High blood pressure (also known as raised blood pressure or hypertension) can lead to heart attack, stroke and other serious health problems. It affects more than one in three adults and leads to more than nine million deaths worldwide every year. Nowhere is this impact felt more than in communities across Africa.

This week, in recognition of World Health Day, we’re raising awareness about high blood pressure, the impact its having across Africa and around the world, and about what steps individuals can take to control it. To help share this important information, we’ve put together a new infographic that we hope you’ll take a look at and share with your friends and peers.

Click the image to view full resolution PDF.

For almost a decade, Art for AIDS International has been hosting visual art workshops to educate young people about HIV and to engage them in the global AIDS response. After over 300 workshops with over 10,000 young people in 7 countries, Art for AIDS has begun to feature and sell this powerful body of student art in their new online gallery and shop with all proceeds supporting women and children affected by HIV and AIDS in Africa. [Disclaimer: I am a long-time volunteer, supporter, and board member of Art for AIDS International].

A quick overview of Art for AIDS International

Art for AIDS International was founded in 2001 by two Canadian artists, Hendrikus Bervoets and Rudolf Bikkers. The original concept was to to invite a group of 25 artists to produce a portfolio, entitled Artists International Direct Support, that would be exhibited and sold to raise funds for organisations in Southern Africa that were supporting a growing population of children who had been orphaned as a result of AIDS.

In 2004, the London District Catholic School Board invited Art for AIDS to introduce a number of high schools to the portfolio, and to host art workshops with their students as a novel way to teach them about the impact of HIV and AIDS in their own community and abroad.

Since 2004, Art for AIDS has focused on continuing to engage young people through art in schools across Canada, and increasingly around the world. The artwork produced by students (now consisting of over 10,000 images) is exhibited and sold with funds supporting a growing number of community organisations across Africa supporting women and children affected by AIDS.

Online Gallery and Shop

While this student artwork has been exhibited in schools, galleries, and in festivals around the world, including major exhibits at the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg, the World Food Programme HQ in Rome, and twice at the Education International World Congress in Berlin and Capetown, this is the first time a large body has been available to view and purchase online.

All the limited-edition prints exhibited online cost $30 Canadian (approx 23 EUR, 18 GBP, 250 ZAR) with proceeds supporting some incredible organisations working in Southern Africa to ease the burden of HIV and AIDS in the region.

Please visit the gallery at: http://www.artforaidsinternational.org/shop/ and tell your friends.

This year, to coincide with the release of their 2011 Annual Overview, I put together the following infographic highlighting the tremendous impact of North Star’s work. You can learn more by visiting my post on North Star’s site: 2011: A Year in Review [Infographic]. You can also download the infographic as a PDF.

About North Star Alliance

North Star Alliance works at the crossroads of disease and mobility to ensure that highly mobile populations, especially truck drivers and their direct and indirect contacts have access to quality health and safety services. North Star is strengthening national health systems by expanding their reach and plugging the gaps through a network of “Roadside Wellness Centres” (RWCs) located at hotspots along major transport corridors in sub-Saharan Africa. North Star’s unique approach unites the transport and public health sectors in a common response to high impact diseases.

North Star’s RWCs are open to everyone, but designed for the specific health needs of mobile populations. They offer a focused package of prevention and treatment services, including: information, education, primary health care, treatment for sexually transmitted infections (STIs), HIV counselling and testing, and medical referrals.

North Star Alliance is supported by six core partners, including International Transport Workers’ Federation, ORTEC, PharmAccess Foundation, TNT Express, UNAIDS and the World Food Programme, and more than 70 strategic and local partners. Currently, North Star is operating 24 RWCs in 10 East and Southern African countries and will soon open the first centre in West Africa.

The following post originally appeared on the Art for AIDS International Blog on 24 April 2012

In 2011, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) challenged young people from around the world to collaborate and crowdsource the next global HIV strategy. Today, after five months of collaborative efforts, youth leaders from around the world met in Abuju Nigeria to present CrowdOutAIDS to UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé; a new strategy produced by more than 5000 young people from 79 countries that will guide the UNAIDS Secretariat’s work on HIV and young people through 2015.

Leveraging social media and new crowdsourcing technology enabled young people to shape the future of the global response to AIDS, a first in United Nations history. “It brought decision-making to the grassroots, to the skilled and unskilled, learned and unlearned, rich and poor, to contribute to an issue that affects all our lives: HIV,” said Nigerian activist Gabriel Adeyemo.

“I am so impressed by the dedication, energy and enthusiasm that young people have shown through the CrowdOutAIDS initiative,” said Mr Sidibé. “The recommendations they have presented to UNAIDS will help us mobilize a new generation of young leaders and we will work together to stop new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths.”

Globally, its estimated that five million young people (15-24 years of age) are living with HIV. About 3000 young people are newly infected with HIV each day. According to recent surveys in low- and middle-income countries, only 24% of young women and 36% of young men responded correctly when asked questions on HIV prevention and transmission.

Through CrowdOutAIDS, young people proposed six key recommendations for the UNAIDS Secretariat:

• Strengthen young people’s skills for effective leadership at all levels of the AIDS response;
• Ensure the full participation of youth in the AIDS response at country, regional, and global levels;
• Improve young people’s access to HIV-related information;
• Diversify and strengthen strategic networks between the UNAIDS Secretariat, youth networks, and other key players;
• Increase the UNAIDS Secretariat’s outreach to both formal and informal networks of young people; and,
• Increase young people’s access to financial support.

“We have worked together, using the simplest tools—each one of us in their own corner of the world—to create spaces of exchange and draft this important document in real-time, public online sessions,” said Zahra Benyahia, a CrowdOutAIDS drafting committee member. “This is not the end. It’s the first step toward revolutionary youth leadership in the AIDS response.”

For more details on CrowdOutAIDS visit http://www.crowdoutaids.org/ or check out UNAIDS’ Press Release

Photo Source: CrowdOutAIDS

The following post first appeared in the Art for AIDS International Blog on December 31, 2011.

2011 was a mixed bag in the global response to AIDS. While exciting medical breakthroughs in treatment and prevention hint at tremendous potential to reduce the transmission of HIV, these were often offset by reduced financial investment,  profiteering, and discriminatory national policies. As we enter the 4th decade of HIV, we wanted to take a look back at some of the biggest stories that defined the AIDS response in 2011.

11 Major Stories from 2011

AIDS turns 30

30 years ago, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a report outlining five cases of what was believed to be a rare form of pneumonia. In retrospect, this report would be the first official one to outline what is now recognized widely as the HIV epidemic.

Read our special feature on 30 Years of HIV.

ARVs Prevent Infection

On May 12, the results of the HPTN 052 trial indicated that if an HIV-positive person adheres to an effective antiretroviral therapy regimen, the risk of transmitting the virus to their uninfected sexual partner can be reduced by 96 percent.

The story, which made global headlines in May, was recently hailed as the biggest breakthrough of 2011.

Anti-Gay Legislation

In May, Ugandan MPs backing an anti-homosexuality bill, which included a death penalty clause for repeat offenders, said they would move forward with it, despite President Museveni’s calls for them to abandon it.

In November, Nigeria’s Senate voted to criminalize gay marriage, gay advocacy groups and same-sex public displays of affection.

Contraception and the Risk of HIV

In October, a seven-country study published in the Lancet showed that women using hormonal shots to prevent pregnancy, such as the contraceptive Depo-provera, increased their risk of contracting HIV, and doubled the chance that they transmit HIV to their partners. This was major news because helping women avoid unwanted pregnancy is an important part of reducing mother-to-child transmission.

Medicines Patent Pool

In July, the Medicines Patent Pool announced their first agreement with pharmaceutical company – Gilead Sciences – to improve access to HIV and Hepatitis B treatment in developing countries. The Patent Pool was created in 2010 to improve access to HIV medicines by enabling the negotiation of voluntary patent licences to generic pharma companies, enabling them to develop and distribute new formulations.

Generic Anti-Retrovirals under Fire

In March, thousands protested terms in the ongoing free trade agreement between the EU and India, which pushes for tougher intellectual property regulations – threatening the production of generic pharmaceuticals in India, which currently produces the majority of anti-retroviral drugs used in developing countries.

Read more in UNAIDS’s Press Statement.

Funding Cuts for HIV

In November, poor funding resulted in the Global Fund’s decision to cancel its 11th round of funding. The Global Fund is responsible for about 70% of HIV treatment in developing countries.

Earlier in the year, the Kaiser Family Foundation and UNAIDS released a report showing that funding fell from US$7.6 billion in 2009 to $6.9 billion in 2010 – the first time funding has dropped in more than a decade.

New Targets in Global AIDS Response

In June, at the UN High Level Meeting on AIDS, a new set of targets was outlined for the global AIDS response. Simply put: ”Zero new infections, zero stigma and zero AIDS-related deaths”.  The meeting concluded with the adoption of a declaration that seeks, by 2015, to double the number of people on ARVs to 15 million, end mother-to-child transmission, halve TB-related deaths in people living with HIV, and increase preventive measures for the “most vulnerable populations”.

Crowdsourcing New HIV Strategy

In September, UNAIDS, recognizing the important role of young people in the global AIDS response, launched a digital campaign aimed at encouraging young people to crowdsource a new strategy on HIV and Youth. The campaign, #CrowdOutAIDS, provides platforms for young people to interact and engage with each other regarding issues related to HIV in their community and seeks to reach a collective set of agreements out of these interactions.

More Political Misinformation

In November, Leader of the Democratic Alliance in South Africa, Helen Zille, called for people who knowingly infected others with HIV to be charged with attempted murder, and quested why the government should pay for people who contracted HIV through “irresponsible behaviour”.

On August 1st, Uganda’s Minister of Health, Christine Ondoa, claimed she knew three people who had been cured of HIV through prayer.

New HIV Vaccine Approved for Trial

In December, the first and only preventative HIV vaccine based on a genetically modified killed whole virus has received approval by the FDA to start human clinical trials.

Developed at The University of Western Ontario, with the support of Sumagen Canada, the vaccine (SAV001) holds tremendous promise, stimulating strong immune responses in preliminary tests with no adverse effects or safety risks.

As we enter the 4th decade of HIV, there is no better time than now to celebrate success and renew our commitment as responsible individuals, volunteers, activists, and sponsors. Reaching Zero New Infections is possible – and we hope it will be at the top of everyone’s resolution list this year.

Funny or Die and the Clinton Global Initiative recently released a video that lets you sit in on a meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative’s Celebrity Division as they brainstorm ideas to celebrate CGI’s 10th Anniversary. The meeting, run by Ben Stiller, and attended by notable guests including Kristen Wiig, Jack Black, Matt Damon, Sean Penn, and Ted Danson, is going great, until they get a call from President Clinton…himself.

The mission of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) is to inspire, connect, and empower a community of global leaders to forge solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. Learn more by visiting their About Us page.

Some Key Tuberculosis report findings

• the number of people who fell ill with TB dropped to 8.8 million in 2010, after peaking at nine million in 2005;
• TB deaths fell to 1.4 million in 2010, after reaching 1.8 million in 2003;
• the TB death rate dropped 40% between 1990 and 2010, and all regions, except Africa, are on track to achieve a 50% decline in mortality by 2015;
• in 2009, 87% of patients treated were cured, with 46 million people successfully treated and seven million lives saved since 1995. However, a third of estimated TB cases worldwide are not notified and therefore it is unknown whether they have been diagnosed and properly treated.

Despite this tremendous progress, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warns that this is by no means a time reduce funding for the TB response.

“Fewer people are dying of tuberculosis, and fewer are falling ill. This is major progress. But it is no cause for complacency…Too many millions still develop TB each year, and too many die. I urge serious and sustained support for TB prevention and care, especially for the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people”.

For more details about the WHO 2011 global tuberculosis control report, read the original press release by WHO.

Tuberculosis Resources

Read the full report

2011/2012 TB Fact Sheet

Read the Global Plan to Stop TB

Click for Full Size

The 2011 Ibrahim Index of African Governance, which was released this week, highlights where countries across Africa stand regarding four key categories: Safety & Rule of Law, Participation & Human Rights, Sustainable Economic Opportunity and Human Development. While any index will have its critics, this report highlights a diversity of scenarios on a continent often judged only by it worst cases.

For a more complete summary, check out the full summary report, otherwise, take a look at a few of the key points outlined below:

The Top 5 Best and Worst

Top five in the 2011 Ibrahim Index (score): 1st Mauritius (82), 2nd Cape Verde (79), 3rd Botswana (76), 4th Seychelles (73), 5th South Africa (71).

Bottom five in the 2011 Ibrahim Index (score): 49th Central African Republic (33), 50th Congo Democratic Rep. (32), 51st Zimbabwe (31), 52nd Chad (31), 53rd Somalia (8).

Category trends:

Sustainable Economic Opportunity: 38 countries improved, three significantly. No country has declined significantly.
Human Development: 48 countries improved.
In the Health sub-category in particular all but two countries improved and neither of the two declines is significant.
Safety & Rule of Law: 36 countries declined, one significantly.
Participation & Human Rights: 39 countries declined, one significantly.
The greatest declines in Safety & Rule of Law and Participation & Human Rights are substantially larger than the concurrent improvements in Sustainable Economic Opportunity and Human Development.

Commenting on these results, Mo Ibrahim, Founder and Chair of the Foundation, said:

“We have seen this year that Africa’s young majority are no longer willing to stand for the selective approach to governance adopted by many of our continent’s governments. Our young people are demanding a holistic, equitable and inclusive approach to the management of their countries. The Index findings echo these demands – achievements in economic management and human development, however striking, will not be realised if a democratic deficit persists. Africa’s success stories are delivering the whole range of the public goods and services that citizens have a right to expect and are forging a path that we hope more will follow.”

Here is the full index:

Images and Documents contained in this post are credited to the Mo Ibrahim Foundation.

ONE is hoping users will watch the video and donate their voice by signing a petition and spread the message to their friends that famine is man-made – not an act of nature. There’s also a French version (with some decent, and some amusing, attempts to convey the message by the same celebrities).

Let me know what you think about this latest initiative by ONE and its dream team of celebrity endorsers by leaving a comment below!

The vaccine

The new vaccine, known as MVA-B, is a variation on the Live Virus Vaccine once used to eradicate Small Pox. Scientists have managed to manipulate this virus to carry 4 HIV genes with the hope that an immune system would recognize the virus if an individual became infected.

“It is like showing a picture of the HIV so that it is able to recognise it if it sees it again in the future” explains Professor Mariano Esteban, head researcher on the project at the National Biotech Centre in Madrid.

In the study, this vaccine was given to 24 healthy patients to gauge how their immune system would respond. In this early study, roughly 90% of the HIV-free volunteers who were given the vaccine, developed an immune response against the virus. After one year the vaccination, 85% still show signs of this response.

How it works

MVA-B is a therapeutic vaccine. This means that, if it is refined to the point where it was totally effective, it would be administered to those already living with HIV. It would then control the virus in their bodies in much the same way modern antiretroviral treatments do, except people would only need a single injection- not a daily regimen of tablets. Such a vaccination programme, if rolled out globally, would have a tremendous impact on the lives of people living with HIV, and reduce greatly further spread.

How important is this?

HIV is an incredibly complex virus with many strains. As such, any insight that could help researchers better understand how it works, is significant. In this context, however, it is important to recognize that this breakthrough is the result of a Phase I trial on one specific strain of the virus.

What’s next?

The next step in the process is another Phase I test. This time, however, the vaccine will be injected in to HIV positive volunteers to test its therapeutic application. Before any large-scale production, this vaccine will still need to go through Phase II and Phase III tests, which would involve injecting vaccinated volunteers with the HIV virus on a larger scale. These trials will likely take several years.

How long until an effective vaccine is available for HIV?

No one knows. As scientists will continue to make discoveries we will move closer to an eventual vaccine for HIV. Until this point, the most effective method of reducing HIV is by minimizing the spread of the epidemic. This is done by learning about HIV and AIDS, protecting yourself from HIV and other STIs by wearing a condom, and by encouraging your partner(s), friends, and communities to do the same.

Here are a few other posts on HIV research and advances:

‘Slow Progressers’ could be the key to new HIV treatment

Medical Advances and Human Rights Abuses: HIV/AIDS in 2010

30 Years of AIDS – A Timeline [PREZI]