Dear all—

Yesterday participants from the 3rd TB/HIV Community Workshop along with members of met with Dr. Nils Billo, Executive Director, and Wendy Atkinson, Communications Director, of the International Union Against TB and Lung Diseases (IUATLD). The meeting was facilitated by Olayide Akanni from Journalists Against AIDS, Nigeria, and Kasem Kolnary, Cambodia HIV/AIDS Education Project (CHEC). The participants introduced themselves and their organizations.

The participants requested the following:

• Continued free registration for workshop participants in the Union World Congress on Lung Health;
• Integration of the Workshop into the formal programme of the Union conference;
• Participation of representatives in the planning and implementation of the Union conference including input into the programme and identification of topics and speakers relevant to affected communities
• Integration of community representatives into the Union's upcoming regional meetings

Dr. Billo explained that the Union is not a pharmaceutically-funded organization and that the annual Union conference runs a deficit, but welcomed the participants to offer representatives to work on the conference planning process starting immediately, and announced that registration to the conference for workshop participants next year will continue to be waived.

The participants' coordinating group will discuss the issue of participation in Union conference planning activities and will submit the names of one or two key people to serve as focal points for this work.

Thanks to all for a very successful meeting and let's get ready for the work ahead.

Cheers,

—Mark