Young people making a difference to HIV/AIDS
Research into Youth-led HIV/AIDS work for change
Young people in the OIYP and GYCA networks are coordinating research into the contributions of youth-led HIV/AIDS work.
Download the Case study survey and return it by 31 March, 2006 to iypactionAToxfam.org.au (replace AT with @ to send the email) NOTE: Deadline extended!
Click here for the case study survey.
from the research team
By Imane Khachani, OIYP Action Partner, GYCA Middle East North Africa
Today,10 millions young people out of the world’s over one billion are living with HIV and each day, around 6000 young men and women get newly infected with the virus.
Young people are the most hardly hit by the pandemic of which they remain a crucial component in terms of transmission, vulnerability, risk and potential change. But their needs are often ignored when HIV AIDS policies are designed, when prevention programmes are developed and when budgets are allocated and young people themselves are often excluded from the implementation of initiatives that target them. Hence the failure of many to address affectively their needs in terms of awareness raising, prevention and care.
Today, there are a growing number of young people across the world who are working within their communities to reduce the vulnerability and risk behaviours of their peers. With often limited resources, thousands of young activists are leading grassroots initiatives worldwide, contributing to the fight against HIV epidemic’s spread through peer education based programmes, home care for HIV positive patients, advocacy for an equal access to treatment etc…
Oxfam International Youth Parliament and the Global Youth Coalition on HIV-AIDS are currently conducting a research on youth driven initiatives in the area of HIV-AIDS.
This youth-led research aims at making light of the contribution of young activists’ work in the area of HIV AIDS worldwide and represents a great opportunity for sharing experience, knowledge and lessons learnt among them. It will result in an advocacy document with evidence around the contribution that youth-led projects and programs make to be shared at the 2006 International AIDS Conference in Toronto, as part of the Toronto Youth Force process. It may also result in recommendations to be presented to parties attending Toronto.
Get Involved!
This project is a chance for you to learn more about the work of other young people in HIV/AIDS. It is also a chance to have a voice in the Toronto International Aids Conference 2006.
The objectives of the research are:
1. To share ideas, experiences and learning throughout the OIYP and GYCA networks on youth-led interventions on HIV/AIDS;
2. To produce an advocacy/research document for IAC Toronto 2006 on how youth-led interventions are contributing to combating HIV/AIDS;
You can be involved by:
- Filling out a case study survey;
- Being interviewed by a member of the research team in your region if your survey is selected (a limited number of interviews will take place);
- Discussing case studies with other young people working on HIV/AIDS in an online discussion.
Contributing the survey:
- Email: iypaction AT oxfam.org.au (replace AT with @)
- Fax: +61 2 9280 3426 Attn: May Miller-Dawkins
Contribute your survey by March 31, 2006.
-Projects selected for the publications will be awarded $100 USD each to further their initiatives. 10-20 projects will be selected-
Projects will be selected on the basis of best or most interesting practices as well as diversity criteria (regional spread, gender, strategy). Projects will be selected for interview and for inclusion by the regional research teams
What is a case study?
Very basically it describes a project or program you are or have worked on! Having everyone answer the same questions makes it easier to share what we have all learnt.
GYCA and OIYP are basing our guidelines on writing a case study on those used by UNAIDS[1]that are developed from experiences of documenting local responses. We have modified them to try to capture the unique contribution that youth-led responses are making. OIYP and GYCA members have contributed to the questions in the case study survey below.
A case study describes a local response to HIV/AIDS aimed at addressing one or more specific problems, e.g. stigma and discrimination against PLWHA, reproductive health education, etc. It can serve as an example and/or inspiration for others that are confronted with a similar problem. The case study describes in a practical way the whole process of implementation. The process of writing down what exactly has happened and why is a learning experience that can be used to evaluate the practice and to adapt approaches that do not work. The process can also be used to determine indicators for monitoring if these had not been formulated before. This survey can serve as a good foundation for creating a grant proposal or project proposal for your initiative later on.
Please follow the instructions below in filling out the survey form carefully in order to produce a clear and standardized description of the practice.
