I give lots of thought to what makes community-based organizations the lowest common denominator in development aid. Readers of how-matters.org may already be familiar with previous arguments I’ve offered for the increased inclusion of and investment in community-based organizations (CBOs). As an ardent proponent of CBOs’ comparative advantages, I believe they have a better chance of being driven by “the…

"I must say, at first when I was being introduced to this Process, I was apprehensive. I see potential and I kept saying yes it will work, but at the back of my mind, I was thinking somethingelse. Now that I have been with you, these past seven days in the communities, I am appalled at what I see happening, THIS PROCESS WORKS! In fact I am happy that I made the effort…

Pendant ma visite à Samara, Laurence m'a demandé d'interviewer un des amis russes comme 'Membre du mois' pour notre newsletter de la Constellation. J'ai choisi d'écrire sur Alexei, une personne hors du commun. L'histoire ci-dessous est le résultat de plusieurs conversations pendant la semaine et ses contributions pendant les visites SALT. Marlou

Colleagues, find feedback on ACP conducted in Trinidad and Tobago. I think that there is much we can learn from this feedback.

1. 1.       What do you expect from this event?

• More info on networking  +goal setting
• The exposure to a new approach of dealing with HIV/AIDS, its spread and impact and a greater understanding  of  the role of communities, all stakeholders.
• I expect to learn “new” skills, concepts,…

Thank to all the who atteended tha AIDS COMPETENCE WORK SHOP it was a wonderfull experance and very informitive.

We also shared lots of information from our communitise and how we use SALT to work in our comminities.

The facilitators from GUYANA was great they work with us so we were well SALTED when we lef the workshop

Thank again from the members of TOBAGO OASIS FOUNDATION.

Disciples of SALT

The skill or art of communication is a two edged sword; similar is the skill or art of empathetic listening; however they are important elements for the SALT agent.  If your life, however is not grounded or rather built on the foundation of universal principles that stimulates and facilitates a win/win solution to our many societal and developmental challenges, such as HIV/AIDS all you would be as an agent in the response is just another mercenary, looking out for…

2011 Cordaid HIV and AIDS Award: Help spread the information Please find enclosed and attached the announcement for the 2011 edition of the Cordaid HIV and AIDS Award. The Catholic Organisation for Relief and Development (Cordaid) is seeking nominations from organisations actively involved in the linking of community- and formal health and care services for people living with HIV. Cordaid wishes to award two organisations - one Civil Society Organisation and one Faith Based Organisation -…

*Over the course of two years, The Constellation has partnered with the Institute for Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) in Ethiopia to integrate AIDS Competence (ACP) into their existing Community-Managed Disaster Risk Reduction (CMDRR) programme. During a support visit in Borana, one Ethiopian participant - Hussein - experienced firsthand the power of SALT through a home visit.*

“My name is Hussein Omar, coming…

Human beings,

The skill or art of communication is a two edged sword, similar is the skill or art of empathetic listening, both important elements for the SALT agent. However If your life is not grounded or rather built on the foundation of universal principles that stimulates and facilitates a win/win solution to our many societal challenges, such as HIV/AIDS all you would be as an agent in the response is just another mercenary, looking out for yourself and manipulating, and…

Something has not been connecting. Honestly. After years of pumping funds into projects and organisations we are still being faced with an epidemic that's threatening the workforce and future of our nation. Truthfully, people know. At least, they say they do. However, they are not adopting positive behaviors.

As a society, as a community we are concerned. Genuinely so, we wrestle with ourselves trying to find the solutions that create positive behaviour change. We…

I have been thinking.....sometimes we hold on to the past which directly affects if we actualize our goals or fail.Too many times we are forced to listen to those that sit and complain about the past experiences using it as reason why something is not going to work in the future. To those of you who do that, I say wake up and smell the coffee. Yes I believe that we need to learn  from our past experiences, that we can transfer skills and lessons learnt  to create new and better…

Colleagues, participants, human beings to appropriately understand, there must be dialogue; for change to be sustainable, significant, and quantum there must be a change in mind-set…the old way of doing thing begs for change…how timely this salt visit.

In the Arab countries, an agreement was sealed with a gift of salt to show the strength and permanence of the contract: In the book of Matthew, 5:13 (a book in the Bible) believers are called “the salt of the earth”. Let the salt…

Here is another moving sharing by a volunteer at the convention organized recently by Samraksha. The spontaneity of his actions, the immediate recognition of basic human rights and his conerned response is heartwarming. Read more about his actions, and watch the video of his sharing here !!!

http://samrakshainspirations.wordpress.com/2011/07/13/a-gesture-from-the-heart/

(This blog must be updated with all your corrections, as the vagaries of time are fast eroding its veracity. Please comment, and suggest your corrections to which we look forward and thank you in advance.)

Neither Doncil’s birthday party which ended at the early morning hour of 3:30 AM, nor the steady drizzle could dampen…

Hi all from Kazan!

A want to share our experience in SALT method. Recently we've learned it and we practeсed it. Our practice was in a family where parents desided adopting four children with HIV from their birth. And one of these children has also cerebral palsy.  We interviewed the parents with interest asking them about their strengths and what they are proud for in their life and what things made them so strong in their desire to take children in their family. We are very grateful…

(This blog will be updated with all corrections suggested. Please comment, and suggest your corrections to which we look forward and thank you in advance.)

The end of the event is the beginning of Ning and Learning Blended. For, once hooked to ACP and CLCP, one is hooked for Life. This was the message Autry and Michael had clearly spelt out during their presentations on Ning and Blended Learning.  

Testimonials galore:

Proceeding into the Plenary…

Ironically enough, the Trinidad Experience did not begin in Trinidad, but in Guyana. A  T&T delegation comprising of government officials and representatives from civil society got themselves "salted" at the Clara Lodge Hotel in Guyana. We did not only see the application of the process in our own lives, but we saw the real life applications of it when we conducted two SALT visits, one with Prison Officers and the other with the MSM community. Personally, the visit to the Prison…