Why social awareness is important?

Social awareness is generally defined in two ways. The first indicates that social awareness is the

knowledge of what is socially acceptable and acting accordingly, whilst the second states that

social awareness means being aware of different problems in society, and confronting them.

When taking these definitions into account along with what we know about South Africa pre-

1994 elections, it is very important that we as individuals, partners, educators, groups, leaders

and South Africans develop a greater social awareness and understanding towards the

improvement of our social interactions and truly aim to keep the spirit of Freedom Day alive not

only this year, but for many years and generations to come.

(Danette Swanepoel)

[ http://profusionmag.co.za/freedom-day-the-importance-of-social-awareness/ ]

Media and Public Awareness

It can change opinions because they have access to people and this gives it a lot of strength. This

strength can either be used constructively by educating the people or it can be used destructively

by misleading the innocent people.

Power of the media can transform the whole society especially in the developing countries it can

be used as a 'weapon of mass destruction'. But I think the most important use of media is to

educate the people about the basic human rights. The dilemma of the developing countries is that

people are not fully aware of their basic rights and if they know, they don't know about what to

do and where to go. They don't know their collective strength. Even they don't know how to

protest and what is the importance of protests.

[ http://aarushi11.blogspot.my/ ]

What are types of social awareness campaign/program in Malaysia

Digital Conversations

Given the importance of digital communication in an upper-middle income country like

Malaysia, UNICEF is using social media channels (Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest) to inform,

connect and engage young people on issues that affect their lives, including bullying,

discrimination, teen pregnancies and child marriage.

We also use Twitter - the second largest social media tool in the country - to engage with netizens

on issues affecting children and young people. These include a Tweetchat with The Star's R.AGE

(leading English daily's Youth program), while collaboration with YouthAsia and Nuffnang had

some 3,000 bloggers and Tweeples viral MCO messages on adolescence and non-discrimination.
[ http://www.unicef.org/malaysia/protection_actions_public.html ]

MEDIA & CAMPAIGNS

Over the 25+ years that PT Foundation has been working in HIV prevention in Malaysia we have

been involved in many social campaigns to help educate Malaysians on HIV prevention, to

reduce social stigma and prejudice, empower our communities and so much more. We are very

proud of our achievements and we still have many more campaigns to come!

Listed below are just some the main campaigns we have done over the past few years.

If you want to keep updated on our future campaigns be sure to like our page on Facebook and

subscribe on YouTube.

PT Foundations Facebook Page

PT Foundations YouTube Channel

I AM YOU: BE A TRANS ALLY

I AM YOU: BE A TRANS ALLY is an ongoing educational campaign created to raise awareness

regarding the trans community in Malaysia. Ultimately, I AM YOU aims to bridge the gap

between the trans* community and the rest of Malaysian society through the promotion of

tolerance and acceptance. Prejudice and discrimination are still a daily part of trans lives in

Malaysia and are often born out of misinformation and harmful stereotypes. PT Foundation feels

that it is important to correct this misinformation in the hope of fostering great understanding and

promoting tolerance and acceptance towards the trans community. In response we have taken

part in the creation of a series of campaign videos and the creation of educational resources and

info packs for distribution around Malaysia.

Click here for more info

MY LIFE, MY STORY
My Life, My Story takes as its goal one simple idea: letting people living with HIV tell their own

story.

The stories collected here in the My Life, My Story project are but a small portion of the stories

of the over 80,000 people living with HIV in Malaysia and they reflect some of the diversity of

those affected. We hope by spreading their stories that we can begin to foster understanding

around the realities what it means to be HIV positive. Too often people living with HIV in

Malaysia face ongoing stigma and discrimination, often based on misunderstandings, prejudice

or stereotypes. My Life, My Story allows people to see the faces and stories of those affected by

HIV and to showcase that HIV does not discriminate, so why should we?

Click here to see the videos

World Aids Day Red Carnival

For many years now PT Foundation has proudly hosted the Red Carnival, marking World Aids

Day on the 1st of December every year. Set over two days, Red Carnival involves over 250

volunteers taking over key locations in the centre of Kuala Lumpur to promote HIV prevention
and show support to those living with HIV. In 2012 we distributed over 45,000 red ribbons and

20,000 HIV presentation info packs to the general public and involved thousands in our events

throughout the day and night.

Red Carnival is a gala event comprising of music, dancing, education sessions and raising public

awareness. Most importantly it is a time for Malaysians to come together to protect each other

form HIV.

For more information, photos and even a video montage click here

SOMEBODY LIKE ME

With over 30% of new HIV infections now aged between 13-29 years old, we know that taking a

step to engage young people in HIV prevention is vital. At PT Foundation we know that talking

openly about HIV is the first step in HIV prevention. For World Aids Day 2013 we teamed with

Durex Malaysia to start a dialogue for young people in Malaysia to discuss HIV and sexual

health in an open and candid manner.

Through utilising social media we were able to create engaged conversations over multiple social

media platforms all linked through the #somebodylikeme banner. Importantly the utilisation of
social media allowed young people guide the conversation themselves, allowing for peer to peer

education and open communication of issues that are often seen as off-limits or taboo

especially for young women.

For more info, some videos and many news articles on the campaign click here

AIDS MEMORIAL DAY

Every year PT Foundation marks International AIDS Memorial Day (IAMD) with a series of

events which serves both the community and the general public as a reminder of those people

living with HIV who have passed away. We show support and encouragement for those living

with HIV, their families and the communities most at risk of HIV, all of whom are served by PT

Foundation. HIV/AIDS affects us all with more than 100,000 persons infected with HIV in

Malaysia since 1986.

Although the format changes each year, our main event is always a Multi-Faith Memorial

Service. In 2010 the event involved more than 400 community members from the Muslim,
Christian, Buddhist and Hindu faith and was an opportunity for the community to remember the

13,000 persons who have died from AIDS in Malaysia.

Click here or photos and more information on the Memorial Day events over the past few years

AIDSAWARE

AIDSAware was first of its kind a joint collaboration between PT Foundation and ruumz.com

causes whereby the public themselves become the vehicle for creating and spreading AIDS

awareness utilizing social media. The public was encouraged to take a picture of themselves,

their friends and/or their family members holding a AIDS/HIV related message on a piece of

paper or card and posting and sharing their photo messages online.
AIDSAware advocates safer sex, being responsible for our own and other peoples health, being

accountable for our actions and not discriminating against people living with HIV.

Click here or more information and links to the photo series, including 42 Malaysian celebrities!

[ http://ptfmalaysia.org/v2/social-campaigns/ ]

Now, the mainstream media is no longer recognised as a prime channel by

the youth, mainstream media only become the main information channel to
the elderly only.
(Datuk Azman Amin, Director General of Department of
National Unity and National Integration)

Source : Journal of Human Development and Communication

Volume 3, 2014

One of the most important advantages of the use of social media is the online sharing of knowledge and information

among the different groups of people. This online sharing of information also promotes the increase in the

communication skills among the people especially among the learners/students of educational institutions. Online

tools and technology has not only mediated communication in countless ways, but that the very ways we

communicate and even the ways we talk and think about communication are changing as a result. Social media have

the potential to fundamentally change the character of our social lives, both on an interpersonal and a community

level.
Source
International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Volume 2, Issue 5, May 2012 1 ISSN 2250-3153