Queer Health Sexual Health and HIV Activism in LGBTI+ Community Project

Duration : 7 months / June - December 2024

Budget : 13.550 EUR

Supporter : Consulate of France

 Aim and Objective and Method::

This project, the first of its kind implemented by Pozitif-iz, aimed to empower LGBTI+ youth by providing them with sexual health education and information on HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.

The project also aimed to empower the LGBTI+ community to become HIV activists, to lead social change on HIV both in the earthquake-affected areas and across Turkey, and to promote solidarity among them.  It also aimed to reach out to people living with HIV in earthquake-affected areas, where it had not had the opportunity to work before, to empower them about the services available to them and their rights.

The project planned to benefit at least 30 LGBTI+ youth. In addition, efforts were made to reach at least 20 HIV-positive young people living in earthquake-affected areas and include them in the project activities. 

Within the scope of the project, two full-day workshops were planned to be held in Adana and Gaziantep, and one full-day workshop each in Istanbul and Ankara.

Announcements of the trainings were made through the website and social media accounts, as well as by reaching out to infectious disease physicians and organizations working in the field of LGBTI+ in the cities where the trainings would be held. The trainings were given by experts in their fields.

Outputs:

• As planned, two full-day trainings were organized in Adana and Gaziantep, and one full-day each in Istanbul and Ankara.

• 13 people in Adana, 9 in Istanbul, 4 in Gaziantep and 6 in Ankara; 32 people in total benefited from the trainings.

• With the workshops organized; sexual health awareness among LGBTI+ youth was raised and their current knowledge about HIV was refreshed.

• People living with HIV in the earthquake-affected regions were empowered and enabled to establish a solidarity network among themselves.

• Through a campaign run by LGBTI+ youth, it was aimed to raise awareness about HIV and offer them the opportunity to experience activism.

Project Report: https://www.kisa.link/zCfao