The Latest Resources From AVAC

AVAC has new resources and information covering mpox, UN negotiations on a declaration on pandemic preparedness, and highlights from the annual South African AIDS Conference (SAAIDS). In addition, be sure to scroll down for upcoming webinars on HIV and STI conferences and more!

Advocacy in Action: An update on the moving pieces of PPPR
Pandemic prevention, preparedness and response (PPPR) involves numerous initiatives to ensure the world is ready to respond to existing and future pandemics. UN members are in the midst of negotiating the language of a declaration on PPPR, which will commit heads of state and their governments to agreements on global coordination. And similar negotiations are underway on a global Pandemic Accord.

Check out, Our Take: Is the UN Declaration on PPPR and the Pandemic Accord going in the right direction? This blog by AVAC’s Sam Rick explores an analysis, conducted by AVAC and partners, of the current drafts of the Pandemic Accord and the UN Declaration on PPPR—and their implications for equity in global health. For background, see AVAC’s Advocates Guide for PPPR in 2023 and the recording from a recent webinar, The Road to and Beyond High-Level Meeting on UHC and PPR.

SA AIDS
The 11th annual South Africa AIDS Conference took place in June 20-23 in Durban, South Africa. AVAC and CASPR partners hosted a buzzing Research Literacy Networking Zone with a rich schedule of programs—see the full schedule here, and recordings here. We’re also super excited to report the launch of the Young Women’s HIV Prevention Council at SAAIDS—stay tuned for more about this dynamic group of women soon!

Updated PrEP Product Introduction Country Planning Matrix
Check out our updated Product Introduction Country Planning Matrix that tracks the regulatory status of cabotegravir for PrEP and the dapivirine vaginal ring, along with related implementation research, procurement plans, and oral PrEP provision.

ICYMI: Recordings of recent webinars

  • Mpox: Research, prevention and overcoming disparities—PrEP In Black America, PrEP4All, Treatment Action Group and AVAC co-hosted a webinar with an expert panel who explored the latest research, precautions individuals can take to protect themselves, effectiveness of vaccines, and the ongoing fight to address disparities in infection rates and uptake of vaccines, treatments and tests that impact Black communities. It is important for advocates to remain engaged, and for affected communities to be supported in completing their two-dose mpox vaccine regimens. Listen to the webinar and check out the resources.
  • PrEP That Booty: The latest on rectal microbicide research for the back door—The latest webinar from The Choice Agenda explored new research on rectal microbicides and advocacy for non-systemic options. Find slides and related resources here and watch for the recording coming soon.

Upcoming Webinars!
July 18: ClusterF*#k: Molecular HIV Surveillance, Criminalization, and The Real Risks to PLHIV
Register here
August 3: Tales from Two Cities: HIV and STI research highlights from IAS in Brisbane and ISSTDR in Chicago
Register here

The Road to and Beyond High-Level Meetings on UHC and PPR

Thursday, June 22 at 9:00 AM ET

This webinar highlighted key opportunities for community and civil society to engage ahead of and beyond the upcoming high-level meetings on Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response (PPPR). Learning from the high-level meetings on HIV, and reflecting on the recent multi-stakeholders meetings on UHC, TB, and PPR, the webinar highlighted: key moments for civil society and communities to engage, unpack the political declarations’ languages and, holding governments accountable to their commitments.

Watch the recording.

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SA AIDS 2023

June 20, 2023

Taking place in Durban from June 20-23, the theme of the 11th South Africa AIDS Conference (SA AIDS) is “act, connect and end the epidemic”.

Registration and Draft Program
Register for the conference and view the draft program.

Research Literacy Networking Zone
At the conference, AVAC and a number of partners will be hosting the Research Literacy @ Networking Zone. More information available here.

Follow Along From Near and Far
Watch this space and/or sign up for our Advocates’ Network mailing list to stay-up-date on the latest at SA AIDS 2023. AVAC will also be posting from the conference on Twitter. Click here for the official SA AIDS Twitter account.

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Tales from Two Cities: HIV and STI research highlights from Brisbane and Chicago

August 3, 2023 at 9am ET

(Time Converter)

TCA’s invited experts will share their highlights and reflections on the HIV and STI-related science presented at two major global health conferences. These conferences include IAS 2023, taking place in Brisbane, Australia July 23 – 26 and the 2023 STI and HIV World Congress happening in Chicago (United States) from July 24 – July 27.

Speakers include:
Dr. Aniruddha Hazra – University of Chicago
Nyaradzo M Mgodi – University of Zimbabwe
Roger Pebody – NAM, Aidsmap.com
Charlie Peterson – University of Illinois – Chicago

New Issue of PxWire: A look at where we are in HIV prevention

Our new issue of PxWire is here and shares the latest PrEP updates including new data from the PrEP Tracker, the HIV prevention pipeline, the prevention playlist and more! Check out the full issue here.

AVAC Partnership Strategy 2023-2026

This document lays out AVAC’s plan to transition away from traditional power structures when working with partners — from civil society advocates to scientists, policy makers, program implementers, and more. AVAC strives towards a model in which those with lived experience and field expertise have influence and equal voice in the design and delivery of plans and priorities.

Evolving Strategies for an HIV Vaccine: One researcher explains where the field is going and why?

Produced and hosted by Jeanne Baron

With several large HIV vaccine trials in the last few years finding no efficacy, the field is in transition. There are diverse ideas in vaccine research, but there’s no clear concept that’s ready to test in a late-phase trial or move towards product development currently. Researchers are back to testing new ideas in early phase research.

In this episode of our Px Pulse podcast, Evolving Strategies for an HIV Vaccine: One researcher explains where the field is going and why?, Dr. Katy Stephenson explores the implications of recent trial results, the big questions driving next generation vaccine development, and new strategies underway in early phase research. Katy is a doctor, a researcher, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, affiliated with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and part of the Center for Virology and Vaccine Research.

Listen:

Resources:

PrEP (In)equity: Documenting, measuring, and flipping the script towards justice

Tuesday, May 9 at 9:00 AM–10:30AM ET

Disparities in PrEP awareness, access, and uptake are stark in the United States, and play out along lines of race, gender, age, and geography. While we see increases in PrEP uptake overall, these metrics tend to mask the fact that the people who most need PrEP are not to be found in those numbers. As we see new modes of PrEP delivery become available, we are concerned these “shiny new things” will be yet another way to measure disparities and not actually help those who most need it. We must focus on these inequities with laser-like intensity, allocate resources using an equity model, and strive harder for PrEP justice.

Speakers include: Leisha-McKinley Beach, National HIV/AIDS Consultant, Michael Chancley, PrEP4All, and Dr. Patrick Sullivan, Emory

Recording / Slides / Resources

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IAS (International AIDS Society) 2023

The 12th annual conference of the International AIDS Society (IAS) on HIV science takes place July 23–26 in Brisbane, Australia, and virtually. This year’s conference will offer the latest on vaccine and cure science, research updates on broadly neutralizing antibodies, important discussions on trial design in the era of PrEP, the potential of community-led models of care and the importance of integrating services for HIV and sexual and reproductive health (SRH). AVAC and partners will be there! Read on for an overview.

Just ahead of the conference, UNAIDS released their annual state of the epidemic report, The Path that Ends AIDS. The report charts a path that can end AIDS, and documents important progress, but challenges remain. Among them, global resources for HIV are marking another year of decline. With anti-LGTBQIA+ legal actions increasing in the US and in several African countries and reduced resources, efforts to end the epidemic will fail. See AVAC’s new graphic on the issue.

IAS Resources

  • Use AVAC’s Roadmap to find sessions where prevention, pandemic preparedness and the larger issues of global health equity are in the spotlight. You can download it as a sortable spreadsheet or PDF.
  • Follow events in real time, AVAC will offer comments and updates on Twitter, and our friends at NAM/AIDSMAP will be reporting throughout the conference. Join the conversation using the conference hashtag #IAS2023.

Satellites, Sessions and Panels Featuring AVAC and Partners

All times listed are local in Brisbane, Australia. Click for a time zone converter.

Sunday, July 23

Tuesday, July 25

Wednesday, July 26

Poster Presentations

  • No Data No More: A tool to end the exclusion of trans and gender-diverse people in HIV research
  • Raising New Voices in HIV Cure Research: A review of an advocacy-for-cure academy and grant program
  • The Value of Measuring Outcomes of HIV Advocacy: Utilising a novel and participatory approach for advocacy evaluation
  • HIV Prevention Research & Development Investments 2001-2021: Shifting investment priorities fund innovation in a challenging global health landscape
  • Revolution of Transgender Health Programming: The role of transgender activists in Health programming for Malawi

While many will be gathering in Australia for the IAS conference, the 27th International Society for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Research (ISSTDR)is happening in Chicago at the same time – and AVAC will be there, too. Stay tuned for an update later this week for AVAC’s STI Roadmap and dedicated STI conference page. Advocates, implementers and researchers in both fields have much work to do together.

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STI & HIV World Congress (ISSTDR) 2023

The STI & HIV World Congress (also known as ISSTDR) kicks off in Chicago, Illinois, USA and AVAC will be there. This is the first major face-to-face meeting of STI & HIV professionals since 2019 and one of the only spaces the global STI community comes together to promote ongoing STI research efforts and exchange information on current investigations. This is also the first time AVAC is attending ISSTDR in hopes of expanding STI advocacy and community engagement.

STI & HIV World Congress Resources 

Visit STIWatch.org, a new resource for the sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) community to better understand and advocate for STI vaccine and diagnostics research, development and rollout.

STI & HIV World Congress 2023 Roadmap

Check out some AVAC-featured sessions below.

The STI Prevention Pipeline: Where Are We, and What Will It Take to Move Forward Faster?
Monday, July 24 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM in the Cadmium Room
Join us to explore the current development and implementation stages of STI vaccines and diagnostics and identify ways to accelerate research through advocacy.

Symposium: New Vaccine Approaches to STI Prevention STI Vaccine Acceptance and Equity
Tuesday, July 25 2:30 PM to 4:00 PM in Chicago 6
Join AVAC’s Alison Footman to dive into the topic of STI vaccines and equity as new interventions come into reach.

Setting Up a Remote/Home Testing STI Programme: A Practical Toolkit
Thursday, July 25 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM in Sheraton IV/V Room
Join us to explore the power of remote testing to affordably curb STI acquisitions.

Community Happy Hour 
Monday, July 24, 6:00 to 8:00 PM at Lizzie McNeill’s
Join AVAC and partners for a no frills happy hour for the STI community. All are welcome! 

ISSTDR Advocacy Zone 
Monday, July 24 to Thursday, July 27 at the Exhibit Hall
Visit the Advocacy Zone, a space to ask important questions, connect with fellow STI advocates, and begin to chart next steps in advancing STI R&D.