world into a reality." I'll be attending the conference this week and expect a lively debate about the future of CSR and what it means to put it in fast forward. As Karl Hofmann, President and chief executive of Population Services International, points out, "In Washington , D.C., the consequences aren't too severe. A few more colds and coughs than any of us wants or needs, but probably not much more than that," but elsewhere in the world, for billions of people, "the consequences can be far more serious, absurdly serious. Even fatal." And Global Handwashing Day -- celebrated earlier this week around the world through a variety of activities and campaigns -- is a good occasion to remind us of the importance of a deceptively simple public health intervention. As Unilever's Myriam Sidibe noted recently , more than two million children lose their lives every year to preventable causes such as diarrhea and pneumonia -- largely because they are not washing their hands. As in so many other areas of global health, strong and targeted public-private partnerships can make a huge difference in addressing this challenge. For Hofmann and PSI, 40 years of working in the field have brought to light several key lessons, especially about campaigns that involve changing habits and persuading people to turn habit into routine -- like washing hands with soap. These networks must be accompanied by communication campaigns, which educate families about health issues that affect their communities and motivate them to adopt healthy