Mercado Global Selected as Global Village Participant for the XIX International AIDS Conference

July 26, 2012 - PRLog -- The Global Village, open to conference delegates and the general public, aims to intensify the involvement of key stakeholders in the conference and in the global response to AIDS. Mercado Global, in partnership with Levi Strauss, has developed a high-impact model for educating at-risk, rural populations in Guatemala’s highlands about HIV/AIDS.

By coupling training with an earned-income model, Mercado Global ensures broad participation in the trainings and help lessen the social stigma and spousal opposition some indigenous women face for participating in the trainings. This model of combining education with sales opportunities helps ensure that participants develop access to the income they need to progress on issues related to their health and well-being.

Additionally, Mercado Global was one of only 280 Global Village activities accepted for inclusion in the AIDS 2012 programme out of over 1,000 submissions. Examples of other activities at the Global Village include sessions, forums, oral presentations, awards, networking zones, NGO exhibition booths, marketplace booths, art exhibits, film screenings and performing arts.

Mercado Global is a social enterprise with an innovative approach to fighting poverty and empowering women in rural Guatemala. By providing business development support and connecting artisan cooperatives to sales opportunities in the U.S. on an unprecedented scale, Mercado Global partner artisans are a source of change in global sourcing practices.  
Each Mercado Global collection starts with a journey to the highlands of Guatemala where our designers partner with indigenous women artisans to develop unique pieces that combine Mayan craftsmanship with modern design. From one of the most marginalized populations in the world, Mercado Global partner artisans are rising to become leaders in their communities and are sending their children to school, often for the first time. Learn more about Mercado Global at www.mercadoglobal.org.

All are encouraged to attend the Global Village Programme at AIDS 2012. Returning to the U.S. after a 22-year absence, the Conference is expected to be a landmark event. The return to the U.S. is due in large part to years of advocacy to end the nation’s entry restrictions on people living with HIV (PLHIV). This return represents a huge success for human rights and will have a positive impact on the response to HIV and AIDS both at a national and international level.

The theme of AIDS 2012, Turning the Tide Together, has been selected to emphasize how a global and decisive commitment is crucial to change the course of the epidemic now that science is presenting promising results in HIV treatment and biomedical prevention.

More information on the selection process for the International AIDS Conference Global Village Programme is available here.

About AIDS 2012

AIDS 2012 is expected to convene more than 20,000 delegates from more than 200 countries, including more than 2,000 journalists. As the largest gathering of professionals working in the field of HIV, including people living with HIV and other leaders in the HIV response, the biennial International AIDS Conference plays a fundamental role in shaping the global response to HIV and in keeping HIV and AIDS on the international political agenda. www.aids2012.org.

Conference Organization

AIDS 2012 is convened by the International AIDS Society and the conference’s international partners: the Global Network of People Living with HIV (GNP+); the International Council of AIDS Service Organizations (ICASO); the International Community of Women with HIV/AIDS (ICW) and the United Nations Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS): the Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition (CVC); Sidaction.  

The U.S.-based Black AIDS Institute; the District of Columbia Department of Health (DOH); the HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA) of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA); the National Institutes of Health (NIH); the Office of National AIDS Policy (ONAP) at the White House; and the U.S. Positive Women’s Network (USPWN) are serving as local partners.  

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About the IAS  
The International AIDS Society (IAS) is the world's leading independent association of HIV professionals, with over 16,000 members from more than 196 countries working at all levels of the global response to AIDS. Our members include researchers from all disciplines, clinicians, public health and community practitioners on the frontlines of the epidemic, as well as policy and programme planners. The IAS is the custodian of the biennial International AIDS Conference and lead organizer of the IAS Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention, which will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 30 June– 3 July 2013.   www.iasociety.org | www.ias2013.org

AIDS 2012 Media Team
Sian Bowen (Geneva, Switzerland), AIDS 2012 Senior Communications Manager                            
Email: Sian.Bowen@iasociety.org / Tel:  +41 22 710 0864                                                      

Adina Ellis (Washington, D.C.), AIDS 2012 U.S. Communications and Public Affairs Manager
Email:adina.ellis@aids2012.org / Tel: +1 (202) 714-6793

Shawn Jain (Washington, D.C.), AIDS 2012 U.S. Communications & Media Relations Coordinator
Email: shawn.jain@aids2012.org / Tel: +1 (202) 470-3127