The conference will see Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD) practitioners, government officials, community leaders, researchers, policymakers, and other stakeholders from over 50 countries deliberating on challenges and solutions for NTD elimination.
The theme for the 2025 NNN Annual Conference is ‘Sustainable Innovations for Impact – Transforming the Fight Against NTDs’.
The six sub-themes include ‘Community-Driven Innovations-Leveraging local knowledge to co-create solutions.’
Alok Kumar Roy (Aspire and UPLIFT Project Manager) at Lepra Society will co-present with Maria del Mar Marais (Senior Programme Manager) findings from the UPLIFT study as part of the workshop titled ‘From the Ground Up: Models and Approaches for Integration of Community Perspectives and Groups’. The presentation will be livestreamed and available for NNN online attendees to watch and participate.
Maria del Mar Marais will also collaborate with colleagues from the Brighton Sussex Medical School and TLM India on an interactive workshop to explore ways of integrating community voices - especially those impacted by stigmatising skin NTDs - into national strategies and policy. The workshop will focus on sustainability, community ownership, and scalability, contributing to a harmonised model for community-based groups, while co-creating visual maps and actionable frameworks for inclusion.
The keynote address will be delivered by Beatriz Miranda, UN Special Rapporteur on discrimination against persons with leprosy.
UPLIFT is run in partnership with Effect Hope and German Leprosy & TB Relief Association (GLRA).
