Action Center to End World Hunger Honored With Webby and IDEA Awards for Giving Visitors Effective Ways to Take Action

NEW YORK, NY, Apr 29 (MARKET WIRE) --
The Action Center to End World Hunger website (www.actioncenter.org) has
been honored by the 2009 Webby Awards for helping visitors learn about
the systemic causes of hunger, and inviting them to participate in
hundreds of actions that help people lift themselves out of poverty.

The website is the online home of the Action Center, a first-of-its-kind
interactive public space that inspires and empowers visitors of all ages,
backgrounds, and cultures to tackle the global challenges of hunger and
poverty. Located in lower Manhattan's Battery Park City, the Action Center
was designed for the global relief and development agency Mercy Corps by
interactive pioneer ESI Design.

The Action Center was honored in two categories of the 13th Annual Webby
Awards, the leading international award honoring excellence on the
Internet: 1) as one of five finalists in the Activism category; and, 2) as
one of 14 honorees in the Charitable Organization / Nonprofit category.

The Action Center has also been nominated as a 2009 Environment Finalist
for the prestigious IDEA Awards sponsored by BusinessWeek and the
Industrial Designers Society of America.

"The Action Center inspires visitors to make a very personal commitment to
ending world hunger," said Robert Sherman, executive director of the
Action Center. "Both the Center and the Website use the power of video and
storytelling to make meaningful connections for people. They also provide
real tools to create lasting social change. We are very excited to receive
these prestigious honors from the Webby and IDEA Awards."

Edwin Schlossberg, ESI Design's Principal Designer said, "In both real and
virtual space, the Action Center is a place where people collaborate to
discover issues, assess situations worldwide, and take action based on the
time they can give -- an hour, a day, a week, a month, a year, or a
lifetime. We are very excited by the enthusiastic response people have
given to the Action Center."

While the Webby Academy will not make its final vote known until June 8,
the online public selects The People's Voice Award winners in an open vote
that ends on April 30th. To make your voice known, please visit
pv.webbyawards.com.

About Mercy Corps -- Mercy Corps helps people in the world's toughest
places turn the crises of natural disasters, poverty and conflict into
opportunities for progress. Driven by local needs and market conditions,
Mercy Corps' programs provide communities with the tools and support they
need to transform their own lives. Our worldwide team of 3,700
professionals is improving the lives of 14.5 million people in more than
40 countries. For more information, see www.mercycorps.org.

About ESI Design -- ESI Design is one of the world's foremost experience
design firms, creating innovative physical and virtual environments that
connect audiences with today's leading cultural and commercial
institutions. The firm was founded in 1977 by interactive pioneer Edwin
Schlossberg with the mission to create informed conversations in public
spaces that encourage participation and empower people to create positive
change. Clients include Sony, Best Buy, McDonald's, Reuters, Mercy Corps,
and the Statue of Liberty Ellis Island Foundation. For examples of the
firm's work, please visit www.esidesign.com.

Na Eng
Senior Communications Officer
Mercy Corps
Email Contact
www.mercycorps.org
www.actioncenter.org
212-537-0522

Rosalia Scampoli
Marketcom
Email Contact
www.marketcompr.com
212-537-5177 ext. 7

Copyright 2009, Market Wire, All rights reserved.

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