Some may wonder what impact advocacy can have on problems such as violent conflict, environmental degradation, or the AIDS epidemic at the global level. But Students United is one campus club that is proving its ability to assist in creating concrete change in the lives of some of the world’s most marginalized children.
Over the weekend of November 12-13, Shahmeer Ansari and Steven Borowiec, founding members of Students United for AIDS Orphans of Africa, travelled to New York to attend a meeting with the African Regional Youth Initiative (ARYI).
Students United is a student group that aims to raise funds to provide educational opportunities for African children who have been orphaned by the spread of AIDS, as well as to increase awareness regarding the global impact of the AIDS epidemic. ARYI is a U.N. initiative whose goal is to unify community and educational programs throughout Africa that address the AIDS epidemic and its impact on communities.
It is through its connection with ARYI that Students United is able to direct the money made through fundraising to specific NGOs that provide support for children suffering the impact of the AIDS epidemic.
The purpose of the weekend’s meeting was to discuss further collaboration between ARYI and Students United. Representatives of the two groups discussed potential projects to be implemented in upcoming months, such as providing resources for the creation of libraries in affected communities, as well as future prospects for funding.
There are currently more than 11 million children in Sub-Saharan Africa who have been orphaned by AIDS, creating a problem of epic proportions. The number of orphans in the region has increased from 3.2 per cent to 35 per cent due to the spread of the disease, and the numbers are only expected to grow.
Orphaned children must often quit school in order to seek work and care for younger siblings, and many are forced onto the streets, rendering them vulnerable to poverty and exploitation, and making them more likely to contract HIV, perpetuating the spread of the epidemic.
The impact of the AIDS epidemic on this generation of African children has immense social and economic implications for communities, and contributes to deepening poverty, instability, and diminished prospects for development.
The central goal of Students United is to provide support for orphaned children so that they may strive for a better future, and therefore act as a positive force in the development of their communities. The group conducts awareness activities and fundraisers, such as documentary screenings, parties, art shows, and dinners. The funds collected are then allocated to partner NGOs in Zambia, Namibia, Uganda, and Zimbabwe, in order to assist in providing educational opportunities and basic supports for AIDS orphans.
The club was founded just this year, and hopes to increase its activities and membership in years to come, allowing it to further contribute to supporting AIDS orphans of Africa.
If you would like to get involved with Students United, or simply want more information about the group, please contact Steven Borowiec at [email protected].
