Grandmothers are outraged and organizing! That’s the news today from Toronto, where more than 10,000 delegates from hundreds of countries are converging for this biannual event. A contingent of grandmothers from South Africa were amongst the first to arrive, and with T shirts that said “We’re Older, Bolder and we stand Shoulder to Shoulder” they protested the lack of support for the women who take care of the 13,000,000 AIDS orphans living in the world today. They sang, they chanted, and they marched, and GAIA Vaccine Foundation marched along with them in the bright morning sun to the conference center where the AIDS meeting is being held. We shared ideas about transforming grandmothers into advocates for HIV care in Mali, where we’ve set up a clinic for Mother to Child HIV transmission prevention and successfully engaged the community of Sikoro to support our mission – which will include training grandmothers for the children left behind by AIDS.
Other contingents that are represented here in Toronto include representatives of the Clinton Foundation, the Gates Foundation, and a myriad number of NGO’s (non governmental organizations) including GAIA Vaccine Foundation, of course.
GAIA is represented by Maddie DiLorenzo, the founder of the Hêré Bolo (Hands of Hope) Peer Education program in Mali, Alexa LaFaunce, who participated in the KAP project in Bamako last year, and Malick Kone, the Director of GAIA Mali. We have three posters at the meeting, presenting on topics such as the standard of care, knowledge attitudes and practices, and our successful mother to child transmission program in Mali, Chez Rosalie.
Even more exciting, we’re using this opportunity to meet up with some of our sponsors and collaborators. Malick and I met Kate Otto, a volunteer at Keep a Child Alive, at the Grandmother’s march this morning. She hails from Rhode Island, and while working at KCA, learned about our efforts in Mali. KCA will be helping support the Hope Center Clinic in Mali this year, with a $10,000 donation. We’re very pleased to have a chance to speak to Diana and Leigh in person at this event. We’re also meeting with Millenium Villages Project’s Joel Negin – he’s working with MVP’s program in Tiby, near Segou – we’re trying to help MVP with the knowledge we have of HIV/AIDS care in Mali and the state of TB treatment in Mali – both major concerns for the new MVP program that is just getting off the ground there.
But more than anything else, we’re here for the positive energy. This is the largest gathering of HIV/AIDS adocates in the world and the energy is definitely flowing! It’s wonderful to see all of the delegates and their colorful t-shirts that proclaim their allegiance and interests – and to greet people who are fighting HIV/AIDS all over the world. Stay tuned for more postings after the
opening session tonight!
Annie De Groot MD,
GAIA Scientific Director and Founder
The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University