I AM BECAUSE WE ARE Shows at Yale

By Raising Malawi on 04.22.09

On April 19th, an audience of New Haven's brightest students and most conscientious citizens were moved, informed, and inspired by a screening of I AM BECAUSE WE ARE.

The 2009 Environmental Film Festival at Yale showcased cutting edge documentaries and short films to raise awareness of important global matters. I AM BECAUSE WE ARE, written and produced by Raising Malawi co-founder Madonna and directed by Nathan Rissman, explores what is happening in the heads and hearts of Malawi's one-million-plus orphan children in the wake of the AIDS pandemic.

Raising Malawi Executive Director and I AM BECAUSE WE ARE consulting producer, Philippe van den Bossche, introduced the film, describing the documentary as "a glimpse at part of a larger journey, for both Malawians and those working on Malawi's behalf."

Following the screening, Philippe was joined by Professor Jeffrey Sachs, director of The Earth Institute at Columbia University, special advisor to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, and co-founder of Millennium Promise. A leading economist and globally recognized champion for the eradication of poverty, Professor Sachs appears in I AM BECAUSE WE ARE along with Archbishop Desmond Tutu, President Bill Clinton, and Dr. Paul Farmer.

At Sunday morning's screening, Professor Sachs offered great insight into Malawi's struggles as a landlocked sub-Saharan nation especially susceptible to malaria and other contagious diseases. He also enthusiastically asserted that the dire situation in Malawi is in no way hopeless. He and Philippe van den Bossche discussed Raising Malawi's Millennium Village at Gumulira as an example of how community based healthcare initiatives can improve the lives of vulnerable children in Malawi and around the world.

Raising Malawi thanks Professor Jeffrey Sachs for his continuing work on behalf of the worlds poor, and the Environmental Film Festival at Yale for including I AM BECAUSE WE ARE in its 2009 line-up.