The Global Impact of World Polio Day
On 24 October 2016, Rotary celebrated its most successful World Polio Day. News outlets reported on global polio eradication efforts. Government buildings were lit up with the End Polio Now logo. Social media accounts shared stories of polio survivors. The Canadian government, along with former New York City, USA mayor, Michael Bloomberg, contributed millions to the fight to end polio.
In Atlanta, Georgia, USA, more than 200 people, along with thousands of others who tuned in online, attended the live World Polio Day event at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Some of the biggest names in polio eradication reflected on recent progress and discussed what needs to be done to end the disease for good.
A New Way to Look at Polio
Sometimes, you have to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes to understand their journey. Rotary, with support from the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, is doing just that through a virtual reality film that tells the story of Alokita, a young adult who suffered paralysis from polio as a child growing up in India. Immersed in the sights and sounds of the streets of Delhi and the halls of St. Stephen’s Hospital, home to India’s only polio ward, viewers can watch Alokita take her first steps in 11 years. Learn more at
https://www.endpolio.org/