ACT UP!

A project to clean up the Great Pacific garbage patch reached a milestone, the global tiger population stabilised, and Botswana was hailed for its HIV success, plus more positive news

The great garbage patch cleanup hit a milestone It has become emblematic of our throwaway society, a grim testament to the pitfalls of single-use plastic. But this week, efforts to clean up the Great Pacific garbage patch reached a milestone: 100,000kg of plastic removed so far.

Admittedly, it’s small fry. Strewn across an area twice the size of Texas, the floating mass of rubbish is 1,000 times larger than what has been landed so far. But the Dutch nonprofit behind the project, The Ocean Cleanup, said it was preparing to scale up.

“We are ready to move on to our new and expanded system, which is expected to capture plastic at a rate potentially 10 times higher,” said Boyan Slat, its CEO.

The Ocean Cleanup uses computer modelling to predict where large concentrations of rubbish will accumulate, and skims it from the sea using giant booms. The nonprofit deploys similar technology at river mouths to stop plastic entering oceans in the first place.

Image: The Ocean Cleanup

On the heels of World AIDS Day, New Yorkers have good HIV news to celebrate. The city announced it reached the 90-90-90 HIV targets set by the United Nations’ AIDS group, making it the first U.S. city participating in the “Fast-Track Cities” initiative to do so. What’s more, it reached the goals two years ahead of schedule.

The 90-90-90 targets are:

90% of people living with HIV know their status

90% of people diagnosed with HIV are on treatment

90% of people on treatment are virally suppressed.

A Royal Recycling (part 40)

A Human Rights Approach to the COVID-19 Pandemic

As global communities come together to social distance, it’s clear that the novel coronavirus is exposing people to more than just disease. The outbreak highlights the lack of human rights in some countries, specifically the right to healthcare and the right to work.

These inequities are no secret for vulnerable community members and the activists who call on states to respect these rights. Activists who organized around the HIV/AIDS epidemic are especially familiar with its parallels to the current pandemic. Fortunately, international institutions are also taking notice.

This week, UNAIDS issued its report “Rights in the time of COVID-19″ to call for governments and communities to embrace a human rights framework for responding to COVID-19. This report draws lessons from the HIV/AIDS epidemic to suggest guidelines for combatting COVID-19. 

According to UNAIDS, using a human rights framework is the best way to guarantee that everyone can access the resources to prevent transmission, #flattenthecurve and end the pandemic.

So, how can activists transform this into action?:

Center communities from the beginning.

Combat stigma and discrimination that prevent access.

Support the most vulnerable in your communities.

Remove barriers to action.