Where In The World Is Selena Gomez? Well, Ghana To Start.

Selena Gomez has had a busy summer. She starred in Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie for Disney (11.4 million viewers, thankyouverymuch) and washed that Twilight werewolf out of her freshly shorn summer 'do. Then she went to Ghana.

After teaming up in 2008 with UNICEF to be the ambassador for their Trick-or-Treat program, the teen star went to West Africa to support UNICEF's mission to reduce the number of preventable deaths in Ghana. The country is severely lacking in simple needs like clean water, food and health care.

“Every day 24,000 children die from preventable causes. I stand with UNICEF in the belief that we can change that number from 24,000 to zero. I know we can achieve this because every moment, UNICEF is on the ground providing children with the lifesaving assistance needed to ensure zero becomes a reality,” said Gomez on UNICEF's site. At 17, she is the youngest UNICEF ambassador in America.

Ghana is ranked 30 out of 195 countries with the highest mortality rates of children under five according to results released earlier this year by UNICEF. Gomez observed how UNICEF is working to address these issues through local initiatives to ensure child survival.

"UNICEF Ambassadors have a wide range of talents and achievements, but they all share a commitment to saving the lives of children worldwide," said Caryl Stern, President and CEO of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF in a statement. "We're very pleased to have Selena join the UNICEF family, as a longtime supporter, she will continue to capture and engage an audience of millions of young people to help ensure the health, education, equality and protection of every child."

She really is the next generation of young role models in Hollywood. She managed to sidestep teen drama with frenemy Miley and has declared that she is too busy for boys. Now we know why: she's busy being true to her word and consistently giving back! Good job Selena!

Photo credit: selena-fan.com.