The Centre for Youth and Community Development will support young people, community educators and health workers in South Africa to practice a human development approach to HIV/AIDS and constitutional education. The Centre will build on the pioneering work of The Living Together Institute in Johannesburg, which uses storytelling and performance to teach about democracy and development and to break through the fear and silence in the face of the AIDS epidemic. The Centre will build inclusive and developing communities by bringing together community-based organizations and educational institutions from the diverse communities in and around Johannesburg – such as Duduza Youth Empowerment; Association Francois Xavier Bagnoud in Soweto, MaAfrika Tikkun; Anti Retroviral Theatre Company. Educational Support Services of the Department of Education, and Let Us Grow in Orange Farm – in collaboration with the Living Together Institute.  

Since 1999 the Living Together Institute has run youth development workshops, advocacy trainings, and community development workshops that have attracted hundreds of youth and community residents to help families deal with the impact of HIV on their lives. These workshops have been carried out in partnership with the National Association for People Living with HIV/AIDS, AIDSLINK and the Centre for AIDS Development Research and Evaluation. The Living Together Institute is also using a performance learning approach in the creation of its most recent collaborative project, designed to teach young people about the new South African Constitution and, more broadly, about human rights and democracy.

The Centre for Youth and Community Development is working in collaboration with the East Side Institute to develop a year-long training program for representatives from participating organizations.   It will also support the creation of performance-based activities that would involve young people, other community residents and professionals from the participating organizations and their communities.

For more information on the Living Together Institute and the Centre for Youth and Community Development, please contact Betsi Pendry at bitpendry@mweb.co.za.