Youth Action Xchange

Connecting and empowering young people from Southern Africa and Europe to respond effectively to HIV and AIDS

THE AFRICAN PULSE INVITES YOU TO BE A PART OF THE CHANGE!

What is Youth Action Xchange?

A pioneering interactive online education project connecting 500 schools across Southern Africa with each other and 1,000 schools in Europe. Over 3 years, Youth Action Xchange (YAX) will raise awareness, improve understanding and facilitate collaborative action on HIV & AIDS.  This will be achieved through a facilitated online community of schools using innovative educational resources and tools delivered through multiple media channels (online, print and mobile).

What will YAX achieve?

• Awareness and education amongst young people in Southern Africa about the global HIV and AIDS epidemic.
• Young people taking action at a personal, local and global level to address stigma around HIV and AIDS
• A platform for youth to influence policy on HIV and AIDS
• International friendships to bridge cultural, religious and digital divides.
   

How will we do it?

• Provide 500 schools in Southern Africa with free lifetime membership to the global school social network, Rafi.ki (http://www.rafi.ki  - opens in a new window)
• Use an exciting blend of technology to engage, connect, empower and motivate young people to express themselves, get involved and take action
• Support teachers in their delivery of HIV and AIDS learning through the curriculum by providing a series of lessons with relevant teaching resources
• Make tools available to allow youth to conduct their own HIV and AIDS campaigns at community level
• Provide a collection of the best educational resources on HIV and AIDS to improve knowledge and skills amongst young people needed to prevent HIV and respond positively to those affected
• Showcase material generated by the youth on web and mobile networks.
• Host live online dialogues between youth and a panel of experts and role models
• Create a platform to present requests from the young people to policy makers

Who benefits?

• 500 schools in South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana and Namibia
• Youth from 500 secondary schools across southern Africa
• Teachers from 500 secondary schools across southern Africa
• School communities impacted by school activities
• Policy makers

Why is YAX needed?

Southern Africa is the most impacted region of the world where young people aged 15-24 account for 45% of all new infections. This issue has attracted significant aid and global media coverage; however, the voices of young people are still not adequately heard at a social or political level. There are currently no other facilities which enable African schools to influence policy makers in their own countries or in the North. In addition there is a lack of accessible, local, and culturally relevant teaching resources on HIV and AIDS.

Who is making YAX happen?

YAX draws on the expertise of The African Pulse and Gemin-i.org to take advantage of the latest technology and address the global humanitarian issue of HIV and AIDS by dispelling myths, challenging attitudes and providing life-saving information.

The African Pulse

In Southern Africa

UK Charity since 2004 – 255 schools trained and 1,240 given access to training resources

Vision: Life skills through innovative educational resources for HIV & AIDS

Expertise in:

• Development and implementation of multi-media learning content and channels for Africa
• Developing educational content for children and youth on HIV and AIDS
• Education and the curriculum
• Teacher training

www.theafricanpulse.net

Gemin-i.org

In Europe

UK Charity since 2008 – working with 800 schools in 94 coutries around the world

Vision: Connect, Learn, Change

Expertise in:

• Developing innovative web-based solutions to empower, educate and inspire people across the world
• Education and the curriculum
• Facilitating online social school networks on a large scale using the Rafi.ki platform
• Managing international youth exchanges

www.gemin-i.org

What we need?

The total cost of implementing the YAX project in southern Africa is £230,000. We have secured European Union funding of £134,000 over 3 years. The Allan & Nesta Charitable Trust has granted £20,000 and the Mercury Phoenix Trust £10,000. We are now seeking a further £66,000.

What will this funding go towards?

• Developing educational resources on HIV and AIDS
• Facilitators working with teachers in schools to implement the project
• Mobilising schools to take action and lobby governments for change in HIV & AIDS policies
• Supporting schools over 3 years to get the most out of YAX for their schools and community
• Equipping the schools with the tools to execute the campaigns and take action in their local communities

Company No. 05046064    Charity No. 1104994    Registered Office: Weir Cottage, Teddington Studios, Broom Road, Teddington, TW11 9NT   Tel: +44 (0) 20 8274 1928