Community Connect is a valuable addition and important highlight of The Union World Conference of Lung Health 2022. Representatives of the affected community and civil society come together to share experiences and develop solutions on issues surrounding lung health. Community Connect is an open-access platform where the voice of the affected community is echoed to the world.
Programme
This year’s programme will comprise of sessions on the following tracks:
1
Community rights, gender and stigma
This track prioritises the strengthening of community TB interventions that overcome barriers to accessing quality TB services ensuring human rights and gender equity, increasing community and civil society engagement and improving the impact of national TB programs at all levels.
2
COVID-19 – Lessons learnt to strengthen the TB response
This track will evaluate key strategies of the COVID-19 response that can be leveraged to reach all people with TB by closing the gaps on TB diagnosis, treatment and prevention.
3
Political environments for community-led advocacy and accountability
This track focuses on strategic policy implementation, advocacy initiatives, financial commitments and accountability frameworks required to ensure we reach our goal to end TB by 2030. Communities will share an analysis of national-level policies that have advanced or impeded progress towards achieving UNHLM TB targets.
4
Driving innovation and equitable access to new tools
This track will focus on scientific advancements coupled with community empowerment and addressing access barriers that play a key role in implementing new technologies for lung health, particularly with respect to TB, COVID-19, Tobacco Control and NCDs.
Participation
Submissions for Community Connect sessions and creative sessions are now closed.
Any member of the community or civil society organisation can take part in Community Connect.
For more information regarding guidelines for submissions please see below:
Session Guidelines
8-11 November 2022
Community Connect sessions will take place virtually through the conference platform during core programme hours.
Duration: 45 Minutes
Community Connect sessions will include a live introduction by the chairs, followed by pre-recorded presentations by the speakers and a live Q&A session.
(The above format is decided by the Union Community Advisory Panel (UCAP). If there is a preference for a different format for accepted sessions, we are happy to accommodate your request upon informing the organisers early on. If there is a delay in informing us, we may not be able to accommodate your request.)
Community Connect sessions should have one to two individuals serving as chairs. Chairs play the role of communicating with speakers, submitting the session online, liaising with the Community Connect team about changes, introducing the session and moderating the Q&A at the close of the session.
The co-ordinator will be the point of contact and is responsible to provide the necessary information as requested (e.g. for recordings). Chairs of the sessions can act as coordinators.
Minimum of one and maximum of eight 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 will open from 16 May to 8 July 2022.
Community members and organisations who wish to submit a session for Community Connect but are new to abstract writing and submission, are welcome to apply for mentorship where there will be assistance available to guide you through this process. For assistance on abstract writing reach out to us at communityconnect@theunion.org
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) |
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 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 conference virtual platforms. Otherwise the system will not recognise the user.
Notification about the status of the submission will be emailed to the session chairs and submitter by the mid of August.
The Union World Conference for Lung Health 2022 is pleased to offer open access for the Community Connect programme. However, please note that attendance to the main programme of the conference and TBScience is not open to all. A registration fee will be applicable is you wish to attend the main programme and TBScience.
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
Creative Session Guidelines
In addition to content-driven sessions, we offer opportunities in our programme where communities affected by lung disease (TB/COVID 19/Asthma and others) can creatively express themselves and share their personal experiences.
8-11 November 2022
Community Connect sessions take place virtually through the conference platform during programme hours. Dates of presentation will be allocated by the Community Connect team.
10 minutes (maximum)
Any member of the community can participate in creative sessions except organisations affiliated with or gaining financial interest from the tobacco-industry or tobacco corporate affiliates.
We invite you to share creative expressions/videos/testimonials of your journey in the form of dance, film, songs or short documentaries. Please ensure you meet the following criteria:
- All submissions have a maximum duration of 10 minutes.
- Submissions are preferably pre-recorded to refrain from technical issues. If exceptions are required, please contact communityconnect@theunion.org
Interested participants can send us the completed application of your submission to participate in the creative session space at communityconnect@theunion.org by 15 August 2022 (23:59 CEST).
We especially 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 and inserting English subtitles within your creative content would be strongly recommended.
We have limited slots available. If we have more applications than slots in the programme, the Union Community Advisory Panel (UCAP) will review the submissions and the top-ranking submissions will be prioritised in the programme.
The Union is committed to promoting people-centered language in all conference submissions. When drafting your submission, The Union requests that you follow the guidelines laid out in the Stop TB Partnership’s publication, Words Matter Language Guide
Please note, proposals using stigmatising language will not be considered for display in the conference.
Notification about the status of the submission will be emailed to the submitter in September.
If you wish to contact the community connect team, please email us at communityconnect@theunion.org
Creative Sessions
In addition to content-driven sessions we offer opportunities in our programme for creative content where communities affected by lung disease (TB/COVID 19/Asthma and others) can share their experiences through music, poems, dance or other creative art forms. Submissions for creative sessions will open on 16 May.
Registration
Community Connect is open to all but please ensure that you complete a simple registration form to be able to attend the sessions. To be part of Community Connect, please register here. If you would like to attend other sessions beyond Community Connect, please register for The Union World Conference on Lung Health 2022.Contact Us
If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at communityconnect@theunion.org