Student Advocacy
Student Global AIDS Week of Action
Achieving Universal Access by 2010
The 6th annual Student Global AIDS Week of Action is coordinated by PHR, the American Medical Student Association, and the Student Global AIDS Campaign and involves activities at over a hundred universities. Students are working to raise awareness and educate the public, the media, and policy-makers on pressing issues like the health worker shortage in Africa and its impact on AIDS treatment and prevention, HIV prevention and treatment for the millions of injection drug users, microbicides and other needed interventions for women, and treatment access worldwide. The suggested dates for the Week of Action are February 26 through March 4, but because of variations in exam and break schedules, in fact there are "weeks" of action, and activities continue in full swing.
For more information on how to get involved, or what’s happening on your campus contact Pete Witzler at pwitzler@phrusa.org
You can download the 2007 Week of Action Organizing Guide here (PDF). In it you can find issue guides, suggested activities and planning resources to help plan your Week of Action.
During the Week of Action PHR will be focusing on the following issues and activities:
Health Worker Shortage in Africa
We are calling on our members of Congress to make global health a priority for the 110th Congress. To do this, we are running a postcard campaign to urge members of Congress to support robust new programs to overcome the massive health worker shortage.
Email Pete Witzler for more information: pwitzler@phrusa.org
HIV Prevention and Treatment for Injection Drug Users
During the week of action we have an excellent opportunity to educate the media, the public and decision makers about HIV prevention and treatment for this vulnerable and marginalized population. We are collecting petition signatures to urge Congress to promote rapid expansion of all of the most effective, evidence-based HIV prevention methods for drug injectors and respect the human rights and dignity of this highly disenfranchised population.
- Download a copy the petition (PDF) to distribute on your campus.
East African Advocacy Networks
During the week of action, we are working to build connections between students in the US and Uganda. PHR is sponsoring a conference call for US-based health professional students and Ugandan medical students to talk about their experiences in the fight against AIDS. In addition, students can participate in a fundraiser for our Ugandan partner organization by selling AIDS pins during the week of action.
Email Pete Witzler for more information about how to participate: pwitzler@phrusa.org
Week of Action Planning Resources
To provide support in your planning efforts, we are hosting conference calls for students and chapters participating in the Week of Action.
Dates and topics for the calls:
February 5, February 8: Campaign Planning calls: Share ideas with other students and get tips from organizers.February 19 and 22: Skills Training Sessions: Hear from experts on:
- How get media coverage
- How to influence decision makers
- Tips for petitioning and postcarding
All calls will start at 9 p.m. EST. For information on how to access the conference calls, email Pete Witzler at pwitzler@phrusa.org
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