WASHINGTON, May 8 (OneWorld) - More than 800 development and human rights activists are gathering here this week, developing and calling on Congress to implement new strategies to tackle world poverty and hunger.

The Forum is unique in bringing together an extremely diverse group of nonprofit workers — from Capitol Hill lobbyists to African field workers — to not only discuss but also take action on a new, holistic approach to international development.

“Our interest is to deal with the root causes [of poverty], to partner with institutions on the ground to make a greater difference; ultimately, this [Forum] is a recognition of a need for the greatest reform of U.S. foreign assistance since the Kennedy administration,” InterAction CEO Sam Worthington told OneWorld Wednesday.