International AIDS Candlelight Memorial

Setting Goals

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As you may already know, setting goals is an important part of coordinating any event, including the International AIDS Candlelight Memorial. Here are some tips and examples for how to set goals for your memorial and for yourself as a Candlelight coordinator.

Setting Goals for Your Memorial
Discuss the following questions with those helping you coordinate your memorial. These are challenging questions to answer, but they may help guide your activities.

What is the overall purpose of the memorial for your community?
How will the memorial impact members of your community or organization?
How can you continue the message of AIDS awareness after your memorial?
What do you want to learn as a community organizer fighting against HIV/AIDS?

Examples of goals for your memorial could include the following:

Make more people aware of AIDS and that they can do something to fight the disease
Create community dialogue about HIV/AIDS and a better-informed community
Influence leaders and policy-makers to fight against HIV/AIDS
Reduce stigma related to HIV/AIDS by changing attitudes and behaviors
Show the relationship between local and global AIDS issues
Inspire community members to take future action against HIV/AIDS
As a coordinator, learn more about community mobilization and HIV/AIDS

Other tips:

Be realistic about which goals you are able to accomplish
Think of goals in terms of the resources you have available
Consider how you will evaluate your goals while you create them

Tell Us About Your Own Goals
Share examples of your own goals with other Candlelight coordinators around the world by writing to the Candlelight Memorial Listserve at candlelightmemorial@listserve.com. What were your goals for past memorials and what are you goals for the 2006 Candlelight Memorial taking place on May 21? Your ideas could help other coordinators and their ideas may help you.