AIDS Crisis and the International Community

  • NINT 5175 - AIDS Crisis and the International Community (Spring 2008)

Section A/CRN 5325 (syllabus)
TBA
Thursday 8.00pm - 9.50pm

This course is a joint review of one of the crucial issues the international community is dealing with today: The response to HIV and AIDS. The AIDS epidemic continues to be a major international health and development crisis with an estimated 4.3 million new HIV infections (close to half of them among young people 15-24 years of age) and nearly 3 million deaths attributed to AIDS in 2005 alone. This course aspires to analyze the driving forces behind the spread of HIV in the developing world and the way the international community has responded to it. In particular, the course will give the students an understanding of the state of the pandemic today and its possible course in the future; highlight the impact the AIDS epidemic has on different groups, such as women and young people, and the socio-economic development in developing countries; examine approaches and tools used in responding to HIV and AIDS; and analyze the response of different major actors. With HIV and AIDS being a multidisciplinary issue, this course takes a multidisciplinary approach touching on socio-economic, medical, public health, political and cultural issues, among others. The sessions will consist of a mixture of lectures, discussions, group work, simulations, student presentations and guest speaker contributions. Student participation and initiative are very much encouraged and welcomed. The course is structured around 4 building blocks:

  • Basic knowledge of HIV and AIDS
  • The impact of HIV and
  • Global commitments, country responses and emerging issues
  • Major international actors in the area of HIV/AIDS

Learning objectives:

Gain a sound understanding of:

  • HIV and AIDS issues and concepts (the virus itself, HIV and AIDS terminology, driving factors of the epidemic, key populations vulnerable to HIV, responses and approaches to HIV and AIDS)
  • Role and functioning of major actors in the area of HIV and AIDS

And develop:

  • Critical thinking: What do you think drives the HIV epidemic and what should be done to address it in different contexts? Are the current approaches appropriate? How can the response to HIV and AIDS be made more effective?

Concentration:Governance and Rights