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On the 11th April 2015 I am going to climb 974m (3196ft) to the top of Ben Lomond, with the hope of raising money for Glasgow Straight Talk. It is a great cause and any donations will allow myself and others to volunteer in Uganda this summer.

Glasgow Straight Talk is a charity set up by students of Glasgow University which sends groups of students to help a Ugandan charity called Straight Talk. Straight Talk provides children of school age and young adults with a better understanding of sexual health, sexually transmitted infections (STIs),and HIV prevention.

This June, 7 students including myself, are hoping to travel to Kampala and volunteer alongside Straight Talk for 5 weeks. Our main task will be to travel to surrounding areas, especially rural towns and villages, and hold workshops in local schools and youth groups. These workshops will aim to give the kind of social education children in the UK receive during primary and secondary school, but that the Ugandan government does not provide as part of it's curriculum. Without this years teams efforts, GST would not be able to send volunteers to reach the children.

HIV/AIDs is a major problem in Africa, but especially so in Uganda where it affects as many as 1 in 10 people. The only way to reduce these numbers is by targeting the young people and educating them about prevention.

Another aim we have is to dispel many myths and some of the stigma still surrounding sexual health and HIV. Many Africans still regard HIV as a disease of wrongdoers, and so many sufferers can be isolated from the society in which they live and may also be forced into local 'treatments' which can be far more damaging than the disease itself.

All money raised by GST fundraisers such as myself will benefit the charity itself - buying equipment e.g. books for schools, paying for travel expenses in-between schools and paying the drivers that get us from A to B. We fund our own flights, accommodation, meals and leisure activities with our own money.

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