Epidemic TB in the Global Community (epidemictb)

This interactive website, designed to provide visual and resource information for tuberculosis (TB) advocacy, is based on Mr. David Rochkind’s photography and multimedia reports. It includes explanations about TB and photo essays focusing on three of the countries that are the hardest hit by TB: South Africa, India, and Moldova. Each of these countries is representative of their respective regions, where the TB problem continues to evolve. The website describes the problem of co-infection with TB and HIV: "Without treatment, 90% of people with HIV die months after contracting TB."

The information section includes images and accompanying text on the topics:

• What Is TB?
• TB Transmission
• TB in the World
• TB Prevention
• TB Symptoms
• TB Diagnosis
• TB Treatment

 
The "Teacher Center" features two three-session units, available as PDFs, designed to engage high school students in the content of the Epidemic TB website. "The units, one developed for use in a social studies setting and the other for use in health-related contexts, engage students in an exploration of the personal and social consequences of TB, both in the countries pictured on the website (South Africa, Moldova, and India) and in their own lives. The activities are group-oriented and intended to stimulate conversation and sharing in the classroom. These units can be used in conjunction with the TB Action Packet, which is designed to teach students that, once they are informed on the issues, they can be actors that bring about change in their community and beyond."

The "Take Action" section includes tools in an action packet to take the experience of “EPIDEMIC: TB in the Global Community” out of the classroom and into communities. The packet explains a variety of advocacy tools, including the following information:

• What is an advocate?
• How to write a Letter to the Editor
• How to write a letter to your congressman
• How to plan a successful fund-raiser
• How to use this website to teach your Youth Group or community about the global tuberculosis epidemic.

This project, published by David Rochkind, Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, and the Education Development Center (EDC), was created with the financial support of the Lilly Multi-Drug Resistant (MDR)-TB Partnership and the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. Additional support for the reporting in South Africa and India was provided by the International Reporting Project at the Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Studies and the Stop TB Partnership’s Images to Stop TB Award.