Youth Leadership and Prevention Innovation at AIDS 2026

From AIDS 2026 in Rio de Janeiro, host Ben Plumley talks with International AIDS Society Young Leaders Edmond Soko (Zambia, Grassroots Soccer) and Noah Mancuso (Atlanta, Emory/RTI) about where the HIV epidemic is heading. Edmond describes using soccer-based, play-focused curricula to deliver HIV prevention education and reach rural adolescents who struggle to access services. Noah outlines three posters: a systematic review on barriers and facilitators to injectable PrEP for adolescent girls and young women, an analysis of how US federal funding cuts affect geographic access to PrEP in Atlanta, and a review of 20 years of mobile health interventions showing limited translation into real-world apps. They discuss new prevention innovations like a monthly pill and a weekly prevention pill with earlier access planning, the promise and risks of AI and telehealth for reducing stigma and improving access, shifting funding realities, and ongoing activism and optimism for epidemic control.

00:00 Welcome to AIDS 2026

00:50 Meet the Young Leaders

01:24 Edmond’s Grassroots Soccer Work

03:00 Noah’s Path into HIV Research

04:09 Posters and New Findings

07:12 Soccer as Prevention Strategy

08:30 Conference Vibe and Tensions

10:24 New Prevention Innovations

12:11 Careers and Funding Cut Reality

13:34 Optimism and Activism

17:03 AI and Digital Health Trends

21:46 Telehealth Access and Stigma

25:16 Next Generation Takeaways

27:10 Closing Thanks and Sign Off

AIDS 2026

https://www.iasociety.org/conferences/aids2026

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https://substack.com/@benplumley1

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