Highlights from the 2009 U.S. Conference on AIDS

By Miguel Gomez, Jennie Anderson, Josie Halpern-Finnerty, and Michelle Samplin-Salgado

We just got back from the United States Conference on AIDS (USCA) , sponsored by the National Minority AIDS Council (NMAC) , and are feeling very energized. There were several themes and key messages that we took away from the conference. The opening plenary, “Transgender People and HIV: Our Time Has Come!” emphasized the importance of better understanding our audiences, specifically the transgender community. We also continued to hear that we need to improve our capacity and reach. And this year there was a new emerging theme - that of new media’s role in the response to HIV. Case in point - at last year’s USCA in Florida, we had seven people attend our new media workshops. This year we had over 150 participants!

JoAnne Keatley , UCSF Center of Excellence for Transgender HIV Prevention delivers the opening plenary remarks at USCA

New Media Institutes, Usability Testing, A Photo Booth, and More: Preview of AIDS.gov's Activities at the U.S. Conference on AIDS

By Jennie Anderson

What do new media institutes, usability, and a BIG RED photo booth have in common?

They are some of activities we're planning for later this month at the U.S. Conference on AIDS (USCA) . This annual conference, hosted by the National Minority AIDS Council (NMAC) , will take place October 29-31st in San Francisco and will bring together public health experts, people living with HIV, government employees, activists, and community leaders from across the country (and a few from around the world!). We're so grateful to the organizers of USCA — they've put together a packed agenda for the conference, and we look forward to taking part.

Highlights (and a Wordle) from Health 2.0

By Jennie Anderson

I've just returned from this year's Health 2.0 conference feeling energized by all of the new ways technology can help us to communicate important health information. While Health 2.0 is not HIV-specific, it brings together critical information and resources for us. I was amazed to see that the tools and technology, along with the opportunities and challenges have grown so quickly since last year's conference.

New Media Extends Reach of IAS 2009 Conference

By Regina Aragón and Scott Sanders, Consultants, IAS Communications

Two days before the opening of the 5th International AIDS Society (IAS) Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention (IAS 2009) the number of fans on the conference Facebook fan page jumped by almost 20% within a 24-hour period. Momentum was building and we began to fully recognize the ability of new media to expand the conference's reach.

Over 5,800 people attended the biennial conference in Cape Town, South Africa from July 19-22, and with the introduction of new media tools, many more were able to follow the proceedings from afar. By the end of the conference we had 1,145 Facebook fans, 227 followers on Twitter (many with their own, much larger followings), and 2,400 visitors to the IAS 2009 Live blog .

Experimenting in the Social Media Lab at the CDC HIV Prevention Conference

By Josie Halpern-Finnerty

Last week we shared updates from the 2009 CDC HIV Prevention Conference. While at the conference, we had the opportunity to co-host a Social Media Lab with our CDC colleagues. The Lab was open throughout the conference, and participants were invited to come, sit down in front of a computer, and talk one-on-one or in small groups about using social media in response to HIV. Over 125 conference participants from community-based organizations, government agencies, national policy organizations, and academic research institutions sought out the Lab.