Athena Network

ATHENA is a Global network advancing gender equity and human rights through the HIV response, by and with those most affected. In 2000, at the International AIDS Conference in Durban, a group of women’s rights advocates found that there was no place for women living with and researching HIV to meet. So, they organised the 2000 “Women at Durban”, the 2002 “Women at Barcelona” and the “Women at Bangkok”. ATHENA grew from these networking sessions. ATHENA is guided by the principles outlined in the 2002 Barcelona Bill of Rights and has been at the forefront of movement-building and leadership for gender equity, and human rights in the HIV response since 2006. In 2000 ATHENA’s leadership transitioned from a founding Director in the US to an interim director, who openly lives with HIV as an African migrant in the US to a substantive Executive Director, based in West Africa, representing the constituency that ATHENA seeks to serve. Our current team is based mainly across Eastern and Southern Africa, with core team members based in Kenya, Namibia, South Africa and the US. Our team members are young African feminists who have been impacted by HIV personally, in their communities and families. ATHENA recognises that only when women and girls can know, claim, and action their rights, will we achieve SRHR, reduce HIV infections, end GBV, and achieve global health. We promote and facilitate inclusive leadership of women, girls and gender-diverse people putting the most affected at the centre of our work. We create opportunities for them to develop, engage, influence, and implement programmes, policies, advocacy, and research that affect them. We bridge the local and the global in meaningful ways, and work across gender, HR, SRHR, GBV, and HIV. We bring our expertise across policy development, participatory action research, advocacy, programming, youth involvement, meaningful engagement, leadership development, and consultation, while ensuring and advancing local accountability.