Geneva, Switzerland:Stepping up the Pace has been selected as the theme for AIDS 2014, the upcoming 20th International AIDS Conference, to be held in Melbourne, Australia, from 20 – 25 July 2014.
“Stepping up the Pace recognizes that we are at a critical time in the global response to HIV. Recent data show a steady decrease in new HIV infections worldwide and increasing numbers of people on treatment. This, together with substantial gains in cure and vaccine research and new evidence on Treatment as Prevention, is giving us a renewed sense of optimism,” said Professor Sharon Lewin, Local Co-Chair of AIDS 2014, Head of the Department of Infectious Diseases, Alfred Hospital and Monash University and Co-Head of the Centre for Biomedical Research at the Burnet Institute in Melbourne. “We need to capture such optimism and build on it to ensure that HIV remains on top of the global agenda. The future looks promising, but we need to increase investments, collaborative research and political commitment to ultimately reverse the trajectory of the epidemic.”
“The AIDS 2014 theme also reminds us that, despite significant progress, many countries are still struggling to address their HIV epidemic and that Key Affected Populations are consistently being left behind,” commented Professor Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, AIDS 2014 International Chair, President of the International AIDS Society (IAS) and Director of the Regulation of Retroviral Infections Unit at the Institut Pasteur in Paris. “Stepping up the Pace reflects the crucial opportunity that AIDS 2014 will provide for mobilizing stakeholders, joining forces and building on the present momentum necessary to change the course of the epidemic.”
Held every two years, the International AIDS Conference is the largest gathering of professionals working in the field of HIV, including scientists, activists, policy makers and people living with HIV. AIDS 2014 is expected to convene some 14,000 delegates in Melbourne, and will examine the global, regional and national trends of the epidemic, and will study the latest breaking science within the field of HIV.
Conference registration, hotel reservations, and abstract submissions will open on 1 December 2013, more information is available online: www.aids2014.org.