ACNS was overdue for a refresh...
Consultations Completed!
Thanks to all who participated in our Community Consultations, and supported our planned changes at the Annual General Meeeting special resolution vote...
Watch out for our rebranding launch to come in Spring 2024!
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FROM FALL 2022 - SUMMER 2023 ...
If you would like to be part of the ACNS community consultation process, please email Chris at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and put “Community Consultation” in the subject line. We will email the Zoom consultation details to all who expressed interest.
The proposal that ACNS will be seeking feedback on is:
“to expand our mandate to address broader sexual health, mental health and substance use issues – and to do so for all 2SLGBTQIA+ Nova Scotians”. This is the possible future that we wish to work towards. This is the proposal we now wish to present to our existing clients and HIV priority populations, as well as to the broader 2SLGBTQIA+ communities in Nova Scotia.
First off, we want to be clear that we are not planning on giving up any of the HIV support and prevention programs and services we currently offer. ACNS will continue to address HIV issues for all impacted populations in Nova Scotia. However, to survive (or even thrive!) to be able to offer those HIV-specific services we need a broader foundation. Also, we’ve long been aware of the obvious overlaps and synergies between HIV work and broader 2SLGBTQIA+ health work.
HIV-specific funding – at both the provincial and federal level – continues to shrink each and every year! In addition, fund-raising for all charities has continued to get more and more challenging as the fundraising landscape gets increasingly crowded and competitive (and that was before COVID-19).
Back in 2018-2019 the ACNS staff and Board of Directors had gone through a detailed strategic planning process to assess the direction of the organization in both the short-and-long-term. We looked at the work we have been doing, the work we want to be doing, the challenges and opportunities that new developments in HIV treatment and prevention have presented, and we especially looked at the challenges and opportunities that changes in funding for programs have presented.
Out of that strategic planning process, new ideas and directions emerged that we need to discuss with our clients, and the populations we already serve... and the populations we may be adding to our service!
To finalize this process we were planning on doing consultations across Nova Scotia in the spring of 2020. COVID-19 interrupted that process. This spring we're back on track - offering Zoom consultation sessions. If Zoom does not work for you, let us know and we'll make alternative arrangements.
ACNS wants to hear your thoughts and input on our proposal, and we’re hoping to have in-depth discussions about how we can best serve our communities moving forward. Our community consultations will include an HIV+ client focus groups, and broader 2SLGBTQIA+ consultations.
If you would like to be part of this consultation process, please email Chris at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and put “Community Consultation” in the subject line.
Thanks!
