Global Health Magazine just posted this interesting interview with Ambassador Eric Goosby, the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator. In it he discusses the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) at length as well as the Obama Administration’s plans for combating the global AIDS epidemic.

Excerpt below, full interview here

Q: What are you spending most of your time on now?

Goosby: The main focus has been in understanding what we’ve done in the first five years in the PEPFAR programs (and) in each location how our response in both prevention and treatment do or do not relate to the demographics of the epidemic in each of these settings. In each city, there are multiple epidemics. Each has their own population, and movement of the virus through that population. And we’re looking at how well our prevention programs understand that movement of the virus, and if they have indeed positioned themselves in front of it.

A second focus … has been appreciating the complexity of our partnering network within the country, in the NGO community in particular. It’s been astonishing to see how well we have done in urban populations.

But now the fragility of these health systems is what I’m most concerned about it. They are as fragile as the NGO who is involved in the delivery, and that is dependent on continued resources from us to support them in that effort.

On Friday, President Obama announced that the U.S. will overturn its 22-year-old ban on travel and immigration to the U.S. by HIV-positive people.

In early July, we let you know that the HIV travel ban was set to be lifted through a change issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), noting that public comments were being requested and that a final rule would be issued later in the year. We are happy to report back that the change has been approved, and the ban will be officially lifted at the beginning of the New Year.

Of the new regulation, President Obama said, “We lead the world when it comes to helping stem the AIDS pandemic-yet we are one of only a dozen countries that still bar people with HIV from entering our own country.” He continued, “If we want to be the global leader in combating HIV/AIDS, we need to act like it.” Obama also thanked former President George W. Bush, for approving the initial steps to repeal the ban last summer. Obama’s comments came during a signing ceremony to extend the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program, which provides medical care and support to about 500,000 mostly low-income and uninsured people living with HIV/AIDS.

Along with the great infographics we’ve been writing about on the ONE Blog, the Living Proof Project has also produced some great photo essays. Each one tells a story and really illustrates the topic in ways words alone often can’t.

This gallery I thought was particularly striking. It follows Kevin who is HIV-positive and works at a health center in Dimbokro, Cote d’Ivoire.

Check it out by clicking the image below:

This Saturday, October 17th, multiplatinum selling band Third Day will be performing at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. The band has generously offered to let ONE set up booths to sign up new ONE members and build our growing movement of dedicated individuals like you, working to end global poverty.

If you live in the area, and would like to volunteer with ONE, please sign up here. People who join ONE that night will also be invited to a special acoustic session with the band after the concert where people can come and learn how to be more involved in the fight against extreme poverty.

Here are the details:

When:
Saturday, Oct. 17. Arrive at 5:30PM

Where:
Freedom Hall at the KY Expo Center
937 Phillips Lane
Louisville, KY 40233

In DC this Wednesday? Then RSVP for a conversation about the “Role of Trade in Promoting U.S. Global Development Goals” hosted by the Modernizing Foreign Assistance Network and the German Marshall Fund.

The panel will be moderated by former Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) and feature Ambassador Demetrios J. Marantis, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative. It will also include introductory remarks by Ritu Sharma, Co-founder and President, Women Thrive Worldwide.

More info about the event below. You can RSVP by emailing rsvp@gloverparkgroup.com with subject line “MFAN-GMF Marantis Event RSVP”.

Trade can be a powerful engine for economic growth and poverty reduction. Access to new markets for poor country products is a crucial piece of the development puzzle. But there is a growing recognition that for many developing countries – particularly the poorest – gaining market access, even preferential market access, is only half the battle. Market access is necessary but not always sufficient. Together, trade and aid can accelerate efforts to spur economic growth, alleviate poverty and enhance security.

During his recent trip to Africa, United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk affirmed that “the United States is committed to working with our African partners to ensure that trade and development work hand-in-hand” and to “supporting trade capacity building assistance, also known as ‘Aid for Trade.’” How can U.S. trade policies more effectively align with U.S. development goals? Are there opportunities for greater transatlantic and global cooperation on trade and development in light of recent commitments at the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh?

I unfortunately missed last night’s Daily Show, but William Kamkwamba, author of the new book “The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind” was Jon Stewart’s guest. It’s a pretty remarkable interview, and William has a pretty remarkable story.

For those unfamiliar with “The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind”, it’s the autobiographical story of William’s mission to fight famine in his home country of Malawi by constructing a wind mill– based solely off a picture he found in a book from a library. Upon hearing him recount his story, Jon Stewart jokingly responds, “You sound exactly like me as a boy.”

Check out the clip below, and read more about “The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind” on William’s blog here.

About a month ago, ONE hosted a rally at the Field Museum in Chicago in support of the Paul Simon Water for the World Act. It was an excellent opportunity to garner support for this important piece of legislation which you can also support here.

Some awesome ONE members in Illinois compiled this great video featuring clips from Senator Richard Durbin’s address to the Chicago crowd. We’ll continue to keep you posted on the Water for the World Act.

I just returned from the U2 show at FedEx Field just outside of Washington, DC and as anyone who’s been to a concert on the U2 360 Tour can attest to, it was quite an amazing experience.

In front of a sold out crowd, Bono dedicated the song “One” to the United States congress and the leadership of President Bush “for the 4 million souls that are now very much alive because of ARV drugs paid for by the United States…God Bless America.” He mentioned people in the audience who had lost friends or relatives to AIDS in America and singled out Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her husband Paul, who were early campaigners against the pandemic in San Francisco. Bono also praised President Obama’s commitment to the fight against poverty in Africa and paid special respects to Senator Ted Kennedy for his leadership on peace in Northern Ireland and Eunice Kennedy for being a mentor to him.

Behind the scenes, ONE members and volunteers were busy spreading ONE’s message and recruiting new members in the fight against extreme poverty. Our efforts were no doubt greatly supported by Bono’s several shout-outs to ONE and the hard work of millions of people around the world to end global poverty.

We’ll have more tomorrow including pictures and one-on-one interviews with some of the fantastic ONE volunteers we met.

-Chris Scott

Scientists announced today that a six-year, 16,000 person study in Thailand showed a trial HIV vaccine regimen to be safe and modestly effective in preventing HIV infection. The vaccine regimen lowered the rate of HIV infection by 31.2 percent compared with a placebo.

The trial, which was co-sponsored by the U.S. Army Medical Research Program and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (part of the National Institutes of Health), marks the first time a vaccine has been shown to give even a limited amount of protection against HIV.

Lieutenant General Eric Schoomaker, Surgeon General, U.S. Army, said, “This is the first HIV vaccine candidate to successfully reduce the risk of HIV infection in humans. We are very excited and pleased with the outcome of this trial and congratulate all those who participated in it … In addition, this study is an outstanding example of international and interagency collaboration involving many partners from the Thai and U.S. governments, private companies, non-profit organizations and volunteers.”

While more details of the study have yet to be released, this new development offers fresh hope and energy in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

-Rena Pacheco-Theard

ONE Campus Challenge Outreach Ambassador Melissa Boles– who you’ll recall recently joined ONE on a trip to Africa– writes about climate change and development:

Just as Congress has reconvened, it seems fitting that my first Political Science paper of the semester was on the relationship between climate change and poverty in developing countries. I have learned in the last few days that the drought and agricultural problems I and my fellow ONE Campus Challenge (OCC) Africa Trip students heard about in Kenya are not only worse than we thought they were; they also aren’t going to get better any time soon.

This March, Purdue University published a study by Noah Diffenbaugh, Thomas Hertel and Syud Amer Ahmed showing how climate change could increase poverty in developing countries. While the study focuses on urban workers, the basic premise can be used with just about any demographic: people living in poverty are going to be hardest hit by climate change if we don’t take action soon.

Diffenbaugh told the Purdue Communication and Marketing specialist, Elizabeth Gardner, that “extreme weather affects agricultural productivity and can raise the price of staple foods, such as grains, that are important to poor households in developing countries.” He also pointed out that “it is important to understand which socioeconomic groups and countries could see changes in poverty rates in order to make informed policy decisions.”

When our OCC group was in Kenya, we spent some time with the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), and one of the things I remember most is that Kenya has a huge agricultural market, but they are coming up against major obstacles — one of which happens to be the weather they are experiencing. Agricultural market or not, Kenyans can’t sell their products anywhere if they can’t even grow them.

While Kenya is going to be the country I reference most for a long time, it isn’t the only country running into these problems. Africans are only going to invest in seeds they know will grow in their area, but if the weather is poor all over the place, can they really know what will grow best?

Heat waves, droughts and floods cause agricultural problems and crop damages around the world, but most people in developed countries such as the United States and countries in the European Union are going to be at less of a loss if their crops can’t grow or are damaged because of the weather. In the fight against poverty, the promotion of better agricultural practices has to start somewhere, and it might as well start at the bottom — where the countries most in need exist.

5% of this year’s Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act devoted to helping poor countries adapt to climate change could begin to make that difference. If we can begin to make a difference, then countries like Kenya that want to be agriculturally strong, and have the potential, can begin to take the next step.

Tell your senator to invest in helping the world’s poorest people overcome the threats posed by climate change here.

-Melissa Boles
Campus Outreach Ambassador for CA, ID, MT, NV, OR, WA