Africa First is calling for abstracts as well as registrations for the "Global Conference on the Role of Traditional Medicine in Reproductive Health", scheduled to take place at the Minneapolis Convention Center, Minnesota, USA, from 26 to 28 July 2005.

For more information:
www.africa-first.com

Or contact J.William Danquah, President/CEO
Africa First, LLC
517 Asbury Street 11
St. Paul, MN 55104 USA
Tel: +1-651-646-4721
Fax: +1-651-644-3235
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.africa-first.com

"Signs of Hope Steps for Change", a new CD-Rom produced by the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance, is available free of charge to individuals and organizations. The CD, developed out of the Global Poster Competition against HIV and AIDS-Related Stigma and Discrimination, contains over 80 of the winning posters in multiple formats for use in local exhibitions. Also included are over 100 multilingual fact sheets, worship resources, theological reflections and advocacy tools, developed to increase understanding about HIV and AIDS, challenge stigma, and empower faith-based organizations to work towards a positive change in attitudes and care in communities.

"The Next Steps" brochure outlines eight concrete steps that individuals and local organizations can take to create positive change in attitudes that cause HIV and AIDS-related stigma and discrimination. Designed for use at the parish level and available in English, Spanish and French, the brochure is available in bulk quantities.

To order the CD-Rom or brochure, send your request to
[email protected]
(fax: +41 22 710 2387)

Or, for more information contact Sara Speicher,
[email protected]

In the spirit of opening dialogue, building capacity and raising awareness, Africa Alive! has launched a project called "Postcards From Africa". Instead of reading what has been written about AIDS in Africa from a journalist's point of view, you can hear about it first-hand and unedited from a young person's perspective. Whether it is having a family member living with AIDS, or just discussing their hopes and fears about AIDS, they are able to express their thoughts to the world via the Internet and various media.

The goal of "Postcards" is to break the silence by providing an outlet for young people to talk about the serious issues they face every day, express their opinions on what can be done, and raise awareness outside of Africa by putting a face to the AIDS pandemic.

For more information: e-mail [email protected]
or you can write to:

Julia Bouie-Randall
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Center for Communication Programs
111 Market Place, Suite 310
Baltimore, MD 21202