Celebrate Vaccines is the British Society for Immunology's campaign to champion the critical role of vaccination and vaccine research in advancing global health. The expert voice of the immunology community is a vital part of this message, and we have been working to strengthen public understanding of vaccination and to help everyone make informed decisions about vaccines and their children's health.
Ways to get involved
> Use the #CelebrateVaccines hashtag @britsocimm
> Check out the social media toolkit
> Like & share our short animations and eye-catching infographics
> Download our vaccine public engagement activity packs
Background
Why celebrate vaccines?
Vaccines are an important success story for immunology, and vaccination programmes remain a central part of global public health initiatives.
With over 4,000 members around the globe, the BSI represents the voice of researchers who work on vaccines as well as the wider immunology community. In this capacity, we joined forces with several partners to carry out vaccine advocacy in the run-up to the next Gavi Replenishment Conference, strengthening public awareness and understanding of vaccination.
We have called this initiative 'Celebrate Vaccines' to highlight the invaluable contribution of vaccines in saving lives and protecting global health.
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance
Established 20 years ago with the aim of protecting the most vulnerable children in the world from preventable infectious diseases, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance have to-date immunised more than 760 million children and helped developing countries prevent over 13 million deaths through its support for routine immunisation programmes and campaigns. The last replenishment conference, on 4-5 June 2020, saw world leaders announce their country’s monetary contribution to Gavi’s next strategic cycle, which aimed to raise $7.4 billion to immunise 300 million children and save more than 7 million lives.
Aims of Celebrate Vaccines
- strengthen the understanding of vaccine immunology among a wide audience, helping the public in making informed decisions about their children’s health
- showcase the benefits of vaccine research in advancing global public health
- provide an opportunity for BSI members to share their passion for immunology research successes and celebrate vaccine research
- target diverse audiences across the UK
We are calling on you to Celebrate Vaccines with us and to help highlight the role that researchers play on an international stage.
Highlights to-date
Celebrate Vaccines Day
We kicked things off on 26 March 2020 with a day of digital advocacy and education across social media. The virtual campaign launch was a huge success, and we would like to extend a huge thank you to the individuals and organisations who celebrated the power of vaccines with us!
World Immunisation Week
Celebrated from 24-30 April, the World Health Organization's 2020 theme #VaccinesWork for All was a timely and important reminder of the huge role that vaccines play, not just in maintaining global health, but also in bringing economic stability and allowing our societies to thrive. Take a look at our activities for World Immunisation Week, and read our full statement on why vaccines and vaccine research must continue to be prioritised by Governments and other funding bodies.
International Day of Immunology & Celebrate Vaccines report
The International Day of Immunology, commemorated on 29 April each year, is dedicated to raising global awareness of the importance of immunology in the fight against infection and disease. To mark this important day for the immunology community, we published our Celebrate Vaccines report 'Protecting the World: 200 years of UK Vaccine Research'. Through new analysis and expert review, the report looks at the UK’s contribution to vaccine research and development as well as future challenges to vaccine production for both existing and emerging diseases.
UK announces Gavi funding pledge of £330 million a year over the next five years
On the International Day of Immunology 2020 we also welcomed this announcement from the UK Government. The BSI welcomes the Government's announcement and financial commitment, which will protect up to 75 million children against deadly but preventable diseases like measles, polio and typhoid. Read our response to the announcement.
CELEBRATE VACCINES
> Read the full policy report 'Protecting the World: 200 years of UK Vaccine Research'
> Explore our educational resources & public engagement kit
> Show your support on social media with our toolkit & explainer videos