Roundup: Must-Read Conversations and Resources from the Last Week 

AVAC shared a series on the impact of the past year on five key areas of global health and development: the erosion of US foreign aid; the assault on vaccine science and policy; the dismantling of the research enterprise; the cruel irony of funding cuts in the context of the breakthrough technology of long-acting lenacapavir for PrEP; and the profound shifts underway in global health architecture. These original articles by AVAC show how the field navigated a year defined by disruption and resilience—and how policy decisions reverberate through science, programs, and communities. 

Last week, hundreds joined AVAC for a conversation about The People’s Research Agenda for Speed, Scale and Equity, with Jeanne Marrazzo, former NIAID Director, CEO of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), and AVAC Board member. Watch the recording to hear what it will take to deliver science that meets the moment and how advocates can use the People’s Research Agenda, which offers a people-led framework that tracks the science, highlights where investments align with community priorities and identifies critical gaps to ensure the prevention pipeline meets the needs of diverse populations in a reimagined HIV response. 

One year ago, Donald Trump was inaugurated as president of the United States and, overnight, US policies on HIV funding for countries like South Africa changed. Bhekisisa’s Mia Malan speaks with AVAC Executive Director Mitchell Warren to find out how international aid has changed. 

Devex’s in-depth retrospective chronicles how legal action became a critical line of defense against the dismantling of lifesaving programs by the US administration — including the ongoing cases by AVAC, the Global Health Council and partners challenging the foreign aid freeze. The piece highlights where we are with the case and why the outcome still matters. 

Late on Friday, the US Administration dangerously expanded the Global Gag Rule, which further restricts the ability of organizations to engage in advocacy, education programs, discrimination protections, and legal reform, anywhere in the world, in any program, with anyone’s funding.