June 23, 2016 - The White House.
By Amy Lansky, Caira Woods
Last week, thousands of people gathered for the United State of Women, a White House summit focused on the needs of women and girls. Employing the theme, “Today, We’ll Change Tomorrow,” the event highlighted priorities such as health and wellness, violence against women, and economic empowerment, celebrating what we’ve achieved, identifying the challenges that remain, and pointing the way forward. We at the Office of National AIDS Policy were honored to take part in the summit.
ADDRESSING HIV/AIDS IN WOMEN AND GIRLS: LESSONS LEARNED AT HOME AND ABROAD
Our first event was a Solutions Seminar on June 14, where we had a high-level discussion about the successes and challenges women and girls are experiencing both domestically and abroad. In Amy’s opening remarks, she provided context for the U.S. response to HIV globally, through the PEPFAR program, and in the United States, through the National HIV/AIDS Strategy.
Ambassador Deborah L. Birx, M.D., the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator and U.S. Special Representative for Global Health Diplomacy, moderated a panel discussion that included:
- Mary Bowman, Poet, Singer and Advocate
- Dázon Dixon Diallo, President/Chief Executive Officer, SisterLove, Inc.
- Dr. Helene Gayle, Chief Executive Officer, McKinsey Social Initiative
- Nancy Mahon, Senior Vice President, Global Corporate Citizenship and Sustainability, The Estee Lauder Companies/Global Executive Director, M.A.C AIDS FUND, M.A.C Cosmetics
- Debra Messing, Global Ambassador, Population Services International
Their discussion provided attendees with numerous solutions to take back to their communities:
- Engaging those who are affected by HIV but are not typically involved in policy discussions
- Embedding strategies for addressing interconnected factors like economic well-being and violence into HIV prevention and care efforts
- Making personal commitments to share the stories of people living with HIV both in the U.S. and abroad