, and ideas for how the development community is Making the Millennium Development Goals Happen.

This week the Department for International Development here in the UK has issued a new report ELIMINATING POVERTY : Building Common future, which spells out a new direction and desire to address issue of poverty in the developing world and amongst other things the report looks at the impact of the economic downturn on those in the developing countries. And at the UN summit of September 2000 the richest nations in the world made pledges to the development world that are summed up in what has become to be known as the Millennium Development Goals or MDGs

From the article: It is just about time for yet another round of international development goals. The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) - the eight goals, 20 targets and 60+ indicators that came out of the United Nations in 2000 - are coming to the end of their natural life. Although the official end date is not until 2015, if your country is not close to reaching the MDGs now, there is simply not much time to catch up. (Helpfully, the UN's MDG Monitor website counts down to 2015 by the second.)

WHAT IS THE MDG MONITOR? The MDG Monitor shows how countries are progressing in their efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). With the 2015 target date fast approaching, it is more important than ever to understand where the goals are on track, and where additional efforts and support are needed, both globally and at the country level.

This is an official Online Event in support of the 3 day global Stand Up Take Action End Poverty Now event. For the past four years millions of people around the world have made the decision to be counted and "Stand Up and Take Action" www.standagainstpoverty.org demanding that world leaders end poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). 189 world leaders made a promise at the United Nations Millennium Summit through he Millennium Declaration in 2000 adopting the MDGs as a roadmap to end poverty and its root causes. That promise is still unfulfilled by all but a few countries, including the United States.

The Millennium Campaign emerged as a response to the failing efforts of governments in keeping their promises and commitments to achieve the MDGs by the target year 2015. As an initiative of the UN, the Campaign aims to inspire a global movement to achieve the Goals and eradicate extreme poverty by 2015.

The World Social Summit identified poverty eradication as an ethical, social, political and economic imperative of mankind and called on governments to address the root causes of poverty, provide for basic needs for all and ensure that the poor have access to productive resources, including credit, education and training. Recognizing insufficient progress in the poverty reduction, the 24th special session of the General Assembly devoted to the review of the Copenhagen commitments, decided to set up targets to reduce the proportion of people living in extreme poverty by one half by 2015. This target has been endorsed by the Millennium Summit as Millennium Development Goal 1.

Aid budgets face immense pressure - despite overseas aid being critical for poverty alleviation in developing countries and the explicit commitments of the world's industrialised countries to the Millennium development goals. With the world economy in a major downturn, the stakes for developing countries could not be higher. Public support for international development and aid will play a key role. Will the public become unsure about the UK's aid budget when they begin to feel cuts in government expenditure at home? How well equipped are we to 'sell' the UK's aid programme to a sceptical public in times of economic austerity?

Summary The combination of food and financial crises trapped an estimated 50 to 90 million people in extreme poverty in 2009. How can the Millennium Development Goals for 2015 be met in the wake of the economic crisis?

A Bloggers Unite event in support of the Stand Up Take Action Campaign MAKE NOISE for the MDGs

Another online resource that can be used in implementing the Millennium Development Goals. Development Gateway provides Web-based platforms that make aid and development efforts more effective around the world. It focuses on three areas where even small investments in information and communications technology can make a major difference:

Zunia demonstration page another online tool for collaboration and information exchange for global efforts like the Millennium Development Goals. Zunia is an online network for knowledge exchange among development professionals worldwide. Users from all over the world visit the portal to access news, events, best practices and publications on a wide range of development topics. Registration in Zunia is free and open to all. Users can stay informed on development issues, post information, get e-mail updates, create a professional profile and connect with peers.

It's not this diagnosis of Africa's problems that makes Sachs's theories contentious, but his proposed solution, which might be called shock ­aid-­huge, sudden injections of money into poor areas. Over five years, $2.75 million is being invested in the single village of Sauri, and an equal amount will be sunk into each of another 11 Millennium Village sites that are being established in 10 African ­countries.

A critical review of Sachs' Millennium Villages.

Presented here are the overview and full report of the UN Millennium Project. The overview is available here in six languages in pdf format; the English overview is available in html format using the navigation at the left. The task force reports are also available in pdf format.

Millennium Promise Alliance Inc. Date: September 2008 Purpose: to promote the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals in Africa by 2015 Amount: $500,000 Term: 2 years Topic: Advocacy & Public Policy Region Served: Africa Program: Global Development Grantee Location: New York, NY Grantee Web site: http://www.millenniumpromise.org

This is an excellent example of collaborative tools available on the internet and how they can be used in implementing the Millennium Development Goals. Background We live in an increasingly 'networked' development world, where information, knowledge, and relationships are critical aspects of more effective efforts. Our organizations are adjusting and adapting to become 'global learning networks;' as individuals, we are asked to take on a broader range of roles and tasks become active participants in knowledge co-creation, sharing and use. Taking advantage of emerging opportunities in this area calls for use to develop and use a different communication 'toolset' in our work; we also need to change the ways we work, adopting more a 'mindset' that favours open learning and sharing.

First, the UK needs to meet our moral commitment to increase spending on aid to 0.7 per cent gross national income. But this investment has to go hand-in-hand with greater transparency, ensuring the money reaches the people who need it most. A Conservative government will create an independent aid watchdog and publish every item of aid spending online, so that the performance and impact of development policies are transparent to taxpayers in Britain and to people in the developing world.

A British Conservative potential Prime Minister speaking of the Millennium Development Goals as a responsibility of his government. I made the point in my last blog post that the Millennium Development Goals resonate better everywhere than they do here in America.

The cost benefits analysis for the Millennium Development Goals from the UN.

I am going to be more outgoing (the word that more naturally arises is pushy) in support of the Millennium Development Goals by including posts from my blog Milestones for A New Millennium. This post is on Food Security. Give me a shout if you think that this is not a good idea.