Ei-iE

For World AIDS Day on 1 December 2008, EI invites its member organisations to participate in the "One Hour on AIDS" initiative.

Building on the success of last year, EI hopes that the lesson proposed in the "One Hour on AIDS" activity kit can be taught in thousands of schools and union offices around the world. The idea is simple, the message is clear: teachers have a central role in raising awareness about HIV and AIDS. World AIDS Day is an ideal opportunity to get involved. Start by taking one hour to talk about HIV and AIDS on 1 December!

Despite recent progress in combating the spread of the virus, HIV and AIDS remains a significant threat to public health in many countries, affecting teachers and students worldwide. EI urges teacher unions in all countries to join this initiative and highlight the importance of education in HIV prevention.

In 2001, governments pledged at the UN General Assembly that over 90% of young men and women would have the knowledge needed to reduce their vulnerability to HIV infection by 2010. However, the results of national surveys in 2007 show worryingly low numbers – around 40% – of young women and men have accurate knowledge regarding HIV and AIDS.

Education for prevention is a must, not only in countries with high HIV prevalence, but equally in countries with low prevalence where the trivialization of the virus is leading to a rise in irresponsible sexual behaviour among young people, resulting in a greater risk of HIV infection.

As part of this initiative, your union will receive the "One Hour on AIDS" activity kit, which contains the "One Hour on AIDS" lesson plan and the "Take the lead on AIDS" poster. The poster can be used to accompany the lesson and displayed in union offices or classrooms as an ongoing reference point for HIV and AIDS education throughout the year. All material can be downloaded at: www.ei-ie.org/efaids

EI calls on all member organisations to distribute the lesson plan to as many schools and as early as possible. It is important that your union talks to its members about "One Hour on AIDS" and encourages them to give the lesson in schools. EI will send all member organisations a hard copy of the lesson and the poster, and recommends that they use the electronic version to make further copies for distribution in their country. The materials prepared by EI can easily be adapted and customised (for example, you can add your union logo). If this option is not feasible for your organisation, EI will send you greater quantities of the posters. To order more posters, please send an email specifying the number of posters you would require to [email protected] by 26 September 2008 at the latest.

Should you have any questions, please write to: [email protected]

Talk to teachers. Take the lead on AIDS in your school and your workplace.