This project was developed in the Yukon to build on the results from a pan-Northern study to understand the prevalence of HPV. The 18 month awareness and education project is funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada and is being developed and implemented in partnership with Yukon’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Yukon Government and AICBR. Guided by a Steering Committee that includes the Council of Yukon First Nations, several Yukon First Nation communities and a number of health practitioners, the project aims to share information about HPV with all Yukon residents.

More specifically, the objectives of this project are:

• Assisting Yukon communities to develop ways to decrease HPV risk behaviors through increasing awareness and education;
• Informing all Yukon residents about general results from the International Polar Year-HPV Yukon project;
• Promoting education about existing Yukon Government-sponsored screening and immunization programs.

The roles of the HPV Steering Committee include:

• Developing sustainable capacity throughout the Yukon to share Yukon health results and knowledge;
• Guiding the development and implementation of education and awareness activities;
• Developing a brief survey to determine if the education activities increased awareness about HPV;
• Promoting education about existing screening and vaccination programs in Yukon through new and existing initiatives.