在发展中国家的非营利组织，政府和卫生官员多年来一直在努力清除改善卫生的主要障碍：说服人们需要和展示如何正确使用厕所，卫生纸和肥皂。近年来，该战略已转移，与比尔和梅林达盖茨基金会等组织，世界银行集团认识到儿童可能是改变国家卫生行为的最佳希望。为了寻找这种新方法的喉舌，他们涉及非正式童年教育的权威：芝麻街。全球社区的卫生的新发言人是一个名为六岁的布偶raya.。
有黑色编织的头发的绿色傀儡，穿着红色裤子的棕褐色刺绣上衣，旨在与各种观众连接发展中国家，她将教孩子通过纽约的非营利组织芝麻厂房的电视节目以及印刷材料，以及印刷材料的重要性。芝麻在去年在新德里的厕所挑战中介绍了Raya，在30个月的研究项目中，它正在与盖茨基金会进行，更好地了解如何向儿童及其护理人员传达基本水，卫生和卫生信息。
After the study’s two-year mark passed last year, Stephen Sobhani, vice president, international, at Sesame Workshop, says the researchers “found that there are basic building blocks and messages and behaviors that can be conveyed in multiple countries at the same time, be they rural, urban, school based or home based.” Enter Raya, who has quickly become “the defining character of Sesame Workshop as a global organization and our ambassador to the global health community,” Sobhani notes.
芝麻街长期以来一直在为观众提供娱乐和教育的正确组合，这通常是八岁和年轻的儿童。Most Americans recognize characters like Big Bird and Cookie Monster, who have become household names over the show’s 45-year history, but fewer know of Sesame’s two dozen locally produced co-productions in other countries, some of which have been around for almost as long. Over the past two decades the show has expanded its mission from teaching children words, numbers and concepts like kindness to tackling heavier topics, including AIDS and obesity.
2002年，为了应对南非与艾滋病毒/艾滋病的战斗，芝麻街道的版本在该国展开了第一个艾滋病毒阳性布偶，一个名为Kami的无症状孤儿，他们反映并教授她的观众。Kami仍然是南非和尼日利亚最受欢迎的芝麻人物之一，Sobhani解释说，她为芝麻师作者提供了关于全球卫生问题的声明的语气。U.S. audiences will be more familiar with Cookie Monster’s shift to healthier eating, as part of the 2006 introduction of the Health Habits for Life segment on the American version of the show, in which the furry blue Muppet often reminds viewers that “cookie is a sometimes food.” Sesame Workshop added the segment to help combat rising childhood obesity in the U.S. “We’re not just talking about children’s issues; we’re talking to children about issues,” Sobhani says.
但如果Raya的外表不是奇怪的，那么她最喜欢的科目可能是。她并不害怕谈论大便 - 在哪里做，如何做到这一点，以后要做什么。“每个人都这样做的是什么，但很多人不喜欢谈论？好的，这不是一个真正的谜语。答案是大便！“raya（或扮演她的声音演员）在一封电子邮件中说II。“我们都走了，所以让我们不要害羞。”
有些观众将畏缩，但Raya的创作者说，与他们和世界银行的最高级全球健康挑战相比，没有任何不适。缺乏水卫生和卫生卫生负责发展中国家越来越多的疾病;孟加拉国，印度和尼日利亚，最近在哪里首次亮相，位于前十名。
Unsafe drinking water and poor sanitation contribute to about 88 percent of deaths from diarrheal diseases, according to the World Health Organization, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that in developing countries more than 800,000 children under the age of five perish from sanitation-related illnesses each year.
威斯康星大学儿童发展研究人员的2013年调查显示，麦迪逊展示了观看共同制作的儿童芝麻街改善了学习结果。研究人员写道，该表演是一个“持久的可扩展性和有效的早期儿童教育干预措施”。这就是芝麻，盖茨基金会和世界银行正在与他们的卫生布偶依靠。Raya的下一站将是印度尼西亚，越南或其他国家中的一个，其中十个受水和卫生相关疾病的十大。