How to Find and Follow AVAC and Partners at HIV R4P

January 21, 2021
 
Dear Advocates, 
 
It’s time to plan for your participation at the 2021 HIV Research for Prevention Conference (R4P) Virtual, the only global conference focused exclusively on biomedical HIV prevention. The conference takes place over the course of four days, January 27-28 and February 3-4, and you can register here. Even if you’re not registered for the conference, there are ways to participate and follow the proceedings in real-time. Check out the Program at a Glance, and read on for how to join the discussions at the Advocates’ Corner and follow the conference using AVAC’s resources for real-time coverage. 
 

• Advocates’ Pre-Conference
• Advocates’ Corner
• Real-Time Conference Coverage
• Sessions with AVAC and Partners
• Navigating R4P Virtual

Advocates' Pre-Conference
The Advocates' Pre-Conference, Community, Comrades and Connection, takes place the day before the conference begins, on January 26, 9-10:30am ET (click here to check the time in your region). This 90-minute session will help advocates prepare for the conference, with strategies for engaging with each other and mobilizing around timely issues. All interested HIVR4P registrants are welcome to join—from first timers to “old” timers. Register here.  
 
Advocates’ Corner
Consider adding regular check-ins at the Advocates’ Corner to your R4P schedule. In the Corner, all are welcome in the exchange of ideas and the chance to network, build solidarity, relax and socialize—you do not need to be registered for the conference to participate in the Corner. The Corner features a series of pop-up conversations and learning labs designed to help advocates and civil society members dive deeper into the research presented during the conference. The corner will also offer “hallway huddles” with daily debriefs to unpack the news of the day, and breakout rooms to interact with colleagues. Check out the full schedule here. 
 
Real-Time Conference Coverage
Look for conference round-ups via AVAC’s Advocates’ Network, follow AVAC on Twitter on @HIVpxresearch and the full conference via #HIVR4P. And finally we love aidsmap’s R4P news coverage—follow along for breaking news from the conference. 

Sessions with AVAC and Partners
This collection of satellites, symposia and oral abstract sessions includes AVAC team members and partners confronting key issues on the frontier of HIV prevention science in 2021. 
 
Wednesday, January 27

• Ethical considerations in HIV prevention trials: New guidance from WHO and UNAIDS 
  12:15–13:45 (UTC) 7:15–8:45 am (ET) 
• Late breaking trials at R4P, including results from HPTN 084 and the Antibody Mediated Prevention Trials
  15:00–16:00 (UTC) 10:00–11:00 am (ET)  

Thursday, January 28

• Is perfect use the enemy of effective use?: Redefining success in the era of ARV-based prevention 
  12:15–13:45 (UTC) 7:15–8:45 am (ET) 
• Optimizing the delivery of HIV prevention services for maximum impact and sustainability: The Blantyre Prevention Strategy 
  12:15–13:45 (UTC) 7:15–8:45 am (ET) 
• PrEP is here, considerations to achieve continued use, with the latest data from our Global PrEP Tracker
  17:30–18:30 (UTC) 12:30–1:30 pm (ET) 
• Mapping policy: Accelerating progress locally, nationally and globally, including presentations on our Advocates’ Trial Design Academy and the Biomedical Prevention Implementation Collaborative (BioPIC) 
  17:30–18:30 (UTC) 12:30–1:30 pm (ET) 
• The Future of PrEP: Developing its Potential from Research to Implementation, click here to see the agenda. 
  18:45–20:15 (UTC) 1:45–3:45 pm (ET) 

Wednesday, February 3

• Layer, Compare, Combine: Emerging Concepts and Key Considerations for Next-Generation Trial Design
  12:15–13:45 (UTC) 7:15–8:45 am (ET) 
• Beginning with the end in mind: What we (think we) know about prevention user preferences during It's about people: Prevention in the real-world plenary session
  14:00 - 14:45 (UTC) 9am–9:45am 
• Community engagement: Enabling responsive, inclusive, accountable research
  17:30–18:30 (UTC) 12:30–1:30 pm (ET) 
• Vaccines: What HIV R&D did for COVID-19
  18:45–20:15 (UTC) 1:45–3:45 pm (ET) 
• Advancing Novel HIV Prevention Strategies, Together: A Scientific and Community Exchange
  18:45–20:15 (UTC) 1:45–3:45 pm (ET) 

Thursday, February 4

• Bringing PrEP to the people: Democratizing access to PrEP through differentiated delivery before, during and after COVID-19
  12:15–13:45 (UTC) 7:15–8:45 am (ET) 

 
Many of the team and partners are also representing AVAC, CASPR and the Prevention Market Manager in posters and publications—click here and scroll to the last page for a full list.

Navigating R4P 
To make the most of the sessions above, AVAC has a host of resources for you: 

• Use AVAC’s conference Roadmap to navigate the conference.
• Visit the full R4P program here.
• Bookmark AVAC’s dedicated R4P page for a round-up of all these resources.

 
See you in the virtual hallways!
 
Best, 
AVAC