Population Action International - Publications and Documentaries

Publications and Documentaries

PAI publishes annual reports which provide an overview of the programs, research, accomplishments, finances, and future goals that the organization has undertaken the previous fiscal year. PAI also has financed and sponsored several documentaries centering on key population issues such as gender relations, HIV/AIDS, family planning and reproductive health. They are:

• Empty Handed: Responding the Demand for Contraceptives: Examines women's lack of access to reproductive-health supplies in sub-Saharan Africa and the impact it has on their lives. It documents the challenges at each level of the reproductive-health supply chain and identifies areas in need of improvement. Empty Handed was released at the Women Deliver Conference in Washington, DC on June 8, 2010.
• The Silent Partner: HIV in Marriage: Examines the risk of HIV transmission in marriage and the health and cultural challenges facing married women. The 12-minute documentary, filmed in Kenya, is intended to inform and provoke discussion of harmful gender and societal norms that put women and couples at risk for HIV. It is also intended for advocacy to mobilize political and financial support for sexual and reproductive health and rights to achieve broader social, economic and gender equity for everyone. The Silent Partner premiered in Nairobi, Kenya on November 19, 2008.
• Abstaining from Reality: Filmed in Kenya and Uganda, the documentary provides a snapshot of the Bush administration’s abstinence-only approach to HIV prevention as a requirement for its global HIV/AIDS assistance. Abstaining from Reality examines how ideologically-driven programs can endanger the lives of people they ostensibly protect. The film urges a balanced, comprehensive approach to preventing HIV infections by providing full and accurate information and a range of services which empower individuals to make informed decisions. Abstaining from Reality was accepted by the 2007 United Nations Association Film Festival.
• Finding Balance—Forests and Family Planning in Madagascar: Poverty and rapid population growth have driven the destruction of almost 90 percent of Madagascar’s rainforest, home to thousands of unique plant and animal species. The documentary journeys to the edge of a rapidly-disappearing world, where population growth continues to fuel the cycle of poverty and deforestation. Interviews with local women reveal their desire to have fewer children and underscore the critical need for family planning services in remote areas. This short documentary brings the links between population growth and environmental destruction into focus, and explores what one local organization is doing about it.