 Message from HEARD's Director, Prof Alan Whiteside I have just three weeks of sabbatical left. It has been good to be in the northern hemisphere through a spring, summer and now an autumn. HEARD's Gender and HIV and AIDS Project Gender and gender inequalities are a central aspect in the transmission of HIV throughout the world, particularly in southern and eastern Africa South African Work-Family Symposium The South African Work-Family Symposium where employers can gauge their own progress on work-family policy against other players in the industry will take place on 30 November in Cape Town. Increasing African Capacity Central to HEARD's Capacity Building agenda, the Young Researchers Initiative (YRI) aims to provide support to young researchers based in eastern and southern Africa to produce high quality, accessible research on HIV/AIDS. At Last, Progress in Developing an AIDS Vaccine According to recent media reports, an experimental HIV vaccine has for the first time cut risk of infection. HEARD's Director, Prof Alan Whiteside was invited by OUPblog to post his views on this recent development which he says this will lead to new investment and energy in the development of vaccines. OUPblog is Oxford University Press' blogosphere for learning, understanding and reflection. A New HEARD Research Agenda on XDR-TB In response to the emergence of drug resistant TB in South Africa, HEARD has set up a research project to explore the reasons for the high levels of hospital transmission of XDR-TB.   | Newsletter Issue 1 October 2009 HEARD recently integrated a focus on disability within its African Leadership programme and aims at providing and disseminating research on the issue of disability and HIV/AIDS as well as actively advocating for the inclusion of disability matters within the response to HIV/AIDS which up until recently, has seen little attention. "In southern Africa the prevalence of disability as well as HIV/AIDS is higher than in other parts of the world. In addition, more and more people in our region have access to ARVs, live longer, but also develop disabilities related to HIV or its treatment. The issues developing from this can no longer be overlooked," said HEARD's disability project leader, Dr. Jill Hanass-Hancock. For this purpose, HEARD has built an international network of people working and researching in the field of disability and HIV/AIDS. It is also undertaking the systematic review of selected topics in the field and spearheads a series of publications with the intention to advance the field as well as to direct new research ventures. HEARD has formed close relationships with key organisations within the southern African region and beyond. In its efforts, HEARD is particularly interested in supporting and strengthening the work of local and regional Disabled Peoples Organisations (DPOs) and Disabled Service Organisations (DSOs). For more information on HEARD's disability project, visit http://www.heard.org.za/african-leadership/disability. |
