Registration Opens for 17th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2008) in Mexico City, August 3-8, 2008

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The 17th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2008), sponsored by the International AIDS Society (IAS) will take place this summer in Mexico City, on August 3-6. This larger international conference is held every other year, focusing on all aspects of the global HIV/AIDS epidemic. It alternates with the IAS Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment, and Prevention, which focuses more heavily of medical and scientific aspects of HIV/AIDS.

Registration for AIDS 2008 is now open. Late-breaker abstract submissions will be accepted between May 20 and June 16, 2008.

HIV and Hepatitis.com will provide comprehensive coverage of the conference, including several CME/CE programs. The following information is from the conference organizers. More can be found on the conference web site at www.aids2008.org.

AIDS 2008 Plenary Speakers Announced

AIDS 2008 organizers have announced the participation of 17 plenary speakers, including leading HIV scientists, community leaders, practitioners, and policy experts from across the globe. A full list of confirmed speakers and topics is available.

• Read the official speakers announcement here.

• A new fact sheet about the conference is available here.

About the Conference

AIDS 2008 will provide many opportunities for the presentation of important new scientific research and for productive, structured dialogue on the major challenges facing the global response to HIV/AIDS.

Conference organizers are developing a wide variety of session types that meet the needs of various participants and support collective efforts to expand delivery of HIV prevention and treatment to communities worldwide. Central to many of these sessions will be the transfer of knowledge and sharing of best practices.

In addition to the conference sessions, there are a number of activities, including satellite meetings, exhibitions, the Global Village, and the Cultural Programme, that are integral to delegates’ experience at the conference.

The International AIDS Society is pleased to announce that AIDS 2008 will offer Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits to those conference participants who are seeking them. This service is being provided through the European Union of Medical Specialists-European Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (UEMS-EACCME). The UEMS, through an agreement with the American Medical Association (AMA), guarantees a transfer of CME credits for participants working and practicing in the United States.

The EACCME will review our conference program to determine the number of CME credits that AIDS 2008 will be eligible for. As in accordance with their statutes, the UEMS-EACCME will guarantee that all accredited CME activities at AIDS 2008 are of a high educational standard and that they are free of all commercial or individual forms of bias. The number of CME credits awarded to AIDS 2008 will be announced on the event website prior to the start of the conference.

AIDS 2008 Vision and Objectives

Vision for AIDS 2008

• A conference that promotes scientific excellence and inquiry, encourages individual and collective action and dialogue, and fosters accountability.

Conference Objectives

AIDS 2008 will

1.   Provide a forum in which key scientific and practice-based research, best practice, lessons learned and gaps in knowledge are addressed

2.   Present strong evidence to influence leaders, including key policy makers and donors, to increase their commitment to HIV and AIDS prevention, care and treatment, undertake responsible action and be more accountable.

3.   Increase understanding of the contribution made by the HIV global response to broader social, economic and health issues.

4.   Maximize opportunities for the participation in conference and programme planning of those engaged in evidence-based responses – scientists, PLWHA, members of marginalized communities especially those most vulnerable to HIV, including women, girls, and young people.

5.   Promote strategies that will reduce stigmatization and discrimination of PLWHAs and those working professionally across the response to HIV and AIDS.

6.   Reach a wider audience through the webcasting of conference proceedings to regional sub-conferences/meetings and through the availability of conference sessions online.

7.   Improve public awareness of the continued impact of and global response to HIV and AIDS through enhanced media coverage.

Conference Context

In order for the benefit and impact of the International AIDS Conference to be maximized, it is becoming increasingly evident that the conference must seek to engage with and link people in an ongoing way, rather than focus exclusively on five days of meetings.

To this end, AIDS 2008 will be the premier international HIV and AIDS forum in which:

• key research findings, lessons learned, and gaps in knowledge, and best practice are acknowledged and shared;

• successes and shortfalls in the overall response to HIV and AIDS are highlighted;

• priorities for future action are identified;

• ongoing, productive and forthright dialogue is nurtured before, during and after the conference, both onsite and virtually though networking, webcasting and other strategies

• a new or changed leadership are called on to share their priorities and plans.

AIDS 2008 will also mark the midpoint of the 2010 Global Target on Universal Access for HIV/AIDS treatment, prevention, care and support. This will shape the development of the AIDS 2008 programme and messaging.

Key issues the AIDS 2008 Programme (sessions and activities) will explore/address include:

• Health systems strengthening, service models, integration with TB, SRH, coinfections, maternal health, long-term care, mental health, palliative care, drug resistance, harm reduction, primary health care, hepatitis C, etc.

• Specific regional issues e.g. stigma; setting regional policy agendas; using what is gained and expanding to other regions (south-south)

• Synergy of treatment and prevention; treatment as a tool for prevention (reducing viral load and infectivity)

• Respect and promotion of human rights and gender equality as a framework for all aspects of the response.

The Conference Coordinating Committee and the three Programme Committees, reflecting the core components of the Conference Programme (science, community and leadership) will work collaboratively to bring to reality the AIDS 2008 vision and objectives.

Expanded Online Access

Reflecting a commitment to make AIDS 2008 as accessible to as many people as possible, the conference organizers are working with their partners to make a number of conference sessions, along with related materials, available online. Details will be posted on this website at a later date.

3/28/08

Source
AIDS 2008 (17th International AIDS Conference). August 3-8, 2008, Mexico City, Mexico. Sponsored by the International AIDS Society.