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The annual International AIDS Candlelight Memorial, a program of the Global Health Council, is one of the largest and oldest grassroots mobilization campaigns for HIV/AIDS awareness in the world. The Candlelight Memorial occurs on the third Sunday of every May and is led by volunteer coordinators who host memorials for their communities worldwide. Now in its 24th year, the Candlelight is meant to honor all those who have been affected by the AIDS pandemic.

But the Candlelight is much more than just a memorial. It’s also an opportunity to educate about HIV/AIDS, influence local and national policy makers, and create community dialogue about prevention, care, and treatment for the disease. It’s an occasion for coordinators to improve their community mobilization skills, partner with other organizations and professionals in their field, and find unity within a global coalition of AIDS activists.

In 2006, over 900 Candlelight coordinators planned memorials in 110 countries, reaching tens of thousands of people. The Global Health Council works with international partners to recruit and counsel community Candlelight coordinators. The Candlelight began in 1983 in the United States, at a time when little was known about HIV. Today, an estimated 25 million people have died as a result of AIDS and 40 million are currently estimated to be infected with the disease.

Learn more: www.candlelightmemorial.org

PMC Press Release
January 22, 2007

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia - Save the Children Norway, with funds from the Norwegian government, has announced that it will provide Population Media Center (PMC) with $2.4 million for a four-year, social content radio serial drama project in Ethiopia.

The drama will be created using the Sabido methodology, a highly effective entertainment education technique that PMC has implemented in thirteen countries worldwide. The serial drama will address issues relating to reproductive health. The project also involves production of a radio talk show for youth with phone ins from listeners; production of various print material on reproductive health; and capacity building programs for journalists, playwrights, religious leaders, women leaders, youth associations, and reproductive health professionals. In addition, the project includes specialized activities for Ethiopia’s Afar and Somali Regions focused on eradicating female genital mutilation. The project will include extensive monitoring and evaluation.

This project follows a series of projects by PMC in Ethiopia . In 2004, PMC completed a project that included radio serial dramas in the major languages, Amharic (257 episodes) and Oromiffa (140 episodes). The programs addressed issues of reproductive health and women’s status, including HIV/AIDS, family planning, marriage by abduction, education of daughters, spousal communication and related issues. Approximately half of the population of Ethiopia listened to one of PMC’s radio dramas; this equates to nearly 40 million listeners. After just two and half years of broadcasting, the resulting behavior change was dramatic. For example, demand for contraceptives increased by 157%, and male listeners sought HIV tests at four times the rate of non-listeners, while female listeners sought testing at three times the rate of non-listeners.

The funding provided by Save the Children Norway will help PMC to expand upon these programs in Ethiopia and to educate millions about the importance of family planning, HIV/AIDS prevention, and other related issues.

More about PMC can be found at www.populationmedia.org
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Contact
Katie Elmore
Development and Communications Manager
Tel: 802-985-8156 ext. 205
elmore@populationmedia.org

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The Population Media Center ( PMC ) is an international nonprofit organization headquartered in Shelburne, Vermont. PMC works worldwide to bring about stabilization of human population numbers at a level that can be sustained by the world’s natural resources and to lessen the harmful impact of humanity on the earth’s environment. PMC uses entertainment broadcasting to change cultural attitudes and individual behavior with regard to health and social issues in various developing countries.

Nomination Submission Deadline - Thursday, Feb. 1

The Global Health Council’s Excellence in Media Award for Global Health is dedicated to drawing attention to health issues that have a global impact. The award honors those who have in the prior year most effectively captured the essence of a major issue in global health and conveyed it to a broad audience.

The Council welcomes Media Award submissions in the following four categories:

1. Newspaper, Magazine and Major Print Publication (NY Times, the New Yorker, the Economist, TIME Magazine)
2. Broadcast, TV and “New Media” (video, mixed media, radio and internet-based)
3. Photojournalism
4. Community Media (community, local, in-country media of all types, including newspaper, community radio and internet-based)

Read more about the Excellence in Media Award

The Medical Mission Exchange (MMEX) is pleased to announce the development of a GIS (Geographic Information Systems) map of Honduras.

This interactive map shows locations of health care facilities including medical missions within Honduras.

With the help of GISCorps we are working on similar maps for the other countries in which we are working. The map details will continue to improve as more data is added.

Launch the Honduras Map

Surveillance for the HIV virus is weak in most of the world and prevention and treatment programs often fail to reach high-risk drug users, homosexuals and sex workers, the World Health Organization said on Friday.

In a message marking World AIDS Day, being celebrated under the theme of Accountability, the WHO’s acting director-general Anders Nordstrom said that tackling the AIDS epidemic remained one of the world’s most pressing public health challenges.

Only 1.6 million people or 24 percent of the 6.8 million people worldwide who need the life-extending therapy receive it, according to the latest joint report of UNAIDS and the WHO.

Read the full article on the Washington Post Web site.

With the financial backing of a group of nations led by France, former President Bill Clinton announced Thursday that his foundation had negotiated deeply reduced prices for 19 AIDS drugs to treat children, halving the cost of the simplest-to-use therapy — three drugs combined in a single pill — to less than $60 a year for each boy and girl.

The countries, France, Brazil, Britain, Norway and Chile, are putting up $35 million to buy antiretroviral drugs and diagnostic tests to treat 100,000 more children in 40 nations next year. Most of the money was raised through taxes on airline tickets, a dedicated revenue source suited to ensuring the lifelong treatment of children with AIDS.

The Clinton Foundation, which has established a record of lowering AIDS drug prices in recent years, negotiated on the countries’ behalf, using their pooled purchasing power to get volume discounts on the drugs.

Read the full article on the New York Times Web site.

The Gibbs Studios Web site has gone red in honor of World AIDS Day.

Shelburne, Vermont, USA - September 28, 2006 - Population Media Center’s radio serial drama, Gugar Goge (”Tell me Straight”) went on the air in Nigeria in June of 2006. The program is being broadcast throughout Kano and Kaduna states. After just a few months on the air the program is displaying impressive results.

Population Media Center joined forces with Rotary International to combat the problem of obstetric fistula in Nigeria (a condition commonly resulting from adolescent childbirth that makes its victims chronically incontinent). PMC produced a radio serial drama aimed at preventing obstetric fistula, through delaying marriage and the onset of childbearing until adulthood. Rotary is doing surgical repairs for fistula victims. PMC’s program not only models behavior that will prevent the condition, but it also encourages fistula victims to seek help for the treatable problem.

Read more about one girl whose life will be forever changed.

Emergencies usually come with little warning. Being prepared can save you and your loved ones a lot of time, anxiety and hassles. You local chapter of the American Red Cross recommends some simple steps to take before disaster strikes to be ready for most situations and better able to respond.

Can you say yes to these questions? If not, read on »

• Does your family have an evacuation kit?
• Do you have a plan for responding to emergencies?
• Are you informed of the disasters in your area and the role that groups like the Red Cross can play in responding to a disaster?
• Do you know the best steps to take in emergency response?
• Do you have a checklist for your planned response?

New Investigators in Global Health Program is seeking abstracts that highlight exemplary research, policy and advocacy initiatives by students and young professionals focused on global health.

Deadline: Dec. 1, 2006

Read more: New Investigators in Global Health Program