{jcomments off}The Men's Health Forum in Ireland is, currently, seeking applications for the role of Executive Officer (initially for one year), and is also inviting suitably experienced researchers to tender for a piece of work which will involve an evaluation of Men's Health Week 2011.  The closing date for the Executive Officer position is Monday 20th December 2010, while the closing date for the evaluator role is Monday 31st January 2011.

{jcomments off}Healthy Food for All has developed a Good Practice Guide for Community Food Initiatives which provides advice on how to set up community food projects that improve the consumption of healthy food amongst low-income groups.  Examples of community food initiatives include food cooperatives, community cafés, food-growing projects, breakfast and after-school clubs, and community-based training courses in nutrition and healthy eating.  Community Food Initiatives (CFIs) can combat food poverty by making good-quality, affordable food more accessible to local communities.  CFIs promote good health by making it easier for people to make healthy food choices.  They can also address gaps in dietary knowledge and skills, and improve the quality and extent of food availability in local areas.  For example, some community food initiatives assist local residents to grow their own fruit and vegetables, while others provide training for parents in how to prepare healthy family meals on a low budget.  For further information contact Georgina Buffini at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

{jcomments off}A “Men’s Shed” is any community-based, non-commercial organisation which is open to all men, and provides a safe, friendly and inclusive environment where men are able to gather and/or work on meaningful projects at their own pace, in their own time, and in the company of other men.  The primary objective is to advance the health and well-being of participants.  The Irish Men’s Sheds Forum is a small, voluntary group, who share enthusiasm for the development of Community Men’s Sheds in Ireland.  The Forum is supported by the Australian Men’s Shed Association - whose vision and work the Irish Forum wishes to adapt to our local situation.  It is hoped that, eventually, the Forum will facilitate the growth of a Men’s Sheds Organisation which will serve the whole island of Ireland.  More information can be found online at: www.menssheds.ie and this site also contains a large interactive discussion section.  The Irish Men’s Sheds Forum is meeting on Tuesday 7th December 2010, at the Tipperary Men’s Shed.  Everybody is welcome.  For more information about this meeting, the forum, or the website, Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The Irish Central Border Area Network (ICBAN) is holding a free seminar on Friday 10th December 2010, in the Sligo Park Hotel, Sligo.  This is a cross-border event which will explore the issue of unemployment and mental health, and aims to highlight the potential need for services to respond to the social exclusion of those living with mental ill-health in the region.  For more information, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Tel: 0044 2866 340717.
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{jcomments off}Lyndsay Foster, a clinical psychology graduate student at the University of New Brunswick, is currently conducting a study on how being diagnosed with a STI impacts upon sexuality and sexual well-being.  She is interested in comparing the sexual well-being of men and women who have been diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection (STI or STD) to those who have not had a STI.  Men and women who are over the age of majority in their country are encouraged to participate.  Participants in the study will be asked about their sexual experiences, sexual health, and sexual attitudes.  The survey takes approximately 10 to 25 minutes to complete, and participants will have an opportunity to win a VISA Gift Card worth 50 Canadian dollars.  For more details see:  https://survey.psyc.unb.ca/sexualhealth.aspx

A lot of people who are active in men’s projects find themselves working on the margins, often in isolation, mostly with few resources, and always without a supportive policy context for their efforts.  Although some men’s issues and needs are reflected in the Gender Equality Strategy and Action Plans, many more remain hidden, unrecognised or unaddressed.  The Men’s Policy Forum, within NICVA, was established in March 2008 to provide a meeting space for workers in this field, and an outlet for raising some of these concerns.

You don’t need to be a policy expert to attend this group.  The Forum is open to anyone (male or female) who has an interest in men’s issues and needs.  The next meeting of the Men's Policy Forum will take place on Wednesday 24th November 2010 in NICVA (61 Duncairn Gardens, Belfast  BT15 2GB) from 10.30am - 1.00pm.

The main task of this meeting will be to generate male-focused recommendations for the next NICVA Policy Manifesto.  This document sets out the priorities (as we see them) for policy-makers, and is particularly relevant at the minute - as there will be an Assembly election next year.  See www.nicva.org/content/policy-manifesto{jcomments off} for more information.  Even if you can’t attend the Policy Forum meeting, please send your “Top Five Priorities for Action”.

For more information and/or to confirm your attendance, please contact Cathy Breslin from NICVA at Tel: 02890 877777  or  Email:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The ‘Mo’ (slang for moustache) and November come together each year for ‘Movember’.  Movember challenges men to change their appearance - and the face of men’s health - by growing a moustache.  The rules are simple: start 1st Movember clean-shaven, and then grow a moustache for the entire month.  The moustache becomes the ribbon for men’s health - the means by which awareness and funds are raised for cancers that affect men.  Originally an Australian idea, the campaign has now grown worldwide and, in 2009, global participation climbed to 255,755, with over one million donors raising €31 million for Movember’s global beneficiary partners.  The funds raised through Movember’s Ireland campaign have benefitted Action Prostate Cancer - a programme of the Irish Cancer Society.  For more information on Movember, visit:  http://ie.movember.com{jcomments off}

{jcomments off}An East Belfast Evening Men’s Health Clinic has been launched in the Arches Medical Centre by the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust.  Services available include BMI, blood pressure, blood screening and urinalysis testing, and an opportunity to discuss general health and wellbeing issues - including mental health.  All results are sent to the men’s own GP.  The clinic runs every other Wednesday from 6.00pm to 8.00pm.  This month’s clinic will be open on the 3rd and the 17th of November.  For further details, contact Alan Houston at email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Ian McKee at email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Linda Armitage at email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.