The fight against HIV began with individual citizens around the world standing together to demand action against the greatest public health threat of our time. This alliance of civil society sparked a revolution and more than three decades into the AIDS epidemic, it remains our greatest strength.

What do we mean when we say “civil society”? We mean the people who are working on the frontlines of the HIV response. They are the counsellors who go door to door helping people understand how their HIV treatment works. They are the teachers who spend nights and weekends promoting HIV prevention. They are the doctors and nurses who push for better policies against discrimination and stigma. They are the students who promote and protect human rights. They are the activists who, for more than thirty years have saved millions of lives.

But today, the progress we have achieved could quickly unravel and the future of the HIV response is under threat, because of the funding crisis facing civil society. In many settings, groups that are vital to delivering community-based services or ensuring accountability for investments in HIV are under-resourced and overstretched. With over one-million people still dying of AIDS, we cannot lose these services that are so critical to ending AIDS.

Therefore AIDS 2016 is issuing a Call to Action to Support Civil Society, petitioning donors and government leaders to increase financial support for civil society organizations around the globe. Stand with us and add your name to the Call to Action to Support Civil Society today.