Day 22(1/24/18) *Geneva/United Nations*

UN Palace

UNAIDS Building 

 Day 22:) Today was our first full day back from our free weekend, and we spent it at the UNAIDS building and at the UN palace. Both were the kind of place where you walk in and you just know that things are happening around you that are changing the world. The UNAIDS building: working to end AIDS worldwide and end stigmas around individuals who may be at risk or are HIV carriers; The UN palace: the mastermind behind every single UN organisation, where the world health assembly meets each year, where diplomats from all 193 member states convene to discuss what will be the next steps for each country’s policies and populations. It’s a feeling that stays with you the whole time, leaving you slightly nervous, slightly exhilarated, completely awe-struck. What fortune we have as a class to be able to be here:) Apparently some of the meetings at the UN are open to the public, so perhaps if I’m ever back in Geneva I’ll come to one!

Today we heard from one speaker at the UNAIDS office, and then moved to the UN palace for a tour. Afterwards, we heard from a few great presentations from our peers (final presentations, they were a puppet show on antimicrobial resistance, a walk through of a website on the right to health, and a presentation on the benefits of exercise). Afterwards, it was Taylor’s birthday so Paul and Julie had us all over in their chalet and we ate cake and ice cream-how kind of them. I’m going to miss Paul and Julie after this trip, they're both so welcoming to everyone and always think of every single student:)

UNAIDS Speaker: Nadine Brou
Top 3 things to know:
1. The goal of UNAIDS is to end AIDS by 2030
Nadine said that while this was a great goal for the organization, she thinks that it will likely take longer, due to the fact that countries still need to address stigmas regarding HIV/AIDS transmission and for people to take part in the prevention strategies. It is different from eradicating polio, because polio simply requires an oral vaccine…eradicating HIV/AIDS requires educating the entire world on prevention, transmission, and treatments for the disease.
2. There are 5 “prevention pillars” to the UNAIDS project, and they are: 
1) pre-exposure prophylaxis given to people at risk for contracting the disease 
2) circumcision safety to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS sexually 
3) use of condoms to prevent sexual transmission of HIV/AIDS, and to have them in places where people are comfortable taking them (i.e. not the same place where an individual’s mother might see him/her taking the condoms) 
4) reduce the rate of mother/child transmission of the disease through childbirth by providing mothers with prophylaxis, and encouraging delivery in a hospital setting
5) target young women/girls in education and safety efforts so as to prevent sexual exploitation and spread of the disease
3. The most at-risk populations for contracting/spreading the disease are the following: incarcerated, transgender, men who have sex with men, women who have sex with the former, young girls, and sex workers.

Something surprising:
• The most common comorbidities of HIV/AIDS are tuberculosis, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and cancer
I was surprised that mental health issues weren’t listed as comorbidites, since Nadine described the deep mental toll that the disease can have on people in certain countries where the facts about transmission aren’t clear. Like in the movie “Rent”, many people are displaced because of their HIV status, and are not welcome back into their communities because of fear that others may become infected. The reality is that an individual with HIV can only spread it with blood or sexual contact, but this is not widely accepted apparently.
Something worrisome/hopeful:
• Even today, there are 1.8 million new cases of HIV/AIDS diagnosed each year, and certain countries are more at-risk than others. For example, in Botswana, 1/3rd of women are HIV positive. 1/3rd…that’s the equivalent of about 7 of the 21 people in this ID280 course who would be HIV positive. It’s so frustrating and sad to hear statistics like these, but it’s also hopeful to know that people are monitoring the prevalence of the disease, and that the UNAIDS office is dedicating entire careers to help those affected by it. In fact, the centre was only supposed to exist for a few years, but it has since been funded to exist for much longer so as to end the disease altogether.


So I'm feeling a bit under the weather(lots of people in the class are having cold symptoms at the moment as well 😕)…so to play it safe I’m going to try to get lots of extra sleep, hopefully I’ll wake up feeling better, ready for another day at the UN!

Goodnight!
-Anna
Part of the UN palace garden; this was a gift from one of the member states to the UN
This is where the world health assembly takes place!

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