International
AIDS Society conference closes with pledge

The fourth annual International AIDS Society conference closed Wednesday with a pledge to improve treatment options for children infected with the virus and to have a renewed vigor to continue the fight against the pandemic.

"We must do more to protect our future, finding better ways to treat the youngest among us and pursuing integrated prevention strategies grounded in behavior change and biomedical science," said IAS president Pedro Cahn in a press release.

The conference, held in Sydney, drew over 5,000 scientists, clinicians, politicians, and activists from 133 different nations. Organizers opened the event with a declaration that 10% of all resources allotted to the fight against HIV/AIDS should be dedicated to research. By Wednesday, 1,550 delegates signed the "Sydney Declaration" showing strong support for continued scientific advances.

"HIV presents one of the greatest and most complex scientific challenges of our time," said Prof. David Cooper, IAS 2007 local cochair and faculty member at the University of New South Wales, in the press release. "Confronting this challenge will require sustained political will and increased resources dedicated to AIDS research." (The Advocate)