The Roosevelt Institution
STANFORD, California - February 28 - Roosevelt Fellow Jenny Tolan, a member of the committee on International Development, Democracy, and Health, presented her research exploring the prevalence of AIDS in married African women and her recommendations to curb this disturbingly widespread phenomenon. This was the first of the Roosevelt Institution’s luncheon series to showcase the work of Institution fellows.
During the summer of 2004, Tolan spent eight weeks at a home-based Care Project for AIDS patients and orphans in rural Mpumalanga, South Africa. She conducted interviews with women involved with the program while in Africa, and continued her research after returning to Stanford. Her major discovery was that married African women are more at risk for HIV/AIDS infection than single women.
Tolan explains the importance of her work, saying, "There are currently about 39.4 million people living with HIV/AIDS in the world and 4.9 million people newly infected in 2004. Despite these astounding figures, current HIV/AIDS policy is not reaching the world's most vulnerable group: married women. My research looks specifically at why married women are vulnerable and suggests ways policy can shift to reach this critical group."
Tolan described her luncheon presentation as "a thrilling opportunity that has not often been available to students. I was able to transfer all of my research findings into an accessible presentation that I could discuss with my peers. It was an excellent opportunity to get feedback that will help me to continue and improve the work I am doing."