Happy New Year! It's 2010, and no matter how you say it -- "two thousand and ten" or "twenty-ten" -- the new year brings one very important matter -- THE 2010 CENSUS!!!

Over the holidays, I noticed a good number of press releases and news items about efforts by AAPI community organizations to encourage, but I'm thinking that most of us were in the holiday mood, and could use a reminder of what's happening!

Wednesday, January 13 - Making Sense of the Census: Challenges facing hard to count communities in 2010
Hosted by The Institute for Asian American Studies
Co-sponsored by: The Mauricio Gaston Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy and The William Monroe Trotter Institute for the Study of Black Culture.
9 - 11 a.m., Campus Center Room 3540
RSVP appreciated: 617.287.5650 or asianaminst@umb.edu
University of Massachusetts Boston (directions)

Of course in California, organizational leaders have started a big statewide push to get AAPIs to respond to the Census. Looks like the API Census Network there will be launching a website soon! 

In the metropolitan Washington, DC area, efforts are in full swing by all kinds of groups, even by the Thai Tennis Organization, which is promoting the National Thai Complete Count Committee.  And of course, APAs for Progress unsung hero Ben DeGuzman, based in DC, is organizing nationally too via the National Queer API Alliance!

Even down in Georgia, sounds like faith leaders are urging their congregants to respond to the Census.

An undercount of the population can result in millions of public dollars lost.  But it's not that easy to reach the diverse AAPI population, a majority of whom are immigrants, which makes ethnic media advertising purchases pretty important, according to a report by Minnesota Public Radio.

Be sure to fill out your Census form when you get it, help your family and friends too, and help out in the outreach efforts!