WAS to celebrate the World Sexual Health Day in September 4th 2013 and the World Congress of Sexual Health in Porto Alegre-Brazil September 21-24, 2013

In 2010, the World Association for Sexual Health (WAS) called all their organizations to celebrate, on each September 4th, World Sexual Health Day in an effort to promote a greater social awareness on sexual health across the globe.

The first World Sexual Health Day was celebrated with the slogan “Let’s talk about it!” to start breaking fears and taboos surrounding sexuality. The topic of WSHD 2010 was addressed in different forums, many of which were intergenerational discussions.

World Sexual Health Day 2011 focused on youth sexual health with the slogan “Youth’s sexual health: Shared rights and responsibilities”. The topic of WSHD was a consequence of the creation of the WAS Youth Initiative and in the context of the International Year of Youth proclaimed by United Nations. Within WAS, the different members of the Advisory Committee and the Youth Initiative Committee celebrated the day by organizing a wide range of activities in their home countries, from Round Tables of Discussion to Conferences and Art Exhibitions.

The focus of World Sexual Health Day 2012 was diversity and minorities, with the slogan “In a diverse world, sexual health for all!” Around the world, activities to commemorate WSHD 2012 made visible the realities of population groups such as: elders, transgender people, people living with disabilities, immigrants.

This year’s slogan for WSHD “To achieve sexual health, picture yourself owning your sexual rights” aims to constitute a reminder on the fundamental importance that sexual rights have in order to achieve sexual health. We invite everyone to imagine, to picture themselves owning their sexual rights! 

For more information on the World Sexual Health Day please click here

Also the 21th World Congress of WAS will be celebrated this year. What follows is the letter of the President of WAS inviting to our most important meeting:

 

It is a great personal pleasure to invite you and to welcome you to Latin America and to Brazil where the World Association for Sexual Health will convene our 21st biannual congress.

Sexual Health is pivotal to the well being and safety of everyone on our planet and our congress will ensure that the diversity of positive and healthy sexual experience has prominent expression throughout. The theme has been selected by the local team and resonates as crucial for so many of us – sexual issues straight from the heart. What this may mean to you will probably be different to the next person to read this invitation letter but there will almost certainly be some common factor that bonds each of you by building bridges across the whole of the sexual health community. Whatever your discipline and your understanding of our 2013 theme, I am certain that there will be much in common with fellow delegates and that this congress will be a great opportunity to share our experiences with generosity and through collegial interaction. I hope that during these most difficult times around the globe that you will find the space and resources to be able to participate in one of the most important sexual health meetings in 2013.

Please join your colleagues in Porto Alegre and participate at the WAS congress in 2013.

Kevan Wylie
President of the WAS

 

For more information about the congress click here


 

The World Association for Sexual Health (WAS)

Since 1978 WAS has been the pre-eminent global organization concerned with sexual health and rights. Our membership represents thousands of experienced & trainee sexologists from a variety of disciplines. With bi-annual Congresses held in different regions of the world, WAS has facilitated sexual health through education, health promotion and networking for three decades. In recent years, the WAS constituency has become involved in advocating for changes in public policy to recognize sexual health and rights as key ingredients in overall health and social justice. Financial support from individuals, foundations, corporations, and governments has sustained this work around the world.

WAS works to promote sexual health for all. Sexual health is a goal not only for clinicians. It is the common goal of many disciplines. Sexuality education is meant to facilitate sexually healthy lives for the learners. Interventions in clinical sexology have the goal of restoring sexual health. Sex research, although objectively driven, has as its justification the creation of evidence-based knowledge that supports others to attain and maintain sexual health.

Click to read the Millenium Declaration

The World Association for Sexual Health is a membership organization of individual supporting members and organizations. Among the organizations are regional, international, national, and academic bodies that work in sexology. Member benefits include a subscription to the International Journal of Sexual Health, and access to the members-only forum on this website. To begin the application process, click below.

Click to read about becoming a member