"Looking For Partners ..."

We are poised and ready to move on to the next challenge that will see us settling in Zimbabwe to head up the Zimbabwe HIV/AIDS Initiative team.  If it were not for the project partners who have signed on to participate with us, we would not be able to contemplate going to embrace the next phase of this great challenge.  We are so grateful for those who have said they want to partner with us in principle and in practise.  We're finalizing our contact list so as to be able to keep everyone informed of progress along the way.

GOALS:

- Team leader in place by February 2010.

- Assessment and improvement of present initiatives underway by March 2010.

- An HIV/AIDS team with leadership in place by August 2010. Expatriate and national staff to be identified, recruited and deployed as we move toward the goal of an assembled and engaged initiative group on the ground.

- Select national champions, with network contacts in place, to be identified by December 2010 to participate in international HIV/AIDS consultations and workshops.

- A Zimbabwe HIV/AIDS forum to be in place, functioning and with training in place by June 2011.

- A national board of advisors to be in place by June 2011.

We're looking for more partners.  If you'd like to be added to the list, please drop us an E-mail with your contact information to budwestcoast@shaw.ca.  If you'd like to contribute to the project, you can do so on-line at https://www.teamworld.org/GIVE/GiveOnline.aspx.  You'll see there, other options available for donations.

Onward and upward  ... with thanks.

"Running Wild"

For those who may be interested ...

Some time ago, my family encouraged me to put down in writing some recollections that remain from the wonderful experience of growing up in tribal Zimbabwe.   We invite you to take a journey with us back in time to a simpler and very happy time ... The links to the chapters of "Running Wild" are included in the right hand column of the blog.

A grammatical note:  This draft was written to begin with in the first person, then altered to the third person.  Regrettably, there are some scattered errors in this draft that have not yet been adjusted.

"A Fresh New Global Overview of the HIV/AIDS Pandemic"

In February, 2009, Hans Rosling explained the HIV/AIDS pandemic with the aid of fabulous new shifting graphics.

He has converted the best available data from UNAIDS and WHO into understandable Gapminder bubbles.

While the statistics are difficult to accurately quantify in some areas of the world, especially sub Saharan Africa, this does illustrate the reality as we know it.

The two key messages that the global HIV epidemic has reached a “steady state” with 1% of the adult world population infected and that there are huge differences in HIV occurrence between and within African countries.

Many African countries have the same, relatively low, HIV levels as can be found in most of the world, whereas 50% of the world’s HIV infected persons live in a few countries in Eastern and Southern Africa (with 4% of the world population).

You will notice that Zimbabwe’s HIV rate of infection soared at one stage, but has been reduced quite dramatically in recent years.  While the rate of infection is still alarmingly high, we would suggest that one of the key factors in the turn-around had to do with government’s shift in policy that went from denying the existence of HIV to recognizing its reality and beginning to allow something to be done about it.  

Hans Rosling closes his speech by summarizing probable reasons for the high HIV burden in parts of Eastern and Southern Africa and he claims that the focus must be on preventing further HIV transmission in these highly affected populations.

Please go to "Relevant Web Reports ..." to the right, and click on "A Global View Of The HIV/AIDS Pandemic."

I encourage you to watch this clip, and go to http://www.gapminder.org/videos/ted-talk-2009-hans-rosling-hiv-facts/ where you will be able to download the movie FREE in order to pass it on. 

"Radio Interview …"

We invite you to listen to a radio interview we were recently privileged to participate in  for a group of radio stations in North Carolina.

You'll find the link to the interview to the right under "Links to Slideshows, Reports and Interviews."  If you have trouble accessing the MP3 file, you can paste and copy the following link into your browser: http://www.divshare.com/download/9831866-57d    


While there was not enough opportunity to tell the whole story, we were able to speak to the dynamic that drives us.

We welcome your comments …