GYCA Wire
February 2011
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#1 - Vienna YouthForce |
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The Vienna YouthForce (VYF) was vibrant, active, and loud at the XVIII International AIDS Conference in July. GYCA, as a lead partner of the VYF, joined the other partner organizations in Vienna to deliver a successful Youth Pre-Conference from July 14-16 to prepare youth participants for the Conference. Approximately 270 young HIV and AIDS activists from 79 countries participated in the Pre-Conference. The 2010 Conference marked the 3rd time GYCA took the lead in organizing the YouthForce. GYCA members were part of almost all the sub-committees that organized different activities of the YouthForce and many were speakers during different sessions during the main conference. The work of the AIDS 2010 Youth Programme and VYF was generously supported by UNFPA, UNAIDS, UNESCO, NORAD, aids2031 and the International AIDS Society. |
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#2 - GYCA RFPs Speak at Major Events at the International AIDS Conference |
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Thanks to the advocacy efforts of the VYF, young people were included in many crucial and high level spaces at the Int'l AIDS Conference. Rachel Arinii, GYCA's Regional Focal Point for Asia and the Pacific, spoke at the opening ceremony about the fact that young people accounted for around 40% of new infections but don't account for 40% of budgets and programs. She highlighted the need for visibility for youth in the fight against HIV, how young people need to be shown as a complex identity and not just an epidemiological statistic, and the need to include women and girls in progressive agendas that recognize rights and diversity. The Chief Youth Rapporteur, Emily Carson, GYCA's former North America Regional Focal Point, spoke at the Rapporteur session at the close of the Conference highlighting demands from youth present at the conference and the voices of those unable to attend. |
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#3 - GYCA Launches New Website and Brand |
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The new and improved GYCA.org website was launched in April 2010, and was designed to provide its users with a richer environment for collaboration and networking. GYCA members are able find relevant information more easily, identify helpful resources, and engage with other members of the GYCA community. The new design integrates some of the most popular Web 2.0 social tools, including YouTube, Twitter, and Flickr. |
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#4 - World Youth Conference |
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GYCA staff and members participated in the World Youth Conference in Leon, Mexico in August 2010, an activity to kick off the International Year of Youth. GYCA Director Reshma Pattni spoke on the state of the global epidemic among youth and GYCA Program Officer Lindsay Menard-Freeman lead the media outreach for the coalition of progressive youth and SRHR organizations. At the NGO Forum, Reshma and Lindsay voted in favor of including issues related to LGBTQ youth rights and sexual health in the statement, and offered language on comprehensive sexuality education to be added to the outcome document. Members of GYCA in Latin America such as Roberto Perez and Daniel Serrano from Mexico, Sebastian Godoy from Chile and Simon Cazal from Paraguay contributed to the negotiations and the mobilization of the media to highlight the importance of discussing HIV issues. GYCA members in attendance were able to lobby delegations, facilitate and organize trainings and attend sessions during the conference. |
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#5 - E-Course Programme and Partnership with MTV Staying Alive Foundation |
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The partnership between the MTV Staying Alive Foundation (SAF) and GYCA has facilitated crucial group training, provided useful resources, and supported sustained learning for SAF's youth grant recipients and GYCA members alike throughout 2010. Through the online courses, GYCA and SAF supported young HIV activists and organizations to become stronger advocates for HIV prevention and treatment. Thanks to generous funding from the MTV Staying Alive Foundation, GYCA was able to offer these crucial trainings to 64 members of the GYCA network and SAF grant recipients during 5 rounds of E-Course, one of which was held in Spanish for the first time! GYCA and SAF's continued partnership in 2011 means that 4 rounds of E-Courses will be held in English and 1 round of Project Management will be held in French. |
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#6 - Launch of Global Creative Contest as part of the International Year of Youth |
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As a part of the International Year of Youth, GYCA organized a Global Creative Contest. The contest is focused on youth perspectives of HIV and AIDS and how this is communicated through creative expression. Artwork was submitted into one of three themes: sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) and stigma & discrimination towards YPLHIV (S&D). This key event provides an opportunity to explore these themes with youth and to bring creative youth voices to the forefront. Submissions were accepted beginning in mid-November and ended on February 7th, 2011. A review panel will choose the finalists from each of the three themes (SRHR, CSE, and S&D), and GYCA members will be able to vote for their top choices. The top three winners in each theme will receive a substantial prize package! |
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#7 - Thank you to GYCA Advisors! |
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The Advisory Council is comprised of GYCA co-founders, former staff, former Regional Focal Points, and active members. They bring with them a wealth of experience and expertise on youth and HIV issues, and we are very fortunate to have such a diverse and impressive group so invested in GYCA's overall well-being and success. |
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#8 - Five Small Grants Awarded in 2010 |
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After receiving and reviewing almost 50 highly-competitive applications, GYCA staff selected five qualified candidates to receive Small Grants. Congratulations to these grantees for completing their projects!
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#9 - Regional Focal Points! |
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Our 2010 team of RFPs were an active and inspiring bunch! The GYCA Staff would like to express our profound gratitude to the outgoing RFPs for their outstanding work and contribution to GYCA and the youth response to HIV. We will be working with them in other capacities to further develop our activities and programs.
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#10 - GYCA Member awarded Pearson Fellowship for Social Innovation |
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The Pearson Foundation announced the first winners of the Pearson Fellowship for Social Innovation, awarded to the most outstanding social entrepreneurship projects developed by graduates of TakingITGlobal's Sprout e-course. GYCA member Valens Ntamushobora of Rwanda is one of the two top prize winners being awarded $5,000! Valens' project, titled, "Let Us Stay Alive," will address the problems of poverty, HIV, and malnutrition with a program that combines education for women along with the development of agricultural co-ops. |
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Your interest, support and involvement with the Global Youth Coalition on HIV/AIDS helps our community to grow and empower more young leaders with the skills, knowledge, resources, and opportunities they need to scale up HIV/AIDS interventions amongst their peers! As a GYCA member, you are part of a dynamic community of over 5,000 young leaders and adult allies working on youth and HIV/AIDS in over 170 countries and territories. Thank you for being involved!
In friendship,
The GYCA Team
Copyright 2011 GYCA
The GYCA Wire is the official newsletter of the Global Youth Coalition on HIV / AIDS, electronically published via email, and compiled from various events and news from within the GYCA network. Contributions should be sent to info@gyca.org. Please include your full name, age, and your TIG username. Click here to unsubscribe.