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SubscribeIREX Observes World AIDS Day 2003
Activities by Country
Albania | Armenia | Azerbaijan | Bulgaria | Croatia | Georgia | Kazakhstan | Kyrgyzstan | Macedonia | Moldova | Montenegro | Russia | Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Ukraine | Uzbekistan
Television broadcast: Heroes Against AIDS
Local stations nationwide
As part of the USAID-funded ProMedia program, IREX provides technical assistance with local Albanian television production of Heroes, a show that promotes local civic participation by highlighting the heroic acts of local citizens. For World AIDS Day, Heroes aired a special episode that focuses on a Public Health Service physician who set up a special clinic for the specific purpose of diagnosing and counseling AIDS victims.
Seminar: AIDS and Armenia
Yerevan
Alumni of IREX study programs and Community Connections introduced printed materials produced by the National Center of AIDS Prevention and encouraged the exchange basic information on AIDS, including means of HIV transmission and how to protect oneself from infection. A presenter from National Center of AIDS Prevention facilitated the seminar.
Internet forum: Public Health and AIDS in Armenia
Vanadzor
Members of the general public and health specialists attended an Internet chat with representatives of the AIDS Center in Yerevan.
Website development: AIDS Prevention
Internet Access and Training Program (IATP) staff worked with the Youth Cultural Organization as a step-by-step partner to create a website devoted to AIDS awareness and prevention. The site was officially launched on World AIDS Day.
Seminar: AIDS in Azerbaijan
Baku
A Community Connections alumna who participated in the public health group led an informational seminar for IREX alumni.
Journalism seminar: AIDS in Bulgaria
Sofia, November 28
IREX supported a roundtable on AIDS coverage in the Bulgarian media on November 28 as a part of the activities organized by the Bulgarian Media Coalition to mark the fifth anniversary of the founding of the organization. The roundtable discussed the ethics of covering HIV/AIDS and the role of the media in creating a society that is conscious of the threat of AIDS yet tolerant towards its victims. The Bulgarian Media Coalition brings together 14 of the leading independent media organizations in Bulgaria to support the rights of journalists and media, the professionalism of the media, self-regulation, and improvement of media relations with the NGO sector. The ProMedia/Bulgaria project is supported by USAID.
Television broadcast: World AIDS Day Special Report
CCN stations
IREX assisted the Croatian National Coordination Team for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria to work with the independent CCN television network to cover the launch of the Fund’s project on November 28. CCN also aired a special report on HIV/AIDS within their main news on World AIDS Day. The ProMedia/Croatia project is supported by USAID.
Seminar and Internet chat: AIDS in Georgia
Tbilisi
Alumni of IREX education programs gathered for a seminar hosted by Georgia's AIDS Center and participated in an IATP-sponsored Internet forum with representatives of the Midwest AIDS Training and Education Center of Madison, Wisconsin.
Seminar: HIV/AIDS Media Coverage
Tbilisi, November 26
IREX's USAID-funded Media Innovations Program, in cooperation with the AIDS and Clinical Immunology Research Center of Georgia, held a seminar on November 26 designed to provide journalists with more information about HIV/AIDS and encourage coverage of the issue.
Training seminars: Kazakhstan Schools Respond to AIDS
Almaty
IREX program alumni conducted training-of-trainers seminars at high schools and universities throughout Almaty to promote AIDS awareness, working together with representatives of the Kazakhstan NGO Equal to Equal, which specializes in providing training on issues such as HIV/AIDS and drug abuse. Red ribbons were distributed among students, who were encouraged to search for up-to-date information on HIV/AIDS by using Internet resources provided by IATP.
Poster Contest: AIDS Awareness
Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan,
Participants working from IATP access sites learned graphics software and browsed the Web to created posters promoting HIV/AIDS awareness. Poster entries are displayed on the Kazakhstan Alumni Resource Center website.
Seminar: AIDS in Kyrgyzstan
Bishkek
Community Connections alumni met with the head of national association SPID (AIDS), Mr. Shapira, who presented information on HIV/AIDS in Kyrgyzstan. During the meeting, the alumni discussed AIDS and its effects in Kyrgyzstan; after the discussion, alumni watched the film "Philadelphia."
Internet forum: AIDS in Kyrgyzstan
Bishkek, Osh, Jalalabat, Karakol, Maily-Suu, Tokmok, Isfana, Batken,
Kara-Balta, Tokmok, Balykchy
Margarita Emelyanova (Contemporary Issues 2003 alumna), the head of Sexual Health and Reproduction Alliance in Karakol, presented an online discussion about AIDS for interested audiences from all over Kyrgyzstan through IATP access sites. Ms. Emelyanova shared her personal expertise on AIDS issues through her projects and other related experiences.
Poster Contest: AIDS Awareness
Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan,
Participants working from IATP access sites learned graphics software and browsed the Web to created posters promoting HIV/AIDS awareness. Poster entries are displayed on the Kazakhstan Alumni Resource Center website.
Journalist training: AIDS Awareness Caravan
Ohrid, Bitola, Tetovo, Kumanovo, Strumica, Stip
Working with the Association of Journalists of Macedonia and its six regional centers, IREX supported a "caravan" to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS among the media and improve and increase productive journalistic coverage of HIV/AIDS. The caravan presented three perspectives—those of editors, the journalists, and HIV/AIDS advocates and NGOs—and described how to report and cover HIV/AIDS issues from an editor's perspective. The editors' presentations touched on the media's obligations and responsibilities—avoiding stereotypes and protecting confidentiality—and why the issue is worthy of coverage not only on World AIDS Day. Journalists specializing in health issues presented good and bad examples of coverage of HIV/AIDS, provided sources of information, and discussed covering the human angle of the story. Specialists in HIV/AIDS and advocacy NGOs presented information and statistics, discussed the government's response to the issue, and presented their views on how the media can raise awareness and better cover the issue. The goal was to provide a broad perspective for the media that includes practical journalism tips, provides information and resources to better cover the issue, and starts a dialog between journalists, specialists, and advocacy NGOs so that coverage will continue and improve. The Macedonia ProMedia program is supported by USAID.
Seminar: AIDS and Moldova
Chisinau
This seminar increased HIV/AIDS awareness and introduced preventive methods to raise a healthy and responsible generation. L. Balteanu and I. Marcenco, both 2002 Contemporary Issues alumni and both of the Center for Preventative Medicine, conducted the seminar.
Internet forum: What Do Moldovan Teenagers Know about AIDS?
Chisinau and IATP sites nationwide
IREX alumni and IATP sponsored an Internet forum for deputy principals of secondary schools on how to provide secondary school students with information on AIDS prevention. The discussion featured participants from the Ministry of Education, the World Health Organization Moldova office, the United Nations Development Program, the Center for Children’s Rights, and UNICEF.
Seminar: AIDS—Prevention, Perspectives, and New Facts
Ungheni
At the initiative of IREX 2002 Community Connections alumnus Petru Scurtu, IATP and the raion Department of Education hosted an informational AIDS seminar for 30 to 40 educators.
Seminar for youth: How Can AIDS Be Prevented?
Soroca, December 1, 2, and 3
IATP and Community Connections alumna Angela Rusnac, together with the raion health department and the NGO Credis, conducted a series of seminars for youth on AIDS prevention.
Internet conference: Together Against AIDS: Modern
Techniques for Treatment and Awareness of HIV/AIDS in Ukraine and Moldova
IATP access sites nationwide in Moldova and Ukraine
IATP sites throughout Ukraine and Moldova conducted a nationwide Internet conference for professionals in AIDS prevention and awareness. Representatives of the Vector medical analytical center, the Ukrainian Association of Family Planning, and the Ministry of Health Care participated, along with Dr. Steven Oppenheimer, an infectious disease physician in California who treats AIDS patients.
Television Broadcast: Ksenija
Local stations nationwide
IREX's USAID-funded Montenegro Independent Media Program supports the MBC-TV show Ksenija, a show which addresses issues of concern to women. The December 1 episode of Ksenija focused on the issue of HIV/AIDS, the rights of victims, prevention, and tolerance of victims in society. The episode was followed by a talk show further addressing the issue.
Roundtable: Media Coverage of HIV/AIDS
Podgorica
IREX, CAZAS (Montenegrin Association for Fighting AIDS), the Union of Independent Electronic Media, and the Montenegrin Media Institute held a roundtable on HIV/AIDS designed to bring greater media attention to the issue and therefore more discussion among the public.
Seminar: Current Problems of HIV/AIDS
Novosibirsk, November 28
Alumni learned about the current situation with HIV/AIDS in Russia and discussed, in an interactive format, possible solutions to the crisis. Tatyana Gryaznova served as the main speaker.
Journalism roundtable for AIDS groups: How Media Training
Can Improve AIDS Coverage
Moscow, December 8
IREX hosted a roundtable discussion for organizations that are active on HIV/AIDS issues in Russia to discuss how media training can contribute to broadening and improving coverage of the epidemic in the mainstream media. While innovative information campaigns have been conducted, there has been little systematic training for editors and journalists that will expand the number and type of articles and broadcast stories about HIV/AIDS in newspapers and on radio and TV—a critical step in fostering wide public discussion, expanding awareness about transmission and prevention, forming a constituency of concern, and reaching consensus on methods for meeting the challenges of the epidemic. The IREX media program in Russia hopes that its wide experience in media training and extensive work with Russian regional newspapers can contribute to this effort. The Russian Independent Print Media Program is supported by USAID.
Roundtable: The Treatment and Prevention of HIV/AIDS in Tajikistan
Dushanbe
IREX alumni discussed the problem of the treatment of AIDS and measures to restrict the spread of AIDS.
Poster Contest: AIDS Awareness
Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan,
Participants working from IATP access sites learned graphics software and browsed the Web to created posters promoting HIV/AIDS awareness. Poster entries are displayed on the Kazakhstan Alumni Resource Center website.
Roundtable: Prevention of AIDS
Ashgabat
Marjie Marscarinos, a Peace Corps medical officer, shared her knowledge about AIDS with alumni.
Poster Contest: AIDS Awareness
Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan,
Participants working from IATP access sites learned graphics software and browsed the Web to created posters promoting HIV/AIDS awareness. Poster entries are displayed on the Kazakhstan Alumni Resource Center website.
Candlelight Vigil
Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odessa, Ternopil
In observance of “Live and Let Live,” the official UNAIDS theme for World AIDS Day 2003, alumni of IREX undergraduate and graduate study programs conducted simultaneous candlelight vigils in Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv, and Ternopil at 6 pm on December 1. The purpose of these vigils was to increase awareness of HIV-related stigma and discrimination and to break the silence by confronting these and other HIV-related issues.
Roundtable: AIDS in Ukraine
Kyiv, November 29
Dr. Leonid Vlassenko (Contemporary Issues 2001) moderated a roundtable devoted to the treatment of AIDS patients in clinics in Ukraine.
Journalist training: Distribution of HIV/AIDS handbooks
Kyiv, November
IREX mailed copies of a handbook on covering HIV/AIDS, developed under ProMedia with USAID funding, along with a list of 10 HIV/AIDS story ideas and a letter reminding newspapers that December 1 is World AIDS Day. The packages were sent to all newspapers IREX works with and to all members of the Ukrainian Newspaper Publishers Association. The Ukraine program is a component of the U-Media project implemented by Internews with USAID funding.
Roundtable: Journalism and AIDS
Kyiv
IREX and the Media Reform Center at Kyiv Mohyla University held a roundtable discussion involving journalists, AIDS experts, and people whose lives have been directly touched by HIV. The goal was to bring out with greater impact the news that this disease affects far more than just those people who have it. The Ukraine program is a component of the U-Media project implemented by Internews with USAID funding.
Internet conference: Together Against AIDS: Modern
Techniques for Treatment and Awareness of HIV/AIDS in Ukraine and Moldova
IATP access sites nationwide in Moldova and Ukraine
IATP sites throughout Ukraine and Moldova conducted a nationwide Internet conference for professionals in AIDS prevention and awareness. Representatives of the Vector medical analytical center, the Ukrainian Association of Family Planning, and the Ministry of Health Care participated, along with Dr. Steven Oppenheimer, an infectious disease physician in California who treats AIDS patients.
Workshop: AIDS Prevention
Tashkent
Alisher Alimukhanedov (Contemporary Issues), a hematologist, gave a presentation on the US experience in AIDS prevention. The director of the Tashkent AIDS Prevention Center also spoke, and both presenters distributed written information on AIDS prevention.
Roundtable: Journalism and HIV/AIDS
Namangan
With IREX assistance, the Civil Society Support Center (CSSC) in Namangan, Uzbekistan, held a roundtable with journalists and NGOs to discuss the issue of HIV/AIDS and raise awareness in the media community. The nascent media center in Namangan assisted the CSSC with this roundtable. IREX's media work in Namangan is supported by the US Department of State, Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor.
Lecture and Internet presentation: Virology and AIDS
Tashkent
Fulbright alumnus Dr. Bakhrom Aliev, who works at the Institute of Virology and as a lecturer at the Tashkent Advanced Training Institute, gave a lecture and presentation for IREX alumni on AIDS and virology.
Poster Contest: AIDS Awareness
Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan,
Participants working from IATP access sites learned graphics software and browsed the Web to created posters promoting HIV/AIDS awareness. Poster entries are displayed on the Kazakhstan Alumni Resource Center website.
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