AIDemocracy.org

HIV and Us: Victim of the stoppable, unstoppable disease

September 27, 2011 by Gillian Rollason Leave a Comment

Imagine if HIV were an airborne virus? Next time someone next to you on campus sneezed, you could be infected with deadly and incurable disease. And what about mosquito bites? A holiday in Thailand might not seem so appealing then…Would we have developed a cure if the problem was so easily transmitted? Or would be living in a nightmarish dystopia of quarantine and detention centres? Luckily, HIV is not airborne, and despite constant mutations in the virus it is unlikely to ever be as contagious as flu or the common cold. Perhaps just as luckily, the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Sex and Justice Tagged With: health, HIV, HIV/AIDS, human rights, Malaria, MDGs, PEPFAR, sexual and reproductive health, sexual health, The Body, USAID, World AIDS Day

30 years in, we are still learning from AIDS

June 2, 2011 by William Tsang Leave a Comment

The New York Times recently published an article called “30 Years In, We Are Still Learning From AIDS” by Laurence K. Altman. This summary timeline, although brief, gives us an idea of how the US dealt with the rise of this epidemic and where it stands when it comes to understanding and combating HIV/AIDS. Those who study the history of AIDS in the US can fill in the blanks regarding the scientific inconsistencies and mass hysteria surrounding the disease. Once it was discovered that seroconversion (changing from HIV- to HIV+) could occur through … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Sex and Justice Tagged With: activism, advocacy, HIV/AIDS, humanitarian aid, Issue Analyst, MDGs, PEPFAR, sexual health, United States, US foreign policy

Africanization of Foreign Aid: A Re-Discussion of Current Approaches

February 11, 2011 by Krystle Corpuz

A recent article of Belarus Digest, discusses a fundraising event that took place in Warsaw that secured pledges of $120 million from 36 donor states. One of the biggest challenges that many Belarus delegates acknowledged was the need to prevent the “Africanization of Foreign Aid” in their country. Essentially, they want to prevent corruption, abuse, and fraud of donor assistance. Taking a step back, what exactly does the “Africanization of Foreign Aid” imply? It signifies the perpetual image that Africa consistently falls short of required … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Hunger Tagged With: Africa, foreign aid, MDGs

AIDemocracy MDG Event at Stanford University

November 21, 2010 by AIDemocracy

organized by Abroo Khan and Nadia Mufti There was a good mix of undergrad and a few graduate students. All very excited about MDGs and getting involved. MDG and AIDemocracy program materials on organizational opportunities as well as health and food security were distributed at the event. Students now have a direct link to AIDemocracy and how to engage in the multiplicity of activities offered. The event was quite a success and about 15-20 students came out, which is impressive given that it is midterms week and it was freezing outside. The following … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: events, MDGs

MDG Summit calls for Equitable Solutions

October 15, 2010 by Sydney Kornegay

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) received their 20-year old check-up at the MDG summit in September. The diagnosis? While some of the goals are on track for completion by 2015, others- like reducing maternal mortality- have experienced only patchy progress. The poorest and most vulnerable communities continue to suffer, and have unequal access to basic human services. These trends are particularly true for women. According to a UNICEF report of the conference, 1,000 women still die every day from complications in pregnancy and childbirth, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Hunger, Sex and Justice Tagged With: Brazil, maternal health, MDGs

Student Experience: StandUp NYC

September 30, 2010 by Elizabeth Con

A post by one of our student MDG champions and Issue Analysts- Elizabeth Con, College of Charleston. StandUp NYC, held in Lincoln Center on September 19th, spread awareness of the Millenium Development Goals and the organizations that have been working to achieve them. The event was especially relevant because it held on the eve of the UN MDG Summit 2010, which brought together world leaders to discuss the MDG goals. I thought StandUp NYC was a great event because it had various things for people to engage in: music, speakers, and information … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Hunger, Sex and Justice Tagged With: MDGs

TEDx Change: reportback

September 26, 2010 by Karen Showalter

Last Monday I attended a TEDx Change event on the Millennium Development Goals in NYC. Speakers included Hans Rosling, Melinda Gates, Mechai Viravaidya (introduced as "Dr. Condom"), and Graca Machel. We were also treated to a performance by Sierra Leonian hip hop group Bajah + The Dry Eye Crew. Some highlights: Hans Rosling stressed the need to update our concept of poverty, including how we analyze our statistics. We have made greater progress than we often realize in the last decade, even though we must remember that the 90s were a very difficult … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Hunger Tagged With: MDGs

Prepping for the MDG summit..

September 15, 2010 by Priti Gautam

Because we are attending the Millennium Campus Conference this weekend, focused on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and which satellites the actual United Nations MDG Summit on Monday-Wednesday in NYC, I thought I'd read up on recent news. I came across this really interesting article that helps put many things into perceptive. Don't miss the section on the UN Agency for Women, a new agency said to be a "breakthrough" for women's rights and gender equality and expected to help achieve all of the MDGs. And it's not too late to register for the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Climate Change, Hunger, Sex and Justice Tagged With: MDGs

Africans Face Competing Visions of Agricultural Development at a Critical Juncture

July 23, 2010 by Sarah Frazer

A follow up post to the one below, also from the Food First blog. A little long, but well worth it. Africans Face Competing Visions of Agricultural Development at Critical Juncture Posted May 20th, 2010 by rjonasse By Richard Jonasse, Food First A contest of competing visions over the future of Agriculture is playing out across Sub-Saharan Africa. Farmers' organizations are lining up against an aid regime that threatens to swamp smallholders with purported "solutions" to which these farmers have not assented and do not desire. … [Read more...]