Footsteps 44

NETWORKING

As Dr Dixon has stated, the global situation for AIDS is very serious. Previous issues of Footsteps have looked at practical concerns and information on this subject. However, there are now a great many excellent resources available – some of which are listed on the resources page. So in this issue we have instead chosen to highlight the need to work together at all levels, both in supporting people with AIDS or in educating people about the situation. The subject is an enormous one, but by combining our efforts, we can make a difference. The words chosen as their motto by CANA (Christian AIDS/HIV National Alliance), a network of Christian organisations across India, provide an inspiration for all of us:

… to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair for the display of his splendour… Isaiah 61:3.

Please find below articles from Footsteps issue 44 in html.

To download a pdf version of Footsteps issue 44 click here (1016K).

AIDS – an exploding threat by Dr Patrick Dixon. AIDS threatens every recent step of progress in the developing world. With 50 million infected, we may still be in the early stages, hardly nearer an effective low-cost cure or vaccine than ten years ago. Many African nations ar... More >>

Bible study Inviting God into your network Read Acts 1:1-26, 2:1-4 (1:1-11) This provides the background to our study. (1:12-13) The wonderful story of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit starts off with a group of Christians at a business meeting! A network o... More >>

Caring for the environment The Montaña de Guerrero region of Mexico has many problems and is one of the poorest areas of the country. The three ethnic groups who live there – the Mixteco, the Nahua and the Tlapaneco – survive through farming the steep slopes and raising cattle... More >>

COBAP Nakulabye COBAP (Community Based AIDS Programme) is a local response to HIV in one of the slum areas in Kampala. It has carried out a number of activities, mainly to improve health and so to reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS in the community. When it began in the... More >>

Editorial As Dr Dixon has stated, the global situation for AIDS is very serious. Previous issues of Footsteps have looked at practical concerns and information on this subject. However, there are now a great many excellent resources available – some of which a... More >>

Guinea pig husbandry I am delighted to be one of your readers and consider Pas à Pas a cross-roads of ideas! Our organisation (APPI) looks after nearly 400 orphaned children and street children in two towns near Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo. We help them with educ... More >>

Health work with drug users Working within a network by Graciela Radulich. El Retoño is a Christian organisation which focuses on working with drug users within the poorer areas of the capital of Argentina, Buenos Aires. This organisation was begun in 1985 in order to offer c... More >>

Ilinanga’s story by Dr Connie Osborne. Stories can help people learn more about HIV/AIDS. This story can be used as a training exercise with health workers or carers. Tell the story, changing the names to common ones in your area and then go through it again slowly,... More >>

Issues faced by networks by Roger Drew and David Kabiswa. Being part of a group can be extremely helpful, but it can also be a very challenging experience. Challenges often faced by groups of people with HIV include: Getting organised Groups may start very informally but b... More >>

Letters Treating animal skins Thank you for sending the back copies of Pas à Pas. Many things in them interested me, especially about goats. I have started to raise milk-goats. I do not yet know how to milk them, because they don’t like it and kick the dish... More >>

Local networking in action by Isabel Carter. When Joseph received the results of an HIV test and was told it was positive, he was very shocked. It was so unfair. He’d tried to be faithful to his wife, but just once or twice he’d been led astray by his friends. What would his... More >>

Networking organisations by David Kabiswa. The subject of networking for organisations is increasingly being talked about in development workshops and meetings. Many questions can be asked, such as: Who qualifies to network? Is networking helpful for everyone? Is i... More >>

Networking people with HIV/AIDS by Roger Drew. If you talk to people working on HIV and AIDS or read the things they write, it is not long before you come across the word networking. What exactly does it mean? A simple definition might be coming together with other individuals or ... More >>

Protection from lightning by Ronald Watts. Tropical countries throughout the world have considerably more lightning strikes than cooler countries. High exposed plateau areas with few trees seem to receive more lightning strikes than other areas. When people live in thatched ... More >>

Resources Strategies for hope This excellent series has been mentioned many times in Footsteps over the years. There are now 15 titles in the series – the most recent are: No 14: Under the Mpundu Tree about the work of 500 volunteers in home care looking aft... More >>

Treated bed nets Recent research has been carried out to examine the effectiveness of insecticide treated bed nets. Here in Tanzania, malaria is the main cause of illness and death. Over 93% of the population is at risk of contracting the disease. Research findings s... More >>

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