Recognising that young people feel more at ease when talking to their peers, Together We Can places an emphasis during peer educator training on helping young people (aged 13 and 19 years) develop the necessary skills to conduct different learning techniques. These are meant to be dynamic interactive educational techniques such as: role-playing, group discussions, quizzes, etc. using a non-judgmental approach. Participants are encouraged (and supervised) to act as information disseminators and behavioural change agents.

The core areas of training include knowledge (e.g., identifying family planning clinics, STI clinics, health centres, and pharmacies as places to get condoms), attitudes (e.g., expressing a willingness to interact in everyday situations with people living with HIV and AIDS), and skills (e.g., demonstrating the ability to tell others how HIV is transmitted and prevented).

An interactive online forum was set up to act as a place where young Together We Can participants can exchange experiences, discuss issues, continue friendships, and engage in moderated sessions. The use of the internet here is a tool for - it is hoped - reducing the numbers of young people being infected with HIV while promoting care and support to those who have been infected and affected.

HIV/AIDS, Children, Youth.

The following statistics are drawn from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) in the report titled "2008 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic":

Caribbean:

• An estimated 230,000 [210,000-270,000] people were living with HIV in the Caribbean in 2007 (about three-quarters of them in the Dominican Republic and Haiti).
• An estimated 20,000 [16,000-25,000] people were newly infected with HIV in this region.
• Some 14,000 [11,000-16,000] people died of AIDS in 2007.

Latin America:

• There were an estimated 140,000 [88,000-190,000] new HIV infections in this region in 2007.
• The number of people living with HIV in this region is approximately 1.7 million [1.5 million-2.1 million].
• An estimated 63,000 [49,000-98,000] people died of AIDS in 2007.

In 2004, a consultancy firm (Itaca Assesorias) was hired to develop a monitoring and evaluation Together We Can toolkit to be implemented in all National Societies in the Caribbean and Central America in 2005. This toolkit is designed to measure impact in Together We Can programmes in the region.

In Suriname, where the programme was launched in 2007, by the end of that year approximately 4,000 young people were reached, most of whom are between the ages of 15 and 25 years. Sahida Leerdam (age 21), a public administration student in Suriname who participates in Together We Can, says, "We use the same vocabulary as our peers. When trainers and trainees use the same language, you get this relaxed atmosphere where everybody feels on the same level....In my circle of friends and fellow students, I notice that HIV/STI only becomes a topic when they are somehow involved in working for an organization like Red Cross, or another voluntary job. That's why I think the educational materials we produce should be made in such a way that they have a strong impact. Is a brochure colourful, does it lead to action? I like the infomercials the region shows on television, as a young woman I feel connected, right then and there. A line like: 'Make your next date special. Get tested.' I love it!..."