Contemporary Sexuality - August 2008 - (Page 3) President’s Letter Global partnership, giving and greener By Helen “Ginger” Bush, MSW tion. In New Orleans, I had the opportunity to meet with international members from Israel, China, Puerto Rico, and India to discuss outreach and recommendations for our autumn Board meeting. AASECT members are encouraged to attend the 19th WAS Congress for Sexual Health, Sexual Health & Rights: A Global Challenge held in Goteborg, Sweden June 21-25, 2009. The AASECT office will be organizing a group in August to qualify for reduced group registration fees to attend WAS. I would also encourage members to attend the WAS Gala because it is a wonderful opportunity to network in a relaxed atmosphere. Please go to www.sexogoteborg-2009.com Lastly, in New Orleans Eli Coleman distributed copies of the Sexual Health for the Millennium: A Declaration and Technical Document, a publication of WAS with the financial support of the Ford Foundation. This is a very important document that will have a global impact. 2. Giving: Give an Hour (GAH) In 2005, Barbara Romberg, a licensed clinical psychologist, founded GAH because she was concerned about the mental health implications of the Iraq War. GAH is a nonprofit organization that is creating a national network of mental health professionals who are providing free services to U.S. troops, veterans and their families. GAH would like to work with AASECT to recruit members. Mitch Tepper introduced us to Romberg at the Wounded Troops Conference. More info: www.giveanhour.org 3. Greener: AASECT is committed to being green by using electronic means for communication and organization. It is an effort to impact the environment in a positive way by having the smallest footprint; it is also a way to conserve AASECT resources, which can be spent on other ways to serve the membership; and lastly it is a way to deliver information quickly and efficiently. Yes, this is change and I, like you, remember when we thought it was amazing to fax documents instead of using the U.S. Postal Service. Then there was email and now cell phones. This June, we saw the first electronic Contemporary Sexuality, and members can now sign up to receive this publication electronically. Going green means that we can update member information quickly and better serve our membership. To sign up, email Tayloe Moore at tmoore@aasect.org I am looking forward to serving you in the exciting and challenging times ahead. T hank you for the honor and pleasure to serve as your President for the next two years, as well as the distinct privilege of being the first MSW to serve as AASECT president. Many thanks go to all who helped make the New Orleans 2008 annual conference so successful, especially the conference chairs, our staff, volunteers, presenters and our executive director. It’s not too early to think about next year’s conference — the proposal submission deadline is Oct. 20. May and June were very busy times for our executive director and myself as incoming president. We attended the one-day conference in Washington, D.C. titled “Wounded Troops and Partners: Supporting Intimate Relationships.” Mitch Tepper at the Center for Excellence in Sexual Health at Morehouse School of Medicine organized this important, timely conference. Other AASECT members who were involved were Chris Thrasher, Linda Mona, Kelly Ace, Carey Bayer and Sharon Rachel. In June, I attended the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) 2008 membership conference titled “Stand Up for Freedom.” One of the best-attended workshops, “Private or Criminal? America’s War on Sex” dealt with the ACLU LGBT Rights & AIDS Project, the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project, and various aspects of “The War on Sex,” presented by Marty Klein. After the workshop, Marty and I were inundated with questions about sexuality and AASECT. Also in June, AASECT was one of eight organizations invited to a conference in Washington, D.C. on the Science of Desire, which focused on the definition, prevalence, diagnosis and treatment of HSDD. We had a chance to network with AASECT member Lisa Martinez, who is the executive director of the Women’s Sexual Health Foundation before and after the formal conference. Why Global Partnership, Giving, and Greener? 1. Global Partnerships are essential in the world that we live in today. AASECT will continue our International Outreach and will explore more collaboration with Spanish-speaking people. Our membership brochure was translated into Spanish this past year, and there are two programs in Puerto Rico that are being evaluated to provide training for AASECT certifica- Global partnerships are essential in the world that we live in today. August 2008 Vol. 42, No. 8 | www.aasect.org Contemporary Sexuality 3 http://www.sexogoteborg-2009.com http://www.sexogoteborg-2009.com http://www.giveanhour.org http://www.aasect.org
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