World AIDS Day always makes me pause. It’s a marker in time that invites both memory and direction. This year’s theme, Rethink. Rebuild. Rise., hits me in a personal way.

I have lived with HIV for a long time and saw this epidemic at its worst, when diagnosis felt like a countdown and hope was in short supply. I’ve also lived through the arrival of lifesaving treatment and the steady rebuilding of community, and a future many of us never thought possible. I watched grief turn into action and saw U=U change how we see ourselves and our relationships.

And now, I see something else. I see a world where science is questioned, where human rights are rolled back, and where people living with HIV and other marginalized communities are once again asked to defend our right to exist, to love, and to be included. It reminds me that progress is not inevitable. It must be protected, nourished, and defended.

So this year, when I think about rethink, rebuild, and rise, I bring it down to my own experience first.

Rethink means looking at how I live with HIV today. It means being honest about aging, about burnout, and about how fast the world is shifting around us. It means reconsidering how I care for my health, my spirit, and my place in this work. It means allowing myself to grow instead of relying on the same old routines that got me through the past.

Rebuild means tending to my foundation. It means staying grounded in the values that guide me, dignity, community, curiosity, and compassion. It means strengthening the self-care routines that keep me healthy, staying connected, seeking joy, and speaking up about what matters. It also means rebuilding my energy for the long haul. This epidemic is not over. Neither is the work.

Rise means choosing resilience. Not the inspirational quote kind. The daily kind. The quiet and persistent act of showing up, telling the truth, and standing in community. It means lifting myself and others when the world tries to push us down. It means rising with purpose, not just hope, and believing that dignity is worth fighting for.

This year, I rise by being grounded. By being steady. By remembering how far we’ve come and refusing to accept going backward.

Across Canada, people living with HIV have their own perspectives on this year’s theme. Here are five short reflections that speak to what it means in their lives right now.

As we mark World AIDS Day 2025, we honour the progress made and the challenges we still face. We thank the allies, activists, and communities whose courage brought treatment, dignity, and hope to people living with HIV. Their work has transformed countless lives.

Yet disruptions, funding cuts, and rising barriers now threaten these hard-won gains.

We remember those we lost and the strength they gave us. Today, we reaffirm our commitment to protect progress, restore what’s been disrupted, and transform HIV services so no one is left behind. The work continues, and together we can keep the promise of ending AIDS alive.

When I think of rebuild, I think of the systems of oppression that turned us against each other.

Rebuilding as a community to fight the stigma that we all endure in living with HIV. rethinking on how we approach things on all levels of advocacy, intervention, prevention and accepting creative and innovative ways to move forward in a common goal.

May we all rise together as one in forgiveness, acceptance, strength, and solidarity. May we find solace in each other as we all know what it’s like to feel the isolation of rejection.

I used to hide my HIV status and realised I was helping stigma stay alive. I knew I couldn’t educate anyone if I stayed invisible, so I learned how to share my story in a way that truly connects.

Now my focus isn’t on helping myself — it’s on resilience and giving my audience tools to help themselves. That's when getting HIV truly became meaningful.

Re-think means to challenge stigma and outdated beliefs about HIV. Let’s have these conversations without fear. I believe HIV stigma kills more folks than the virus. I believe all voices are sacred and not one should be forgotten.

To me, that means educating everyone about the science behind the U=U statement. It is impossible for HIV to be transmitted if a person is on their antiretroviral medications and is undetectable. Rebuild to me is that when we don’t want anyone to be left behind and we need to create stronger support systems that include advocating equal access for care and treatment.

Rise represents speaking up for your rights, participating in awareness campaigns and sharing our stories. Let's empower each other. Let's be more engaged in our communities. Together, we can create change. Connection is Key. Together we can thrive. Let’s breathe life into one another.

I still remember the silence that followed my diagnosis in April of 1998 — the world shrinking to fear and uncertainty. Back then, survival was resistance. Today, Rethink. Rebuild. Rise. feels like a map for the life I’ve built since.

I’ve have taken time to Rethink what it means to live with HIV — not as shame, but as strength. I’ve Rebuilt my heart, my community, my voice through honesty and care. And I Rise each day with gratitude, carrying the memories of those we lost and the promise of those still to come. My story isn’t about surviving anymore — it’s about becoming.

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