About APCS 2025

 

Now in its 7th year, the Asia Pacific Chem-Use Symposium (APCS) is a regional platform advancing dialogue, care, and policy on chemsex across Asia and the Pacific. APCS convenes community members, healthcare professionals, researchers, CSOs/NGOs, policymakers, donors, and allies to co-create solutions rooted in lived realities.

Chemsex intersects with HIV, STIs, mental health, criminalisation, and stigma. Yet gaps persist in person-centered services, mental health integration, peer outreach, and evidence-based policy. APCS provides a rare and vital space to bridge these gaps and uplift community-rooted, rights-based responses.

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Join us to:
✅ Share insights on chemsex trends, practices, and needs for  the Asia-Pacific region
✅ Promote affirming, culturally responsive, and context-appropriate care
✅ Strengthen provider capacity, knowledge exchange, and research
✅ Advance enabling laws and policies
✅ Build resilient systems of care led by and for communities

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Submission Guidelines:​

The APCS 2025 organising committee invites submissions of abstracts with a focus on chemsex, harm reduction, and other related intersectional issues such as HIV/STI testing, prevention and treatment, sexual consent and violence, mental health services, social and legal/rights services, stigma  reduction, drug policies and law enforcement practices, integrated and  peer-led/community-based chemsex harm reduction models. 

 

Abstracts can be submitted per following:​

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• All abstracts must be in English. ​​

• Abstracts should not exceed 350 words. 

• Encore submissions will be considered. 

• Submissions can be made for the following tracks:

  • Social and behavioral sciences (including gender-based violence and consent for sex/substance use)

  • Mental health 

  • Evidence-based programmatic practice and implementation (including implementation science, and service delivery improvements)

  • Epidemiology, surveillance, modelling and monitoring

  • Clinical science (including screening, clinical assessment tools and management)

  • Community systems strengthening and partnerships (including health systems and enabling environment)

  • Laws, policies, human rights and gender

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• Abstracts should clearly articulate how it aligns with the Symposium themes of “Chems. Choices. Community.”​​
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  • Chems: Topics that explore the evolving landscape of Chemsex in the Asia-Pacific region, patterns of use and risks,  harm reduction responses and the policy and legal environment.
     

  • Choices: Topics that center autonomy, agency, and informed decision-making in the context of chemsex. This includes discussions on service access, care and management options, rights-based care, consent, and the socio-cultural and structural factors that shape people’s choices.
     

  • Community: Topics that highlight the lived and living experiences, needs, leadership, and innovations of communities intersecting with chemsex. This includes community-led responses, cross-sectoral collaboration, and strategies for building care systems that are inclusive, affirming, and resilient.

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• The symposium offers two submission formats: (1) Research conducted across disciplines, (2) lessons learnt through programme, project or policy implementation or management.

• The use of a structured abstract is highly encouraged, but not essential.   The suggested structure of submissions for Option 1: Background, Methods, Results, and Conclusions; and for Option 2: Background, Description, Lessons Learnt and Conclusion/next steps

• Submissions can be made as an individual, an organisation or as a group/consortium of collaborators. 

• Please indicate your preference for consideration as a poster or/and oral abstract presentation.

• Selected abstracts will be offered either full or partial scholarships for attendance to the Symposium, with priority to submissions by community members and advocates.

• Submissions are to be submitted HERE
   

​Abstract Selections: 

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Abstracts submitted to APCS 2025 will be reviewed and selected through a blind, peer-reviewed process carried out by the APCS Programme Advisory Group. All submissions will undergo blind review by at least two reviewers. These are aspects that a reviewer may consider: Is there a clear background and justified objective? Is the methodology, study design, programme, or implementation appropriate for the objectives? Are the results or lessons learned well-supported, important and clearly presented? Are the conclusions or next steps supported by the results? Is the study original, and does it contribute to the field? 

 

Abstracts should use person-centred, respectful and stigma-free language. Language, when used effectively, can be affirming, supportive and empowering. We recommend NIDA’s Words Matter: Preferred Language for Talking About Addiction or Shatterproof’s Addiction Language Guide.

 

The APCS 2025 Organising Committee will make the final selection of abstracts. Selected abstracts will be notified via email by mid-October.

 

Abstracts will be selected for oral presentation during the symposium, or as a poster presentation to be presented in person at the symposium.

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📝 Submit your abstract by 29 September 2025

🌐 Follow updates on our Facebook page: APCSymposium

📩 Questions? Reach out to the APCS team