Community Connect is an inclusive, vibrant space at The Union World Conference on Lung Health 2023 where the voice of the affected TB and lung health community echoes to the world. Representatives of the affected community and civil society come together to share experiences, address challenges and develop solutions on issues surrounding lung health.
This year, Community Connect comprises of thought-provoking discussions from civil society and affected communities, panel discussions, sessions, campaigns and even an exhibition area within Community Connect.
Submissions for Community Connect has been extended until 12 June.
Please note: If you are a civil society or affected communities organisation/institution and would like to take on an important role in Community Connect, you have the opportunity to apply as a Track Lead until 15 May. Details here
Programme
This year’s programme will comprise of sessions on the following tracks:
1
Community rights, gender and stigma
This track focuses on innovative civil society and community-based/led interventions that address barriers to accessing quality TB services, lung health and tobacco cessation services with respect to human-rights and gender equity.
2
Community engagement in pandemic preparedness and response: Lessons learnt from COVID-19 and beyond
This track focuses on insights, experiences and best practices in community engagement to fight COVID-19 and how these can be translated to improve the TB response, address lung health issues and encourage submissions of community-led success stories that ensured continued TB service delivery during COVID-19.
3
Political contexts for community-led advocacy and accountability
This track focuses on strategic policy implementation, advocacy initiatives, financial commitments, TB financing and accountability frameworks required to ensure achieving the goal to end TB by 2030. Communities can share an analysis of national-level policies that have advanced or impeded progress with special contextual focus on the 2023 UN HLM on TB and community-led advocacy programs to implement tobacco control policy.
4
Driving equitable access to new tools and technologies
This track will focus on scientific advancements and digital innovations coupled with community empowerment. It addresses barriers e.g., social and structural determinants of health, including but not limited to poverty, discrimination, and unequal distribution of healthcare resources; that hinder adoption and implementation of new technologies for lung health, particularly with respect to lung health and NCDs.
Session Guidelines
15-18 November 2023
Community Connect will take place during core programme hours; dates and time of presentation are allocated by the Union Community Advisory Panel (UCAP) to accommodate the complexity of the programme and minimise the overlap of tracks.
Duration: 45 Minutes
This year’s conference will be in-person. Technical specifications will be provided at a later stage to help speakers and chairs prepare. Please check the chairs and speakers’ section for more information.
(If there is a preference for a different format – such as panel discussions or other format of presentation), we are happy to accommodate your request upon informing the organisers early on after your session is accepted. If there is a delay in informing us, we may not be able to accommodate your request. Note that sessions cannot be considered if they are presented completely online. Even the duration of the session can be increased upon request)
Please select the most appropriate track. Note this is to assist with programme planning. Track choice has no impact on the selection process. The list of tracks is available here.
Community Connect sessions should have one to two individuals serving as chair/co-chairs. Chair/co-chairs play the role of communicating with speakers and moderating the session. The chair/ co-chairs should attend the conference in-person.
The co-ordinator will be the point of contact and is responsible for providing the necessary information as requested to the Community Connect team. Chairs of the sessions can act as coordinators.
Minimum of two and maximum of five speakers.
Brief outline of your session topic (maximum 500 words). We also invite you to submit sessions in Spanish, Russian and French if that is your preferred language. Please note, however, that English translation will not be available.
A biography of no more than 100 words must be submitted for each proposed speaker and chair. The biography will be considered for publication in the online programme.
Online submission are open 20 April – 12 June. Sessions are editable until then. No further changes are accepted after that deadline.
Community Connect sessions are peer reviewed by experts from the UCAP team and the Track Leads based on the following review criteria.
TOPICS TO BE SCORED | EXPECTED | SCORING |
Relevance | The research question is relevant. The study/intervention addresses current, relevant scientific or public health issues; the study/intervention findings are important and will likely contribute to new knowledge, practice, policies, or programmes. | 0 = not described/irrelevant 1 = minimal relevance 2 = somewhat relevant 3 = relevant 4 = very relevant 5 = extremely relevant (Weight = 1.0 |
Methods /intervention or response | The study design/intervention is appropriate, given the objectives/challenges. | 0 = not described 1 = very poor 2 = poor 3 = average 4 = above average 5 = excellent (Weight = 1.0) |
Results/impact | Results/Impact are in line with the analysis methodology and objectives; scope, generalisability, feasibility, and robustness of findings are satisfactory. | 0 = not described 1 = very poor 2 = poor 3 = average 4 = above average 5 = excellent (Weight = 1.0) |
Clarity of the message | The study’s objectives/challenges or working hypotheses are clearly stated. The text is concise and objective, the conclusions are clear and congruent with the results and the final overall message is clear. | 0 = Unable to understand abstract/no conclusions 1 = very poor (i.e. Abstract is confusing. Conclusions not supported by results) 2 = poor 3 = average 4 = above average 5 = excellent (i.e., Abstract exceptionally well written. Conclusions congruent with results) (Weight = 0.5) |
Originality | The study, methodology/implementation, context and/or findings are new or novel. | 0 = not described 1 = very poor 2 = poor 3 = average 4 = above average 5 = extremely novel (Weight = 0.5) |
Stigmatising language | Please follow the guidelines laid out in the Stop TB Partnership’s publication,Words Matter Language Guides. Key stigmatising words/phrases will be penalised in the review process. | -1 = yes 0 = no (Weight = 1) |
Maximum Marks: 20
The Union is committed to promoting people-centred language in all conference abstracts and presentations. When drafting your submissions, please follow the guidelines laid out in the Stop TB Partnership’s publication, Words Matter Language Guide
Please note, proposals using stigmatising language will be penalised in the review process.
Please make sure you enter the active email address of the chairs and speakers as all communication will be made to these corresponding email addresses.
IMPORTANT: Each chair and speaker must provide one single email address for identification purposes in our submission, registration and all our platforms. Otherwise, the system will not recognise the user.
Notification about the status of the submission will be emailed to the submitter by mid-July.
All the speakers and chairs attending in-person have to be registered for The Union World Conference on Lung Health 2023.
If selected, the chairs and speakers agree to the attached information relating to the release, recording and publication of their presentation and session.
If you wish to contact the Community Connect team, please email us at communityconnect@theunion.org
We wish you the very best with your submissions.
Meanwhile, if your civil society or affected communities organisation/institution would like to take on a leading role in Community Connect as one of our Track Leads, we are inviting applications until 15 May.
Please read the guidelines below.
Track Lead Guidelines
If your organisation/institution is selected as Track Lead, the following roles would be played by them:
- Using your organisation’s networks and resources to increase session applications for the respective track.
- Promote active participation among its members in the Community Connect in-person.
- Reviewing sessions in collaboration with the Union Community Advisory Panel (UCAP) to select sessions to be featured in the conference broadcast programme.
- Promoting Community Connect 2023 through your organisation’s social media channels by sharing The Union’s Community Connect social media posts on your social media platforms.
- You are also eligible to get free access to a booth dedicated to your organisation/institution in the Community Connect space of the conference. Additional details on the booth shall be shared after confirmation of your organisation/institution as Track Lead.
The coordinator is the representative of the organisation/institution and will be the point of contact. The co-ordinator will be responsible for using their organisation/institution support and resources to collect session applications for the respective track, review them and select relevant sessions to be featured in the conference broadcast programme.
A short description of the interest and expertise of the organisation/institution applying to lead the chosen track and examples of potential sessions you would like to include (up to 500 words). This could include previous experiences in running similar activities at other conferences and examples of events/panels that you’ve organised that are relevant to the theme of the track.
Online submission will be open from 20 April to 15 May
Community Connect Track lead applications would be reviewed by experts from the Union Community Advisory Panel (UCAP) and assessed based on expertise of the organisation/institution.
The Union is committed to promoting people-centred language in all conference abstracts and presentations. When drafting your submissions, please follow the guidelines laid out in the Stop TB Partnership’s publication, Words Matter Language Guide
Please note, proposals using stigmatising language will be penalised in the review process.
Notification about the status of the application will be emailed to the coordinator/submitter by the end of May.
If you wish to contact the Community Connect team, please email us at communityconnect@theunion.org
Contact Us
If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at communityconnect@theunion.org