UNITED NATIONS -- Video-sharing website YouTube and Black Eyed Peas frontman Will.i.am launched an initiative called "In My Name" on Thursday aimed at raising awareness about efforts to fight global poverty.

In what it described as a "video petition," YouTube set up a new channel where contributors can post their own videos urging world leaders to step up their efforts to end poverty.

"This is your chance to join the video petition to end world hunger," YouTube said in an announcement on the site's blog (youtube.com/blog).

The initiative was timed to coincide with a summit being held at the United Nations, where world leaders are meeting this week to discuss the UN Millennium Development Goals aimed at ending global poverty by 2015.

The YouTube drive is led by Will.i.am and non-profit organizations Oxfam, Global Call to Action Against Poverty, Save the Children and Comic Relief.

Singers John Legend, Annie Lennox and Fergie, actresses Scarlett Johansson and Mischa Barton and Jordan's Queen Rania were among the celebrities lending their names to the project.

YouTube said it would accept submissions through November 1 at youtube.com/inmyname and that a mash-up of the best entries would be put together and shown to world leaders at the UN General Assembly.