The Youth Pavilion is a space at the International AIDS Conference that has constant youth programming, a youth lounge for young people to hang out and relax between workshops, and the youth-adults commitments desk. Each workshop, filled with dance, music, and acting, draws huge crowds of people, often standing room only. A documentary team is running around with cameras and microphones capturing all of the work. Every delegate that has questions on youth issues ends up here. There is a constant buzz about who might be coming to the commitments desk next. Organizers run in and out with laptops, cameras, questions, answers, and announcements for updates events and meetings.
With all of the commotion around, it would seem that the last place to actually get work done would be the Youth Pavilion. But, this is also where the YouthForce media team has their work station. Deadlines come and go, blogs are posted or forgotten about, articles are written and interviews are uploaded. All surrounded by the chaos that makes up the Pavilion. The media team also has access to the Media Room through the Main Conference. This space is more structured, formal, and everyone generally has the same focus, basically, a more productive environment overall.
But what fun would that be? If we are reporting for the YouthForce, the best place to be is right here, in the middle of it all. Even if that means needing to read through everything once or twice more because of the noise level, or being distracted by the belly dancers twelve feet away, or a group singing. There is no other place that would better to capture the energy of it all then right here.
