Press Release: For Immediate Release !!

National Geographic Society Launches My Wonderful World Public Awareness Campaign

A coalition led by National Geographic is unveiling a public engagement campaign designed to give students tools to become more informed global citizens. The goal of the five-year, multimedia campaign — My Wonderful World — is to improve the geographic literacy of young people ages 8-17 by motivating parents and educators to expand geographic learning in school, at home and in their communities. Specifically, the campaign aims to:

• Show parents how to help their children learn about the world.
• Increase geographic offerings in schools and the resources available to them.
• Increase the number of students who take geography-related courses and engage in related activities in school.
• Increase the number of community organizations that engage young people in geography-related activities.

The campaign Web site, MyWonderfulWorld.org, provides resources such as suggestions for family activities and ways that parents can work to get more geography into the classroom, links to geography games and online adventures for kids and teens, classroom materials for educators, and ways for young and old to test their global IQs. The site also provides tools for communicating to policymakers and education leaders the importance of geographic literacy.

On May 2^nd 2006, at 10:00a.m.Et the MWW Web site will go live. The kick-off event is the release of the new National Geographic-Roper Survey showing how well U.S. youth is prepared for the global future. The survey represents the results of a recent survey of geographic knowledge among Americans aged 18-24. Do young Americans know where places in the news are located? Do they have the skills to compete in a 21^st-century global economy?

Do they understand the context of major world events?

To make sure our young people are informed global citizens, National Geographic and a coalition of major international business, education, entertainment and nonprofit organizations are launching a five-year public engagement campaign about geography—My Wonderful World.  Partners include National PTA, NBA Cares, Busch Gardens, Sesame Workshop, Council on Competitiveness and the United Nations Foundation.

Go to the MyWonderfulWorld.org website today to learn how you can help. Go there and register today, and you will be at the front of the line. And tell your friends. After all, you are not alone either.