Youth Against AIDS

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Youthforce was an international youth network founded in 1999 to raise visibility around the impact of HIV/AIDS on youth.

Contents

Youthforce was one of two youth partners who initiated the Youthforce, [1] a self-sustaining international brand and umbrella under which youth from around the world partner with global stakeholders to raise their voice on HIV/AIDS. Each Youthforce creates its own identity and gives space to youth to be heard.[ citation needed ]

The highlight of Youthforce was an "MTV Ask the Leaders" session featuring former president Bill Clinton, actor Rupert Everett and Peter Piot of UNAIDS. One of the first sessions of its kind, it was broadcast worldwide as part of MTV's Staying Alive Campaign.

Barcelona Youthforce, 2002

This was the beginning of the Youthforce movement. Barcelona Youthforce was a partnership between of Youth Against AIDS, Student Global AIDS Campaign with Family Health International and Advocates for Youth. [2] [3]

Bangkok Youthforce 2004

This was a follow-up to the Barcelona Youthforce. Bangkok youth attendees disbanded Youth Against AIDS after the conference and several young leaders received support from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and UNAIDS to form the Global Youth Coalition on HIV/AIDS, (GYCA), [4] a global, youth-led network that has now grown to over 6,000 members in 173 countries worldwide.[ citation needed ]

Toronto Youthforce 2006

The culmination of the Youthforce efforts so far was in Toronto 2006, where the presence of youth was the highest to date. [5] At Toronto, GYCA coordinated a Youth Pre-Conference and an advocacy campaign focusing on the vulnerability of youth to HIV infection and the right of young people to participate. GYCA continued to secure youth participation at the following Mexico 2008 and Vienna 2010 International AIDS Conferences with other YouthForce partners including Advocates for Youth, [6] TakingITGlobal [7] and others.

Visibility for youth advocates

YAA enlisted and raised visibility for representatives on over 30 countries. Most of those have proceeded to be the most visible activists on HIV/AIDS in their countries.

International advocacy

Having served its intended goal as a catalyst to the creation of an international youth movement on HIV/AIDS, YAA's identity gradually gave way to the Youthforce and a new generation of youth with different concerns, yet all with needs for visibility. YAA disbanded as an entity after the Bangkok AIDS Conference.[ citation needed ]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epidemiology of HIV/AIDS</span> Epidemic of HIV/AIDS

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The International Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS (ICW), a registered UK charity, is an international network run for and by HIV positive women. ICW was established to support programs designed to safeguard and improve the quality of life for women living with HIV.

The Global Media AIDS Initiative (GMAI) is an umbrella organization that unites and motivates media companies around the world to use their influence, resources, and creative talent to address AIDS. The GMAI creates a framework for sharing television and radio programming among media companies in order to increase public health messaging. The organization also educates journalists, editors and producers on how to cover the issue. HIV is preventable, and GMAI members aim to improve public awareness and knowledge to help stem the spread of HIV/AIDS.

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Think Positive” is a Lebanese association established in 2009 by young activists who have been working hard to serve their society by raising awareness among youths and marginalized groups. It started its activities with fighting HIV/AIDS, Drug Use, Sexually Transmitted Diseases and Stigma and Discrimination. It has launched the regional campaign against HIV+ Phobia in collaboration with 10 partners at International, Regional and National levels and conducted many activities and projects under the main theme of the campaign.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">YouthAIDS</span>

YouthAIDS is an international nongovernmental, nonprofit education, funding, and health initiative of Population Services International (PSI) that provides humanitarian assistance and brings global awareness to the proliferation of HIV/AIDS. The organization is based in Washington, D.C., and reaches out to 600 million youth in over 60 countries through the delivery of information, products, and social services. Methods used to address issues include film, television, and radio; celebrity spokespersons; pop culture initiatives; theatrical productions; music; and sports. Actress and humanitarian Ashley Judd serves the organization as their Global Ambassador.

The Organization of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD), originally formed as the Organization of African First Ladies against HIV/AIDS (OAFLA), is a nongovernmental, not-for-profit organization founded in 2002 by 37 African first ladies.

Reach A Hand, Uganda (RAHU) is a youth serving nonprofit organisation based in Uganda that focuses on youth empowerment programs with an emphasis on, Sexual Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) and Advocacy of young people between the ages of 10–30 years including HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention ,youth livelihood promotion. RAHU works with the goal of increasing access to information and services relating to SRHR for young people so as to empower them live healthy, focused and productive lives. Reach A Hand Uganda's efforts are timely to make a contribution to ensuring that every young person in Uganda can access accurate information to aid and direct them in taking that crucial life decision regarding their life skills and development, and sexual reproductive health and rights.

References

  1. Youthforce
  2. "FHI – Barcelona Youth Force Newsletters". Archived from the original on 13 October 2007. Retrieved 18 November 2007.
  3. Barcelona Youth Force - FHI.org [ dead link ]
  4. "Global Youth Coalition on HIV/AIDS website". Archived from the original on 5 November 2011. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
  5. AIDS 2006: Youth Site Archived 21 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  6. Advocates for Youth
  7. TakingITGlobal
  8. Staff, W. W. D. (7 May 2004). "Reebok's Human Rights Stars". WWD. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  9. IMDb: We Will Not Die Like Dogs (2005)