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JESSICA BIEL, ALEXANDRA COUSTEAU, PETE WENTZ, ANGELIQUE KIDJO AND JENNY FLETCHER JOIN Live Earth, GLOBAL WATER CHALLENGE and DOW TO launch THE DOW LIVE EARTH RUN FOR WATER

Date

14 Oct 2009

Sections

Sustainable Dev.

The largest global water initiative in history TO HELP solve the world water crisis

Cities Hosting the Event Include Buenos Aires, Cape Town, Chicago, Hong Kong, Jimbaran, London, Los Angeles, Manchester, Melbourne, Mexico City, Milan, Minneapolis, New York, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Singapore City, Stockholm, Toronto and Washington, D.C.

Coalition of 20 Global Water Non-Governmental Organization Partners Unveiled

New York – (October 14, 2009) – Today, Live Earth announced plans to implement the largest worldwide water initiative on record to help combat the global water crisis. The Dow Live Earth Run for Water – to take place April 18, 2010 – will consist of a series of 6 km run/walks (the average distance many women and children walk every day to secure water) taking place over the course of 24 hours in countries around the world, featuring concerts and water education activities aimed at igniting a tipping point to help solve the water crisis. Jessica Biel, Alexandra Cousteau, Pete Wentz, Angelique Kidjo and Jenny Fletcher will lend their names and their time in support of this important cause.

“The Dow Live Earth Run for Water will bring people together around the world, raising awareness about the sources and consequences of the water crisis, locally and globally,” said Alexandra Cousteau, global water advocate and founder of Blue Legacy International. “It captures perfectly the interconnectedness of life on our water planet and drives home the message that the water crisis is a global issue that isn’t going to be fixed by scientists or policymakers alone. It’s up to each of us.”

Water scarcity is an issue affecting countries, communities and families all over the world. One in eight people don’t have access to safe, clean drinking water. Eighty-eight percent of diarrheal cases worldwide are linked to inadequate and unsafe water. These cases result in 1.5 million deaths each year, mostly among children under five. In these areas, women and children are forced to walk 6 km (3.7 miles) each day to secure water that is likely unsuitable for drinking.

Everybody counts in helping to solve the water crisis. The Dow Live Earth Run for Water is a global movement focused on the actions individuals can take to effectively address the issue. People are encouraged to START solving the problem today, RUN in a Dow Live Earth Run for Water run/walk in their community or organize their own run/walk through the Friends of Live Earth program, SAVE water in their home and local community through conservation efforts, GIVE money to support clean, safe water projects and SPEAK UP by signing the Live Earth petition to add water as a basic human right to the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights.

“Water scarcity is an issue that affects all of us and we all have a responsibility to do our part to help solve this global crisis,” said actor and Dow Live Earth Run for Water supporter Jessica Biel. “The beauty of the Dow Live Earth Run for Water is that it gives us a platform to encourage others to be part of the solution to help everyone have access to clean, safe drinking water.”

Dow Live Earth Run for Water cities unveiled today, include Buenos Aires, Argentina; Cape Town, South Africa; Chicago, IL, USA; Hong Kong, China; Jimbaran, Bali, Indonesia; London, UK; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Manchester, UK; Melbourne, Australia; Mexico City, Mexico; Milan, Italy; Minneapolis, MN, USA; New York, NY, USA; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; São Paulo, Brazil; Singapore City, Singapore; Stockholm, Sweden; Toronto, Canada; Washington, D.C., USA. For a full list of Dow Live Earth Run for Water cities, visit http://liveearth.org/run.

The Dow Live Earth Run for Water run/walk registration opens today via The Active Network at http://liveearth.org/run. All participants will receive a free online ActiveTrainer plan to help them prepare for the event. Ten percent of all registration fees go directly to the NGO selected for their country.

“Dow is proud to be the title sponsor for this groundbreaking event,” said Ian Barbour, general manager at Dow Water & Process Solutions, a business unit of Dow. “As part of our 2015 Sustainability Goals, we are committed to leveraging science and technology to help solve some of the world’s greatest challenges – like the water crisis. Our partnership with Live Earth is just one of the many ongoing efforts Dow is making to address water scarcity and help millions of people around the world gain access to safe, clean drinking water.”

Through a cross-platform global fundraising effort, all donations raised by the Dow Live Earth Run for Water will be disseminated to fund sustainable and scalable water programs. A growing global network of NGO partners including Global Water Challenge, A Child’s Right, Akvo, Fondo Para La Paz, Indonesia Water Partnership, Lien Ad, Pump Aid, Wildlands Conservation Trust and many others who will successfully implement water and conservation projects around the world. For the comprehensive list of Live Earth’s NGO partners around the world, please visit http://liveearth.org/runforwater/partners.

"The world water crisis is the single greatest avoidable health challenge of our time,” said Paul Faeth, president of Global Water Challenge, the lead beneficiary and non-profit partner for the Dow Live Earth Run for Water in the United States. “There is a solution. With appropriate funding and scaling simple technology, we believe we have the ability to ensure universal access to clean and safe drinking water. The Dow Live Earth Run for Water will serve as a catalyst to rally the world community around the critical issue of water scarcity and empower citizens to be part of the solution."

The water crisis is not only limited to developing nations. In cities such as Los Angeles and Singapore City, growing demand on limited water supplies has led to enforced water rationing and increased costs to the public. Adding to these existing issues, the affects of climate change are increasingly impacting both supply and quality of available fresh water throughout the world – shifting traditional rainfall patterns, altering water-shaping ecosystems and magnifying the effects of pollution.

“Building on the massive success of the Live Earth: Concerts for a Climate in Crisis in 2007, the Dow Live Earth Run for Water will mobilize the global community to once again come together on one day and take action on one of the most serious environmental issues today, the global water crisis,” said Kevin Wall, founder and CEO of Live Earth. “Water scarcity affects everyone whether they are aware of it or not, and the goal of the Dow Live Earth Run for Water is to raise the profile of this issue, educate the world’s citizens about its challenges and offer opportunities to be part of the solution.”

Those interested in organizing their own run/walks in their communities to support the Dow Live Earth Run for Water can register their run/walk as a “Friends of Live Earth” event at http://liveearth.org/friends. Friends of Live Earth registered events receive approved materials, including event guidelines, logos, video and photos assets, as well as an invitation to join the Friends of Live Earth social network for regular updates. To date, nearly 20 Friends of Live Earth events are confirmed to take place in cities around the world, including: Accra, Ghana; Amsterdam, Netherlands; Asunción, Paraguay; Bogotá, Colombia; Cotonou, Benin; Dar es Salaam, Tanzania; Hamilton, Bermuda; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; Santiago, Chile; Eldoret, Kenya; Kampala, Uganda; Lima, Peru; Lusaka, Zambia; Panama City, Panama; Praia, Cape Verde; Tortola, British Virgin Islands; and Port Louis, Mauritius.

The Dow Live Earth Run for Water has enlisted the expertise of the best in the business to assist with the event – Control Room, executive producers of all Live Earth events, is responsible for global entertainment and broadcast production; Ignite, overseeing concert production; Pacific Sports, handling run production around the world; Ignition, handling water village event production; and the Active Network, providing online registration technology to support the races around the world. Additional strategic partners are listed at http://liveearth.org/runforwater/partners

For more information about the Dow Live Earth Run for Water, visit http://liveearth.org or Amandine de Coster at Weber Shandwick: +32 2 894 90 17 or adecoster@webershandwick.com

# # #

About Live Earth
Founded by Emmy-winning producer Kevin Wall, in partnership with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, Live Earth was built upon the belief that entertainment has the power to transcend social and cultural barriers to move the world community to action. A for-profit company, Live Earth seeks to leverage the power of entertainment through integrated events, media and the live experience to ignite a global movement aimed at solving the most critical environmental issues of our time. More information about Live Earth can be found at http://liveearth.org.

About The Dow Chemical Company

With sales of $58 billion in 2008 and 46,000 employees worldwide, Dow is a diversified chemical company that combines the power of science and technology with the "Human Element” to constantly improve what is essential to human progress. The Company delivers a broad range of products and services to customers in around 160 countries, connecting chemistry and innovation with the principles of sustainability to help provide everything from fresh water, food and pharmaceuticals to paints, packaging and personal care products. On April 1, 2009, Dow acquired Rohm and Haas Company, a global specialty materials company with sales of $10 billion in 2008 and 15,000 employees worldwide. References to “Dow” or the “Company” mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted. More information about Dow can be found at www.dow.com.

About Global Water Challenge

GWC is a diverse coalition that consists of leading organizations working to provide creative and sustainable solutions for universal access to safe drinking water and sanitation. GWC’s mission is to generate a global movement to meet the urgent need for safe water and sanitation by spurring collective awareness and investment in water supply/sanitation innovation by corporate, public, and nongovernmental actors. Our challenge is to reach people with the tools and education they need to empower themselves. Access to clean water and sanitation leads to healthier, longer and more productive lives, and breaks the cycle of poverty. Water and sanitation are not just human rights, they are human necessities. More information about Global Water Challenge can be found at http://www.globalwaterchallenge.org.

About Control Room

Founded by Emmy-award winning producer Kevin Wall and headed by company president Aaron Grosky, Control Room is the world’s leading producer of massive global events, leveraging unparalleled expertise to deliver once-in-a-life time entertainment experiences to audiences around the world. Through a combination of expertise in event production, television production, media architecture design, artist and celebrity relationships, sponsorship development and creative vision Control Room evolves events into cultural phenomena.

Control Room is an end-to-end solution for brands, artists, broadcasters and sponsors committed to connecting global audiences with compelling entertainment. The company has built long-standing business relationships and successfully navigated the complexities of culture, government and production in countries in every region of the world. Since 2005, Control Room has illustrated a history of measureable results through a comprehensive body of work including more than 100 live events ranging from single-artist concerts to worldwide movements.

About Pacific Sports

Pacific Sports LLC is a premier sports consultation firm, specializing in event production, management, and corporate sports marketing development. Having produced more than 300 sport events in the United States, including the 1996 Triathlon World Championships and 12 U.S. Championships, Pacific Sports LLC is dedicated to the creation, development and management of participant and endurance sports including those of running, swimming, and cycling. Pacific Sports was a founder of the Life Time Fitness Triathlon Series comprising the major championships at the Olympic Distance in the United States. The firm produces events around the world, including the Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Triathlon, Dow Live Earth Run for Water, Catalina Marathon, Rose Bowl Half Marathon, and Cleveland Triathlon. Pacific Sports is a Delaware based Limited Liability Company with offices in Anaheim, California. The firm was founded in 1983.

About Ignition

ignition is the award-winning experiential marketing agency behind some of the world’s most ambitious and famous events and campaigns: Coca-Cola’s Olympic Torch Relays and FIFA World Cup™ Trophy Tours, the 2007 Live Earth concerts and the Blue Planet Run. It is also one of the first agencies that is committed to fully integrate environmental sustainability across its operations and projects. With ignition, clients deliver measurable brand-building experiences that leave a lasting impression on the communities they touch, without leaving a lasting impact on the planet. Find out more at www.ignition-inc.com.

About Ignite

Ignite, formerly known as Ignition Europe Ltd., is a full service marketing solutions company aimed at bolstering brand awareness and consumer engagement for the world’s leading corporations. Creating unforgettable branded experiences through multi-sensory communications, strategic marketing innovation, and programming solutions that develop lasting, emotional consumer connections, the company’s focus is on delivering highly-targeted, relevant branded messaging via one-to-one and one-to-few human interaction. The company is headquartered in London, and is privately owned by Kevin Wall and Harvey Goldsmith. Kevin Wall is an Emmy Award-winning producer, digital entertainment pioneer, convergence technology investor, and founder of Live Earth and Control Room. Harvey Goldsmith is a world-renowned concert producer and promoter for iconic performers including Rolling Stones, The Who, Bruce Springsteen, and more. Goldsmith serves as chairman of Ignite.

About The Active Network, Inc.
The Active Network is a leading provider of event management technology and will provide online registration for all Dow Live Earth Run for Water run/walks in 2009. Participants in the run/walks will also have access to Active’s online training and fundraising tools to help participants meet their fitness and fundraising goals. For more information about The Active Network, please visit, www.TheActiveNetwork.com.

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