Dear friends and colleagues
Since December 2004, myself and other Australian members of IYPF have been working each World AIDS Day (1 December) to sell ribbons and other items to raise money for Royal Youth Organisation in Zimbabwe.
These ribbons have been handmade by AIDS affected or infected young people in Zimbabwe involved with RYO's youth empowerment work.
All this came about because we met an inspiring young Zimbabwean man, Rassel Chisango, one of the driving forces behind RYOs work on HIV and AIDS issues. Rassel attended the International Young Professionals Summit 2004, became an IYPF member, and leads our HIV and AIDS network.
Why am I telling you this?
I give you this background because Rassel is back in Australia, and he wants to use the opportunity of his visit to develop a network of support for his youth based work in Zimbabwe. He is currently attending to Oxfam International Youth Parliament Kaleidoscope event, and from 14 October to 4 December he wants to visit agencies, organisations, and individuals in Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane (and places in between, if possible).
Rassel is therefore looking for:
* organisations interested in meeting him to discuss youth empowerment and development work, particularly related to HIV & AIDS and sexual health
* speaking or presentation opportunities to share about his work
* generous people to assist him during his travels through providing a place to stay for a night or more (as you can appreciate, Rassel is travelling with a limited budget!)
Rassel's calendar is a relatively clean slate from 14 October to 4 December, though current tentative plans have him in Canberra from 14 to 21 October, and Brisbane from 26 November until 4 December.
We look forward to receiving your proposals and offers for assistance. Please send them to chris.szigetvari@abs.gov.au and rasselchisango@iypf.org.
To learn more about Rassel's work, see his note below on the new Royal Youth Resource Centre Project, and some photos of his group at the following links:
http://www.tigblog.org/group/iypfmembers/post/263689
http://www.tigblog.org/group/iypfmembers/post/263691
Thanks and I look forward to you joining us in partnership with Rassel to assist young people in Zimbabwe.
Cameron
+++++
Rassel writes on his work:
The growing and pressing need for youth for youth services - otherwise known as Youth Peer Education Services - has been tried and tested not only in Zimbabwe but globally and has proven to be effective particularly for behaviour change programmes related to HIV & AIDS prevention.
According to various multilateral organisations, particularly UNAIDS, WHO and UNICEF, youth for youth run programmes or activities are an ideal and effective strategy through which young people can participate in HIV and AIDS initiatives as well as meaningfully contribute towards vindicating their peers from the threats, effects and impacts of HIV and AIDS. It is from this background and understanding that this purely youth for youth empowerment for development against HIV and AIDS Royal Youth Resource Centre Project has been formulated. It is also crystally apparent that such uniquely focussed projects are pressingly needed yet dangerously scarce in our communities.
Equally important, in view of the well documented fact that much of the information youth receive on sexuality comes from peers we are convinced that this concept of a Community Based Youth-oriented Resource Centre is essentially relevant and well timed considering that such centres are dangerously scarce in our communities yet so pressingly needed. Over and above all, we believe that through the proposed resource centre several invaluable benefits will accrue not only to our primary target groups but also to our community of service at large taking cogniscence of the fact that this is a social entrepreneurship project.
OBJECTIVES
1. To disseminate and make accurate, honest and non-judgemental information on HIV and AIDS easily accessible to young people in a youth friendly environment
2. To identify, train and support other young potential social entrepreneurs who will organise and catalyse development projects from the youth resource centre
3. To mobilise and provide seed resources to trained social entrepreneurs and peer educators to initiate demand driven youth oriented services from the R.Y.R.C
4. To offer referrals to young people where specialist services are required
