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As i finally finish the last of the numerous things that has touched my table for this week, i get to discover that silence and proper scheduling of thinking and time would facilitate the smooth running of any task.

It seems as though it was yesterday when we entered into the year 2009,I feel as though January 1 was a click away, yet I look and realise that we have spent almost half of the year already and for me a lot is yet to be done and a lot has been left undone.

A few minutes ago myself and a friend of mine went to the Ministry of Youth Development in Nigeria to see the special adviser to the minister to discuss some crucial youth development issues in the country and I realize that in life you create the situation you desire, though your expected result might not be exactly what you want but a lot of times the natural challenges of nature that face the objectives and goals of humans give way in the face of determination and courage..., boldness seem to have become an essential ingredient in the achievement of victories or should I say development.

So my question to most people has been how do you see the past 5months and a few days of the year 2009? Do you have a measuring yard stick to which you can measure yourself against?

This year I found out also that not everything is about planning..., I love to plan so much so that the changes that has occurred to my life in the past three months has thrown me off balance so much that at one point i began to ask myself and those close to me to define who they think I am so that I can get a sense of direction as to who I am. Some of us will walk through this year as though we have been shocked by electricity...,especially financially..., this is evident in Nigeria with the drop in youth development initiative around the country and the cry of a lot of young people is how government policy is putting Eba (a cassava meal) on their dining table (if you happen to own one!)

So shall we then say that the year is all gloomy and depressing, NO!..., definately not..., however it is time to look through, pray through if you are person of faith, re-strategize and factor in the dynamic situations happening around the world..., I caught a glimpse of the news a few minutes ago on CNN and they were outlining the increase in unemployment in European countries and my thought was..., Oh GOD! more people are leaving this side of the world for the same places where unemployment is on the rise...,

Nigeria and its dynamic government and the cry of the masses on the street about the dormant nature of the government makes one wonder if there would ever be acceleration in growth rate of the country...,I believe true national growth
rate is constituted by individual growth rate of its people...,how well are we growing as Nigerians?....,Now thats a million naira question.

So I say to the brave hearted ones...,'take the bull by the horn' a lot of people are waiting for your brain child. That talent lying dormant within you might be what will save your household, community, state, country and just maybe the world.

Sustainable development cannot be achieved in Africa without the establishment of an effective intergeneration partnership for sustainability among the young people and the other generation. If Africa has challenges today, these are mere preludes to the looming threats of tomorrow. The youth have deep stakes in the future and we are eager to contribute our quota. The future belongs to us. The youths are full of ideas and we are waiting to share them


Why do we not involve the young people from Africa? An environment where elders believed that they have the monopoly of knowledge cannot lead into a sustainable future!. “Provide all, especially children and youth, with educational opportunities that empower them to contribute actively to Sustainable development.” (Earth Charter 2000).

As a follow up to my participation at the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development 17th session and in line with my Earth Charter Special Project, I am organizing a “Dialogue with the Elders Forum” on Intergeneration Partnership for Sustainability with grant from Earth Charter International on June 6th in Abuja.

The "Dialogue with the Elders" Forum is in partnership with Youth Aid Organization for Africa (YAOFA) and will focus more on the Earth Charter as a tool for achieving environmental sustainability and Intergenerational Partnership for Sustainability among youths and older generations. "Based on the conviction that intergenerational partnerships are essential for achieving a just, sustainable, and peaceful world".


The meeting is aimed at bringing all youths in the Earth Charter Family to meet with Earth Charter Nigeria "Elders" as well as bring more youths into the Earth Charter Youth Initiative family and also inspire the formation of new Earth Charter youth Groups across the country. It will also afford us the opportunity to meet with invited guests who have a role to play in sustainability issues in Nigeria like the media, government and CSOs and people living in a community.

Date : June 6th 2009
Venue: Conference Room, Youth Aid Organization for Africa (YAOFA), 983,
Ahmadu Bello way, Opposite Legislative
Quarters, Apo, Abuja

Be there!!

“The Earth Charter Initiative” is an extraordinarily diverse, global network of people, organizations, and institutions that participate in promoting and implementing the values and principles of the Earth Charter.

The Initiative is a broad-based, voluntary, civil society effort. Participants include leading international institutions, national governments and their agencies, university associations, non-government organizations and community-based groups, city governments, faith groups, schools and businesses – as well as thousands of individuals."(www.earthcharter.org)

As part of the Earth Charter Initiative there is a bold, diverse and dynamic action-oriented youth network that promotes the principles of the Earth Charter among young people. This youth network involves active young people from over 70 countries, with more than 45 Earth Charter Youth Groups (ECYGs) and numerous partners around the world. The Youth Leadership Team and the International Youth Facilitator offer guidance to the youth network.

Earth Charter Youth Initiative Nigeria is made up of entrepreneurial youth activists committed to promoting the Earth Charter and sustainable national development through various ways like youth action projects, workshops on the Earth Charter and volunteerism.

Earth Charter Youth Initiative Nigeria through Earth Charter Youth Calabar is implementing a project called “Understanding and discovering the purpose of Earth Charter in achieving the MDGs: Towards environmental sustainability and peace building in the Niger Delta”. The project is one of the 6 Earth Charter International-funded projects. Earth Charter International funds the most outstanding project plans.

Project activities includes Workshop on the Earth Charter leading to Action projects and a “Dialogue with the Elders Forum on Intergenerational Partnership for Sustainability”.

Earth Charter Youth Initiative Nigeria is proud to have it active member as a member of the International Youth Leadership Team (YLT) in the person of Timothy Ogene representing Africa and the Middle East. We are also proud that the coordinator of Earth Charter Youth Group Calabar will be participating at the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (UN CSD) 17th Session in New York May, 2009 with the generous support of the German Government.


Earth Charter Youth Initiative Nigeria Invites you to join us in make Nigeria become “ a more just, sustainable and people world”

For More info, please contact:
Esther at ecygcalabar@yahoo.com
Timothy at togene@earthcharterinaction.org

PEACE

STIGMA AND DISCRIMINATION AS A BARRIER IN COMPACTING HIV/AIDS

Because HIV/AIDS is associated with behaviors that may be considered socially unacceptable by many people, HIV infection is widely stigmatized. People living with the virus are frequently subject to discrimination and human rights abuses: many have been thrown out of jobs and homes, rejected by family and friends, and some have even been killed. Together, stigma and discrimination constitute one of the greatest barriers in dealing effectively with the epidemic. They discourage governments from acknowledging or taking timely action against AIDS. They deter individuals from finding out about their HIV status. And they inhibit those who know they are infected from sharing their diagnosis and taking action to protect others and from seeking treatment and care for themselves. Experience teaches that a strong Network of people living with HIV/AIDS that affords mutual support and a voice at local and national levels is particularly effective in tackling stigma. There is a need to have a special budget from Federal Government for Network of people living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria both at the National, State and local government level Moreover, the presence of treatment makes this task easier too: where there is hope, people are less afraid of AIDS; they are more willing to be tested for HIV, to disclose their status, and to seek care if necessary. Let us think about bringing treatment to the grass root, let us think of upgrading the health facilities located at the rural area.

UNIVERSAL ACCESS TO TREATMENT: PLWHA IN RURAL AREAS HAVE LIMITED ACCESS TO ANTIRETROVIRAL

PLWHA in rural areas are experiencing increasingly limited access to antiretroviral drugs. People in the rural areas also tend to be more marginalized than those in urban locations. Although most of people living with HIV/AIDS in the country who need antiretroviral access live in rural areas, three-quarters of PLWHA taking the drugs are from urban areas.

PLWHA in rural areas often rely on herbal remedies due to lack of correct information and access to treatment. PLWHA living in the rural area who need antiretroviral find themselves in a quandary because off the distance to urban city and levels of income for a rural household tend to be low, The financial costs associated with antiretroviral go beyond the price of the drugs, the high cost of transportation to health centers means that many low-income PLWHA who need ARV, often take antiretroviral infrequently or not at all.

In addition, stigma and discrimination often prevent people from receiving HIV test or accessing treatment in the rural area. Young people particularly are vulnerable to the virus because they sometimes become sexually active at a young age and are not empowered to make decisions because of a rigidly social structure in the rural area.

There is much need for social structures to impart information to poor rural people so that they know their rights as far as getting tested and counseled. There is need to establish treatment centers in the rural area so that it will be accessible for rural communities. How can we achieve 100% adherence if PLWHA travels for more than two hours to access treatment? Some herbal homes and private hospitals are taking advantage of that on PLWHA in the rural area

NEPWHAN have done well by straightening support groups of PLWHA through capacity building, Office equipment, introduction Income generating activities (IGA) etc. to response to the numerous challenges PLWHA are facing from that area. This has gone a long way to reduce the burden of transportation to treatment centers among PLWHA in that area. But how many PLWHA can this IGA support? More needs to be done and proper decentralizations of treatment centers are urgent need.

Combating HIV/AIDS Stigma, a Global Challenge

Global AIDS numbers have dropped dramatically, but that is only half the battle won. Stigma towards HIV-positive Person needs to be countered if the threat of AIDS is to be overcome.

An Indian soldier discovers he is HIV-positive and is forced to deal with the termination of his services. An HIV-positive pregnant woman from West Bengal has a sticker plastered on her forehead by hospital staff; she is isolated in the ward and refused the urgent medical attention she needed. A couple is stoned, branded outcast by there community because they are HIV-positive. A HIV-positive woman aborts her own baby because hospital staff refuses to assist her. This intense stigma can be painful to endure.

The good news is that the number of people contracting HIV infection is dropping, worldwide. A few months ago, UNAIDS, releases its AIDS Epidemic Update for 2007, said new data show global HIV prevalence (the percentage of people living with HIV) has leveled off and the number of new infections has fallen, in part as a result of the impact of HIV programme.

Nigeria now ranks second among nations with the largest number of people living with HIV (www.globalhealth.org). Taking the optimistic arithmetic apart, the experiences of ordinary people living with HIV tell another story. Stigma and not surveillance, is the biggest problem.

A 25-year-old boy from Obosi Anambra State commits suicide to escape the stigma piled on, because of improper counseling during testing. Private hospitals and laboratories pose a big challenge in compacting HIV/AIDS related Stigma in the rural area of Nigeria. Not only that some of them do not have up to date equipment in diagnosis, they are lacking information about HIV/AIDS where by causing psychological trauma to any body that passes through them which might result to suicide mission.

Stigma is hard to track and its impact even harder to measure. There is a need to generated data on stigma by including surveys on HIV/AIDS knowledge, attitudes and behavior. Overall acceptance measured through indicators like willingness to care for a positive person or accept a positive person, even associate with positive person is also needed.


Those vulnerable to and are experiencing social stigma and discrimination will be puzzled if they were told that awareness and knowledge about HIV/AIDS is higher than before. Awareness is not translating into tolerance or a shedding of stigma.

Protection against HIV and preventing its spread is certainly a key message, but protection using stigma and alienation will go nowhere. It is always challenging to fight for legislation and better policy outcomes. Nigeria is working on a law against discrimination of HIV-positive person. But laws and policies cannot be substitutes for a humane approach.

NEPWHAN SECRETARY AT COMMUNITY DIALOGUE ORGANIZED BY HEALTH LINK ORG. WITH SUPPORT FROM NEPWHAN/ARFH/GFR5 PROJECT

COMMUNITY DIALOGUE HELD AT EKWULOBIA COMMUNITY AGUATA L.G.A ANAMBRA STATE

Health Link Organization with support from (NEPWHAN)/ARFH/Global Fund project, organized community dialogue at Ekwulobia Community Hall, Aguata Local Government Area, Anambra State. The community dialogue meeting under the NEPWHAN/ARFH/Global Fund project, was organized and carried out at Omogho Community due to their low level or lack of comprehension on HIV/AIDS in that area.

Objectives of the dialogue:
•To sensitize community members and gatekeepers on HIV and AIDS
•To identify and address issues that fuel stigma and discrimination against PLWHA and PABA in the community
•To identify interventions that will help to reduce stigma and discrimination against PLWHA and PABA in the community
•To establish partnership between community and PLWHA in the fight against stigma and discrimination.

Nomination! Nomination!! Nomination!!!

Democratic development achievers calls for nomination of various arms for the government, for her democratic development achievers award, 2009, the 1st indigenous Achievers Awards of Merit, and Accountability.

Date: 22nd May, 2009

Venue: Nicon Luxury Hotel, Abuja

NOTE: Application is open for all!

Contact: 08038697825

Blessing Eli

The Earth Chater Youth Group Calabar,Nigeria was established as a memebr of the Earth Charter Youth Initiative on October 2007.
The Earth Charter Youth Initiative (ECYI) is a bold, diverse network convinced that urgent action is required to bring about a just, sustainable, and peaceful world. The ECYI holds that sustainability must be understood and implemented in a holistic and integrated manner, inclusive of ecological integrity, social and economic justice, and democracy, nonviolence, and peace. The ECYI is active in over 50 countries and at the global level, with a diverse Membership, Youth Groups, and Partners(www.eartchaterinaction.org)

The ECYG Calabar, Nigeria is currently working passionately and with active participation of the entire Nigerian Earth Charter Youths and "Elders" on a Peace-Building and Environmental sustainability project using the Earth Charter as a tool with grants from Earth Charter International.

We invite all Nigerian Youths espercaily those of us living and working in the Portharcourt and Warri to join from Feb-March 2009.

Happy New Year.

For more information, please contact the Project Coordinator, Esther Agbarakwe at ecygcalabar@yahoo.com

Young Consumers' Guide to Eco-Friendly Living


UNEP and UNESCO Announce a New and Updated Edition of the Popular YouthXchange Training Kit. Paris/Nairobi – October 1st, 2008.

How to balance looking cool and feeling cool with the need to combat climate are among the key tips in the new United Nations YouthXchange Training kit. This updated version of the guide also gets to grips with the mountains of waste emerging across the globe as a result of today's fast throw-away society from mobile phones to fashion.

The 2008 Training Kit on Sustainable Consumption, produced by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is now in its second edition. YouthXchange is a train the trainer tool that aims to promote sustainable consumption patterns among young consumers worldwide. Among other novelties, this updated guide includes a chapter on how to find a balance between youths' consumer aspirations of dressing cool and fashionable while at the same time being aware of the impact of their consumption on, for example, climate change.

"YouthXchange is one of the most important youth activities connected to UNEP's sustainable consumption and production work - it provides us with content that we are able to convey to other young people, empowering them to make different choices in their daily lives and be actors of change," says Gabriela Monteiro, a UNEP Tunza Youth Advisor.

Young people today establish their identities through what they buy and seek social inclusion by purchasing the newest and "coolest" products on the market. Yet, when unguided, this consumption contributes to problems such as ozone depletion, climate change and hazardous wastes that not only affect our daily lives but impact the entire globe. Through their daily actions, people can increasingly reduce their environmental impact. Well aware of this, UNEP's Division of Technology, Industry and Economics (DTIE) and UNESCO decided to update the 2002 guide to include today's trends. It provides statistics, case studies, games, examples of companies going greener, and alternatives for more sustainable lifestyles. New to the guide are the following features: a clear link between our consumption patterns and climate change, a more substantial e-waste section, updated data and scientific information and two new chapters: one on the UN Decade on Education for Sustainable Development and one on fashion.

Fashion feeds a growing industry and ranks textiles and clothing as the world's second-biggest economic activity for intensity of trade[1]. However, human rights and the environment pay a heavy price – a price that people can increasingly choose to lessen with the rise of ethical fashion. Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and UNEP Executive Director, said: "Young people in developed and rapidly developing economies can play a massive part in fighting climate change while being cool and keeping the planet cool too". "Through their purchasing patterns, life-style choices and networks with schools and universities to clubs, the music scene and sports they can also influence the wider world—influence that will be vital for moving communities, companies and countries to back a new UN climate change deal in Copenhagen's UN Climate Change Conference in 2009" he added. "This initiative, which fits within the framework of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD, 2005-2014), seeks to raise the awareness of young people and make responsible consumers of them," said Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO "Buying a product, what ever it is, is never a neutral act for the environment; its production, its use and the management of the waste it generates, all impact – to a greater or lesser degree – on our planet." Through YouthXchange, UNEP and UNESCO work together to show young people that it is possible to translate our aspirations for a better world into everyday actions. YouthXchange has been translated and adapted in 19 languages and is available in a bilingual (English and French) website – www.youthxchange.net.


Notes to editors: For the 2008 YouthXchange version, please visit: http://www.youthxchange.net/main/english-guide.asp. The UNEP Tunza Programme seeks to engage and involve young people through awareness creation, information exchange and capacity-building and through involving them in environmental decision-making processes globally and in the regions.

For more information on UNEP's youth and children program, please visit: http://www.unep.org/Tunza/ About the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)Created in 1972, UNEP represents the United Nations' environmental conscience. Based in Nairobi, Kenya, its mission is to provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations.

For more information, please contact: Ms. Morgan StreckerUNEP UNESCO YouthXchangeTel : + 33 1 44 37 30 35Email : mstrecker@unep.frWebsite: www.youthXchange.net