First openly trans advocate appointed to Communities Delegation Board

GATE is delighted to share that our Director of Programs, Erika Castellanos, has been appointed to the Board of the Communities Delegation Living with HIV and affected by Tuberculosis and Malaria Delegation (Communities Delegation) to the Board of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund) as an Alternate Board Member.
The role of the Communities Delegation is to advocate, influence, and shape the decisions on the Board of the Global Fund so that communities living with HIV, and affected by Tuberculosis and malaria can gain equitable access to quality services and support needed to prevent, treat, and/or live with these infections within a conducive environment that respects human rights. The appointment of Erika Castellanos as the first openly transgender Member of this Board is a significant moment in the history of HIV, tuberculosis and malaria activism. Transgender communities are significantly impacted by HIV, malaria & tuberculosis, but until now, we have never had a representative from our own community at such a high level of advocacy.
Erika’s appointment to the Board of the Global Fund comes with responsibilities to all communities living and affected by the three epidemics, particularly to the trans community. GATE will support Erika during her tenure by continuing to provide critical knowledge to our communities and to seek opportunities to listen to the realities and needs of our communities, such as through the GATE CRG Strategic Initiative Project over the next 2 years. This program is based in Asia-Pacific and Latin America, focusing on developing skills & building capacity of transgender communities to meaningfully engage with Global Fund processes in areas of HIV, malaria & tuberculosis. As director of this project, Erika will be able to feedback the voices of transgender communities living with HIV, and affected by tuberculosis and malaria to the Communities Delegation, ensuring that issues affecting this key population are heard.
This appointment will hopefully see meaningful change enacted at all levels of the Global Fund process and on the ground approaches to tackling HIV, malaria & tuberculosis within transgender populations across the world. By using her voice within the Community Delegations to speak for transgender communities, Erika hopes to ensure that the realities of all communities living with HIV, and affected by tuberculosis and malaria are listened to and addressed at the Global Fund Board level.
You can read the Communities Delegation press release here.