INTERNATIONAL: United Nations Foundation's Girl Up Campaign and Girls on the Run International Announce Partnership

Today the United Nations Foundation's Girl Up campaign announced its partnership with the organization Girls on the Run International, which will provide girls with opportunities to stand up for themselves and for girls across the globe and increase awareness of issues that adolescent girls everywhere face.

“Girls on the Run International and Girl Up will inspire our youth to stand up for themselves and for girls across the globe,” said Elizabeth Kunz, President of Girls on the Run International. “By encouraging the development of self-confidence and fearlessness, this partnership will give girls the opportunity to experience personal growth while bettering their community and the world.”

Girls on the Run International uses running to inspire and motivate girls, encourage lifelong health, and build confidence through accomplishment. Meeting twice a week in small teams, volunteer coaches help girls understand themselves, value relationships and teamwork, and learn how they connect with and shape the world. At the end of the season, the girls complete a 5K running event.

“As a Girls on the Run coach, I've seen firsthand how these girls help and support each other and truly care about their communities” said Melissa Hillebrenner, Deputy Director of Girl Up. “Girls in this program realize their limitless potential and are encouraged pursue their dreams. Girl Up then gives those girls a way to take that energy and focus outward toward helping other girls around the world do the same.”

This partnership will unite adolescent girls as they discover the power of their ideas, their voices, and their actions. Some ways Girl Up and Girls on the Run International will work together include:

• Girl Up girls serving as Junior Coaches (must be 16 years of age) or Coaches (must be over 18 years of age) for a Girls on the Run team in their community.
  
• Girl Up Clubs running together in a Girls on the Run 5K or hosting a cheering station to encourage girls throughout the race.
  
• Encouraging community members to organize fundraisers that support local Girls on the Run councils and Girl Up to help girls in the local community and around the world.
  
• Volunteering in community service projects for local Girls on the Run teams that support Girl Up initiatives and efforts.
  
• Tweet this: So excited about the newly announced @GirlUp & @GOTRI partnership! When you bring more girls together, amazing things happen.
  

About Girl Up

Girl Up, a campaign of the United Nations Foundation, gives American girls ages 13-18 the opportunity to channel their energy and compassion to raise awareness and funds for programs of the United Nations that help some of the world's hardest-to-reach adolescent girls. Through Girl Up's support, girls have the opportunity to become educated, healthy, safe, counted and positioned to be the next generation of leaders. Go to GirlUp.org to learn more.

About the United Nations Foundation

The United Nations Foundation builds public-private partnerships to address the world's most pressing problems, and broadens support for the United Nations through advocacy and public outreach. Through innovative campaigns and initiatives, the Foundation connects people, ideas, and resources to help the UN solve global problems. The Foundation was created in 1998 as a U.S. public charity by entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner and now is supported by global corporations, foundations, governments, and individuals. For more information, visit http://www.unfoundation.org.

About Girls on the Run

Girls on the Run is a life-changing, experiential learning programs for girls age eight to thirteen years old. It uses a fun, experience-based curriculum which creatively integrates running to inspire girls to be joyful, healthy and confident. The goals of the program are to encourage positive emotional, social, mental, and physical development in girls in the 3rd – 8th grade. Girls on the Run serves over 120,000 girls each year in 47 states and Canada.