IWHC + Young People
Today, young people increasingly face great challenges to their health and well-being:
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• Almost a third of all people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide are between the ages of 15 and 24;
• Of the 20 million women who undergo unsafe abortions every year, over a quarter are girls between the ages of 15 and 19;
• Every minute, six young people under the age of 25 become infected with HIV.
Across every region of the globe, these harsh realities have focused advocates’ attention on young people’s health needs and human rights, and have motivated young people themselves to take action.
Our Commitment: Giving Voice to Young Visionaries
Around the globe, young people are mobilizing, making their voices heard, and changing the world. IWHC launched Young Visionaries to showcase the voices and the work of a new generation of advocates.
Our Resources: Advancing and Defending Youth Health and Rights
IWHC’s series of factsheets on young adolescents uses evidence on the sexual and reproductive knowledge and behaviors of 10 – 14-year-olds to argue for more responsive policies and programs regionally and globally.
We also write and publish regularly on issues pertaining to youth health and rights, including on the IWHC blog, Akimbo. Examples include:
- Denying Young People the Right to Know, Part 1, 2, 3, and 4, a series of posts based on the remarks of Ishita Chaudry, Youth Activist from India’s YP Foundation, to a United States Congressional Briefing, Global Youth: A Strategic Investment on March 3, 2009. Download the full remarks here. (March 2009)
- Taking on the Hype: Youth, Media, and Representation, a liveblog by IWHC Program Officer Audacia Ray of a session from the Sex::Tech – Focus on Youth conference, held in San Francisco on March 22 & 23, 2009 – plus a video of the first of the three speakers. (March 2009)
- Lessons from Hampshire College: Young People as Equals, a post exploring a spectrum of meaningful youth participation in the sexual and reproductive rights and health movement. (April 2009)
- The Face of Global Sex 2009: Durex Releases Study on Young People in Eastern Europe, which examines attitudes and knowledge about sex and relationships among Eastern European youth from seven countries. (June 2009)
- Brazilian Incarcerated Teens Granted Conjugal Visits, in which Kenarik Boujikian Felippe, a judge in São Paulo, Brazil, explains why the approval of a bill granting conjugal visits to incarcerated teens in Brazil is a milestone for adolescents worldwide. (June 2009)
- The 2008 Mexico City Declaration: One Year Later, a follow up on the commitment made by Latin America and the Caribbean to investing in comprehensive sexuality education and increased access to health services as a foundation for curbing sexually transmitted infections and HIV/AIDS. (July 2009)
- Empowering Youth Means Freeing Sex Ed, a post that explores the question raised by Ishita Chaudry, founder of IWHC partner the YP Foundation in Delhi, India, Why is sexuality so problematic? (August 2009)
- Blogging from the UN: Combating Violence Against Girls, a post by IWHC Program Officer Denise Hirao, in which she identifies key elements to the prevention of violence against girls and women. (September 2009)
In addition, IWHC regularly attends and covers youth presence at international conferences on sexual and reproductive rights and health. Examples of this coverage include:
- Youth Weigh in on Health and Rights at the NGO Forum in Berlin (September 2009)
- Bali Youth Force: Statement on International Youth Health and Rights (August 2009)
- We Commit. We Recommend. We Deserve: Youth victorious at APCRSHR (October 2009)
- Alliance of Youth Movements Summit: Mexico City and Online (October 2009)
Our Partners: Making youth health and rights a reality
IWHC is supporting a number of organizations and networks focused on addressing young people’s health needs and human rights, many of them founded and managed by young people themselves. For example:
- In Peru, we are supporting the Institute of Education and Health (IES) to help adolescent boys and girls design their own community initiatives around sexuality, health, and rights.
Read more about IES and our partners in Latin America>> - In Nigeria, we are supporting Girls’ Power Initiative (GPI) to empower a new generation of feminist leaders in a society where girls are encouraged to be seen and not heard.
Read more about GPI and our partners in Africa>> - In Pakistan, we are supporting Aahung
- to provide boys and girls with vital information about their bodies, their rights, and their responsibilities through their Life Skills Education Program.
Read more Aahung and our partners in Asia>> - Globally, we are creating opportunities for young people to network with each other and become stronger advocates. In 2007, we launched “IWHC Advocacy in Practice,” a series of trainings bringing together young people (ages 18-24) with diverse backgrounds and a desire to discuss and elevate their voices on sexual and reproductive rights and health (SRRH).
Read more about IWHC’s Advocacy in Practice trainings>>
