Palm trees, white sandy beaches and HIV/AIDS conferences

p(standfirst). Cairns, in north Queensland, will play host to two major Australian HIV conferences in October this year.

The 15th Australasian Society for HIV Medicine (ASHM) Conference will take place at the Cairns Convention Centre from 22–25 October, and the biannual NAPWA Conference will follow at the Cairns Hilton from 27–29 October.

The theme of the ASHM conference is “Global Crisis — Local Action,” and the conference is expected to have a strong focus on the regional response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the role Australia takes in supporting its neighbours.

The annual ASHM Conference is the major forum for HIV medical research in Australia, and will include sessions on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, social research, international and regional issues, as well as medical developments.

Further details about the ASHM conference can be obtained from www.ashm.org.au.

The 9th National Conference of People Living With HIV/AIDS will be held immediately after the ASHM Conference, with the theme “The Art of Living.”

As reported in the June-July edition of PL, the NAPWA Conference, held every two years, is the major gathering of positive people in Australia and focuses heavily on community building and activism as well as providing medical information in an accessible workshop format.

This year for the first time, Positive Living is offering readers the chance to win a special scholarship to the NAPWA conference. Just complete and send in the form below to go into the draw for a return airfare to Cairns, accommodation and conference registration. You can find out more about the conference, and enter the draw online at www.napwa.org.au.

In October, Positive Living will be conducting a survey of our readers to determine how we’re doing in delivering the news and information you need. Entrants to this competition will receive a copy of the survey questionnaire in the mail.

The competition closes on Friday 12 September 2003.