11 hours ago
This week in Civil Society — Unpacking food safety, discussion on decolonising conservation and tackling youth in crisis
From food systems and pharmaceutical transparency to HIV justice, decolonising conservation, and youth activism — this week features a series of thought-provoking webinars hosted by Heala, Sanac, Plaas, HJI, and others.
On Monday, 9 June, Heala will host a webinar on a holistic approach to health and food systems at 2pm.
The webinar will explore how ultra-processed foods, policy gaps, and industry interference contribute to rising non-communicable diseases, obesity, and child malnutrition in South Africa.
'We'll unpack why grants like R530 fall short, highlight the need for stronger policies like Front-of-Pack Warning Labels and the Health Promotion Levy, and spotlight the essential role of caregivers, health workers, and school nutrition programmes in building healthier food systems,' Heala said.
Speakers include Patrick Ngassa Piotie (Diabetes Alliance SA – UP) and John Nkuna (sharing his personal journey with diabetes).
Register for this discussion here.
On Tuesday, 10 June, at 12pm, the South African National Aids Council (Sanac) will host a webinar on access to justice for people living with HIV and TB.
'Reaching the Sustainable Development Goal of ending the HIV and tuberculosis epidemics by 2030 requires countries to address human rights and gender issues that hinder service access. An essential element is ensuring access to legal aid and redress for rights violations,' Sanac said.
Using Ghana and South Africa as case studies, the webinar will unpack what needs to be done to break down barriers to access to services and facilitate justice.
Register to join the webinar here.
Also happening on Tuesday at 3.30pm is the third bi-monthly Global Health Solidarity webinar.
This instalment of the webinar will explore how solidarity has taken shape during key global and continental health crises, from resisting Aids denialism in the early 2000s in South Africa, to challenging vaccine apartheid during the Covid-19 pandemic, and confronting the impact of recent US funding cuts to African health programmes.
On Thursday, 12 June at 3pm, the Health Justice Initiative will host a webinar on pharmaceutical transparency.
During this webinar, experts from South Africa, Colombia and Spain will share real-world experiences on how civil society is making an impact in ensuring pharmaceutical transparency.
Speakers:
Adrián Alonso Ruiz (Research and Advocacy Manager, Salud por Derecho)
Fatima Hassan (Founder and Director, Health Justice Initiative)
Claudia Vaca González (Deputy Ombudsperson for the Right to Health and Social Security, Colombia)
Also on Thursday, at 10am, the Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies (Plaas) will hold a discussion on decolonising conservation, rights, livelihoods and access.
'With the increasing acknowledgement of the legacy of colonialism on conservation, including related land dispossession, race-based exclusionary practices of accessing natural resources, to mention a few, calls for decolonising conservation have become common. Indeed, there are numerous efforts (at least on paper) that aim to redress the imbalances of the past. These efforts focus on strengthening rights of local/indigenous people in land and natural resources, as well as to enhance their livelihoods,' the poster reads.
The webinar will explore what efforts to decolonise biodiversity look like, including why the challenges continue.
Register here.
Also on Thursday, at 5.30pm, will host a discussion in the build-up to Youth Day, which will take place on June 16.
During Youth in Crisis: Lessons from '76, speakers will discuss:
Education crisis and the future of the next generation.
Youth unemployment and the ticking time bomb.
Lessons of June '76 for today's youth.
The role of youth in resisting neoliberalism.
here. DM
