By investing in public health instead of war, Sachs said, the United States could save 30 million lives.
Sachs has calculated that if the richest nations put together $25 billion annually, they could take care of the health needs of the developing world.
That amounts to every American putting one penny away from every $10 earned.
Sachs then spoke of his own experience visiting a clinic—which had no medicine—where 450 people were dying of treatable diseases in a room with only 160 beds.
“That’s three people dying in one bed,” Sachs said.
Near the end of his speech, Sachs called on students to raise their voices to get the U.S. to contribute more.
He said that Harvard students can join student groups, like the Student Global AIDS Campaign or Global Justice, that work to fight AIDS and global injustices.