2.9 million newborns around the world did not live past 28 days and 1 million of those babies died within the first 24 hours of life? 1.2 million babies died of stillbirth in 2012. These numbers are reported in Save the Children’s latest report released today: Ending Newborn Deaths: Ensuring Every Baby Survives.

Those numbers are huge, but that doesn't diminish how many mothers in the United States also lose newborns.

"The first day of a child's life is the most dangerous, and too many mothers give birth alone on the floor of their home or in the bush without any life-saving help," said Carolyn Miles, President and CEO of Save the Children. "We hear horror stories of mothers walking for hours during labor to find trained help, all too often ending in tragedy."

"It's criminal that many of these deaths could be averted simply if there was someone on hand to make sure the birth took place safely and who knew what to do in a crisis."

What Can You Do to Help? 

We can all do something to save newborn lives!

1. Follow all of the posts on Tumblr and on Pinterest for the next 24 hours to learn more about this global movement to save more babies and about Save the Children’s report.
2. You can join the conversation at#FirstDay.
3. You can also comment on the Every Newborn Action Plan until Friday, February 28, to share your ideas about saving more newborns.
4. And, finally, you can simply give to Save the Children to purchase newborn health kits for women in need who lack access to quality health workers and care.