Conference Speaker sought
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Source: procaare@usa.healthnet.org
My name is Jodi Jacobson, and I am Co-Director of the Health and De-
velopment Policy Project, a small non-profit organization working to
foster accountability of U.S. international assistance and northern-
based donor institutions toward health and human rights objectives
within the areas of family planning, STDs/HIV, and gender violence.
Part of our work includes convening, in conjunction with the Popula-
tion Council, a forum called the Working Group on Reproductive Health
and Family Planning. The Working Group is composed of 70-odd high-
level representatives of the various communities that both shape and
implement U.S. international assistance in the areas noted above, in-
cluding donor agencies, women's advocacy groups, service providers,
and researchers.
In meetings of the Working Group, we consider and discuss issues
critical to the realization of new objectives (e.g. the implementa-
tion of family planning programs under rights- and health-based ob-
jectives, rather than fertility reduction goals), by considering
field experience and research findings. Some of the issues we have
discussed in past meetings include:
- concerns about safe delivery and use of IUDs and oral contracep-
tives;
- the need for new methods of measuring and evaluating family plan-
ning programs;
- emerging issues in program integration, such as screening for cer-
vical cancer and the need to incorporate attention to sexual coer-
cion in the delivery of reproductive health services; and
- case studies of changes in programs in Egypt, India, Mexico, and
Peru.
On December 10-11, we are holding a meeting of the Working Group to
explore changing conventional information, education, and communica-
tion strategies for health and reproductive rights objectives.
Although we have a full program, I feel we have a hole in the agenda
because there is no presentation on innovative approaches to either
community mobilization or social marketing around HIV/AIDs. For exam-
ple, we are keenly interested in having someone who can speak from
their own field experience to the issues of incorporating messages
around gender equity and human rights in HIV prevention programs, and
profile one or two examples of efforts to do so (preferably ones that
have included some component of evaluation). We are not necessarily
looking only for "success" stories, but a realistic perspective both
on the urgency and the challenges of incorporating broader messages
into community mobilization techniques around these issues.
We also are interested in potentially featuring a perspective on in-
novative social marketing strategies that are gender sensitive and
progressive, or seek to challenge gender norms.
Can anyone offer examples from their own work, or from work they know
is being undertaken, that might address these issues? As I mentioned
above, the speaker would be reaching a high-level audience through
her/his presentation. Moreover, we develop a report from each meeting
that is circulated to a broader audience, and so would further extend
the reach of the work.
While we traditionally do not offer honoraria to speakers due to our
relatively small budget for this work, we do of course pay all air-
fare, hotels, and a per diem. Since time is growing short, I am hop-
ing to hear about ideas on these issues in the next several days.
Contact information for suggested speakers would be a terrific help!
Finally, if there are articles or papers within the grey literature
(or recently published but not yet widely circulated), we would love
to know about this. At the least, we can offer our audience interest-
ing reading material on this subject.
Thanks in advance.
Jodi Jacobson
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Jodi Jacobson, Co-Director
Health and Development Policy Project
Suite 430
6930 Carroll Avenue
Takoma Park, MD. 20912 USA
Tel: +1-301-270-1182
Fax: +1-301-270-2052
mailto:jjacobson@igc.apc.org
[Anyone with suggestions is encouraged to contact Ms. Jacobson di-
rectly at the email address above. - Mod.]
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