Cinemax and Human Touch marks Children’s Day by Screening Golmaal 3

Cinemax in association with Human Touch, a youth-led NGO in the city screened Golmaal 3 for over 250 underprivileged children from city. Various NGOs from city participated in the screening along with the children. Among those who participated are Indian Centre for Integrated Development, Sharansthan and ACCEPT.

We wanted to make the “Children’s Day” special and the gesture to Cinemax is very much appreciated. These kids rarely get to experience such moment. The movie was also apt and the kids enjoyed, said Peter F. Borges, Founder of the Human Touch.

Human Touch is a youth-led NGO with a mission to educate and inform the youth on social issues, inspire them to take action, encourage their participation, identify and build sustainable partnerships aimed at youth development and provide young people with tools and resources for effective action.

Volunteers from city helped in making the day a memorable one, by contributing towards refreshment and arrangement.

Human Touch at India Giving Challenge 2010

Did you ever experience the joy of ‘touching lives’ through your giving deeds? I’m sure this must have given you inner joy, peace, fulfillment and satisfaction. Come and experience the real joy of giving at “Human Touch” and feel assured of personal contact by the beneficiary of your contribution. Human Touch is taking part in India’s largest fundraising event – India Giving Challenge 2010 in which “Joy of Giving Week” is also celebrated

I wish to share with you about “Human Touch” , a NGO which I founded in 2009 to serve young people. I wish to mention that this is purely an effort of young people to contribute to the society with the participation of young people. We invite you to strengthen our hands and help us to touch more and more human lives through our work.

· Do you know that 50% of the new HIV infection is in the age group of 15-24? Human Touch is trying to protect our young people through information and education. Can you help us to reach out to more and more young people?

· Do you know that as a result of HIV epidemic, there are grandmothers taking care of grand orphans who are either living or affected by HIV? It’s a real burden for these ‘grandmas’ to care for them at this age. Can you help 30 such households identified by Human Touch?

· With the epidemic in young people, one will find a large number of young widows in the age group of 20-28 years, coping with HIV infection, loss of spouse and HIV positive children? Can you help around 30 such widows who really deserve to be aided?

· You will agree with me that education in IT sector is really very important to make a career. Human Touch wishes to impart IT education to 20 young people from underprivileged background. Could you consider support this?

Friends, it will only take a minute to donate……but it will touch a life. Every donation helps, and no donation is too small. You can show your support for us for as little as Rs. 100/-. If you’re ready to donate now, please click on this link: http://www.giveindia.org/give/pledgepage/humantouch.

The India Giving Challenge is a competition to see which NGO can raise the most funds. What’s the prize if we win? Our NGO will receive additional matching funds and the impact of our effort will be multiplied.

You will be taken to the GiveIndia site where we have set up an iGive page to accept donations. The site is secure and you can make a donation using credit card, cheque or direct debit from your bank account (for customers of certain banks). All donations are tax deductible and you will receive an e-receipt which you can use for tax purposes.

In addition to making a donation, you can do more by sharing this email by introducing us personally and our iGive page link with your friends and family and ask them to help us too. You can further post our link on your Facebook and Orkut profile too. Remember, the challenge ends on 15^th October 2010

Thank you for your support,

Peter F. Borges & Human Touch Team

SAY NO TO SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN CONFLICT | Say NO - UNiTE

SAY NO TO SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN CONFLICT | Say NO - UNiTE

Experience at ConnectIT Workshop at Nagpur

Peter and Mitali participated in the ConnectIT workshop (Capacity Building for NGOs) organized by NASSCOM Foundation and GuideStar India from 14-17th December at Ecumenical Sangam, Nagpur.

It was a wonderful experience to know how technology can be used to promote NGO's work through various techniques and social networking sites. The workshop had a well-designed agenda to suit the needs of  upcoming NGOs. In this information era, it is vital that we use all these tools to reach out to donors, well wishers as well as general public. Further, NASSCOM Foundation ventures for building the capacity of NGOs through ConnectIT workshops and BigTech Program is very important for non-profits. Those of you, who want to know more about it can visit www.nasscomfoundation.org

Outreach Partner's GuideStar Initiative also seeks to promote the NGO sector and this platform should be availed by all NGOs. Interested people can visit at http://guidestarindia.blogspot.com/

Special thanks to Ashutosh, Santosh and Rumi from NASSCOM Foundation and Pushpa from GuideStar India for giving us the chance to know about IT, NASSCOM Foundation and GuideStar India. Human Touch India looks forward for long term association with you

Screening of "Love in the time of HIV

Involvement of young people in HIV response is crucial factor in HIV programming, says Peter F. Borges, President of Human Touch India and member of UNAIDS Interagency Task Force on HIV and Young People. Human Touch India organized screening of ““Love in the Time of HIV”, a documentary series exploring young peoples’ lives in five cities around the world. The documentary was screened on 7th December 2009 at India Peace Centre and was attended by young people from Nagpur. Human Touch India has partnered with the Global Youth Coalition on HIV and AIDS to host screening of the series for young people and communities in Nagpur.

Views and opinions of young people and youth advocates around HIV and SRH need to be mainstreamed within the AIDS response to ensure they are adequately addressed by programs and policies, asserts Peter who has been actively involved with issues surrounding HIV and young people at global level.

Young people in Nagpur felt the need for greater involvement of young people and political commitment from the government, especially for the groups which are criminalized and stigmatized. The need for better and effective coordination among NGOs working in the field of HIV and SRH, keeping in mind the issues of young people was discussed. Mitali Nandeshwar, Manoj Humane and Bharati from Human Touch India coordinated the program.

Project YouthLIFE

Human Touch India, a youth-led organization in the city has been implementing an innovative program for young people “Project YouthLIFE” (Youth Leadership in HIV Fighting HIV Epidemic) in rural Nagpur. Human Touch India has been awarded the MTV Staying Alive Foundation Award for extraordinary efforts in HIV prevention.

“We are using the traditional game “antakshari” to bring together adolescent girls. In the course of this competition, we mainstream HIV education through additional component of quiz. The leaders who conduct this info-entertainment program, are trained by Human Touch India on HIV and related issues. We aim to reach around 10,000 young people in the first year, with the money from the award”, explains Mitali R. Nandeshwar, Secretary, Human Touch India.

“In India with the controversy surrounding sex education in India, specially in the State of Maharashtra is located, working in HIV prevention among young people is a challenge, specially in rural setting. Keeping this in mind, we have designed this edutainment program which will address issues related to sex in an informal setting and novel way”, says Peter F. Borges, President of Human Touch India

World AIDS Day 2009

Human Touch India in collaboration with Walni High School organized mass rally to mark the World AIDS Day 2009 at the Walni School premises. The rally was part of the initiative for young people “Project YouthLIFE” (Youth Leadership in HIV Fighting HIV Epidemic) in rural Nagpur supported by MTV Staying Alive Foundation Award.

The rally, attended by over 900 students was flaged of by Mrs. Charulata Bijwe, Principal, Walni High School in presence of representatives from Human Touch India and the teachers of the school. Children highlighted the theme” Human Rights and Universal Access” through shouting slogans and placards.

Mitali Nandeshwar, Secretary of Human Touch India delivered a guest lecture on the need for young people to know about HIV and AIDS. Mrs. Rajeshwari Chelladurai also briefed the students on the family values.

Among those present at the event were Peter F. Borges, President of Human Touch India, Mr. Bijwe, President, Walni High School, Bharati, Meek Young from South Korea, and volunteers from Human Touch India. Human Touch India has been leading the responses for young people and has been involved in advocating for young people at various national and international platforms.

Human Rights and Universal Access

Today is World AIDS Day’s and it is celebrated on the theme “ Human Rights and Universal Access” which is very apt and timely. In 2006, at the UN High-level Meeting on AIDS, the world committed itself to reach universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support for all people in need by 2010. Come 2010 and there will be evaluation of MDGs – Millennuim Development Goals - encouraging high level review of what has, and has not, been accomplished in the aim to achieve access for all to essential care by 2010.

The theme will help us to draw attention to key populations affected by HIV and be part of the current momentum around the issue of human rights. Further, the language and framework of human rights makes new dialogue possible, and pulls together many issues including the right to information, right to treatment, non- discrimination as well as the right to health.

Although progress has been made on many fronts (i.e. accelerating access to HIV treatment and care, mobilizing increasing amounts of funding, resources and expertise to respond to the epidemic), current situation in our country, suggest that we are lagging far behind. It’s high time that we reflect and ask ourselves whether we are heading towards universal access targets in 2010, especially in the area of preventing new infections among populations at higher risk.

Focussing on theme and relating it with situation in our area, there is a need that the stakeholders working on the issue, needs greater support and cooperation. Now more than ever, greater attention to human rights is essential to an effective response to HIV, including attaining universal access to prevention, treatment, care and support. People from all sections of the society, including religious leaders from all faiths, should extend support to NGOs in addressing the controversial issues at the heart of the epidemic, including gender inequality, violence against women, harmful male gender norms, age disparate sex and underage sex, sex out of marriage, sexual violence in relationships and marriage, sex work, same sex behaviour, drug use, stigma and discrimination, marginalization and criminalization of populations at risk. Currently, there is tendency to oppose all the moves made in relation to the HIV issue, without getting to know the ground situation.

Leaders from political spectrum should direct sufficient resources, programming and political commitment to the populations most affected by HIV infection and its impacts: women, young people, orphans, vulnerable children and children living with HIV, as well as criminalized and marginalized populations that often face major barriers to accessing HIV prevention, treatment, care and support: people who use drugs, sex workers, men who have sex with men and prisoners

Lastly, it is essential that HIV is viewed as more than a health issue. We should endorse the idea that “linkages to other areas, such as gender, human rights, education, are crucial”. In the new environment, it is critical that HIV not be subsumed under health.