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The 5th Ecumenical Pilgrimage for Climate Justice from Poland to Glasgow crossed the English Channel from IJmuiden in the Netherlands to Newcastle-upon-Tyne in England on 11 October. They were given a warm welcome on site. 

From Canon Gideon Byamugisha, to newlywed couple Jemimah Ate and Opio Charles, people in Uganda are advocating to end stigma and discrimination associated with HIV.

As Makerere University in Uganda admitted new undergraduate students in August, trained “ambassadors of change" were able to speak about preventing sexual and gender-based violence and HIV transmission. The ambassadors were trained though workshops offered by the World Council of Churches Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy programme.

Fifty students from Ugandan universities in Uganda were educated in challenging patriarchy and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) at a training of trainers (TOT) gathering in Kampala, Uganda.

In a colourful ceremony attended by more than one hundred people, new manuals on faith healing and transformative masculinities and femininities were launched at Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda, on 29 July 2019.

Students at Makerere University in Uganda have launched an evangelical and health mission in Kayunga, one of the rural villages in Mityana district located about 50 km from Kampala, Uganda.
The initiative follows the October 2018 launch of the Thursdays in Black Campaign against sexual and gender-based violence in Uganda by the Anglican community of the College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity at Makerere University.

On 26 July at the International AIDS Conference in Amsterdam, there was a marked change in colour at the Interfaith Networking Zone. It was Thursday, and from morning prayers to the evening informal networking, the theme was “black”.

Every two years, the International AIDS Conference provides scientists with a venue to announce new discoveries in how HIV is diagnosed and treated. This year, the 23-27 July conference, held in Amsterdam, was no exception.

Faith-based organizations have been at the forefront of calls to accelerate HIV testing and treatment for children and adolescents. As gaps in infection and treatment between adults and children have become more apparent, there are now more concerted efforts to “super fast-track” services for children. But will they be enough?

A symbolic bridge, carefully constructed over a two-day interfaith conference, connects an interfaith networking zone with a space shared with the World Health Organization (WHO), UNAIDS and Unitaid at the Global Village of the International AIDS Conference 2018.

“Science is important. But social change is needed, and social change happens with faith–based organizations.”

How faith groups and leaders can, should and are building bridges to more effectively eliminate AIDS as a public health threat is the focus of an interfaith event being held in Amsterdam, 21-22 July 2018.

Rev. Rahab Wanjiru Kariuki, an Anglican priest living with HIV in Kenya, strongly believes there’s a reason for an uptick in HIV infections among young people: “It is because we have kept silent.” Kariuki refuses to be silent and refuses to remain passive. These are mantras not only for the way she lives but for the ways in which she ministers and cares for others.

A lay Anglican woman in Uganda is helping to build an HIV competent community and church, in a country where the epidemic is still a big challenge. Josephine Kasaato is president of the Mothers’ Union in the Namirembe Diocese in the capital of Uganda, Kampala. She is using her position to create awareness and educate the community about HIV and AIDS.

“I believe we need an advocacy strategy to listen, share experiences, and address the issues we face in working for treatment adherence,” said Rev. Dr Nyambura Njoroge, World Council of Churches Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy (WCC-EHAIA) coordinator as she addressed a consultation on HIV Treatment Adherence and Faith Healing in Africa on 5 September.

Taking place on 4-8 September in Kampala, Uganda, a WCC and UNAIDS regional consultation on HIV Treatment Adherence and Faith Healing in Africa has gathered to address issues of “faith-healing only” practices in the context of HIV and AIDS. At the core is the question of how religious leaders can partner with governmental organizations nationally and internationally, as well as with other parts of civil society to develop strategies to advocate for HIV treatment adherence, and to build bridges to those among faith-healing only practitioners who are open to dialogue.

“Science and religion can provide solutions to poverty and injustice.” This was the theme of the 3rd International Conference on Sustainable Alternatives for Poverty Reduction and Ecological Justice (SAPREJ) in Kampala, Uganda, on 4-7 April. The conference was organized by the Kyambogo University and the WCC economic and ecological justice programme.