2022 Digital Lupus Advocacy Summit

Welcome to the Summit! Get oriented with the digital space where you can connect with your fellow lupus advocates in the advocate lounge and learn about the efforts of our partners in the fight against lupus in the exhibit hall. Head into the auditorium for sessions throughout the day providing you with updates on the latest in lupus research and drug development, caring for people with lupus, and much more!

The complete agenda for the 2022 Summit will be added in the coming weeks.

Pick up right where you left off! On day 2 of the Summit, continue connecting with your fellow lupus warriors and exploring the digital space. The day's sessions will focus on advocating for yourself and for others - if you're participating in virtual congressional meetings with your members of Congress on day 3, we'll get you ready to have successful, impactful meetings!

It all builds to this! Put on your purple and get ready to advocate! During registration, you'll have the option to either sign up to participate in virtual meetings with your members of Congress or to contact them via email and social media through our annual Virtual Advocacy Day. Either way, you'll have the opportunity to contact your federal elected officials to tell them how lupus has changed your life and what they can do to join our fight against this devastating disease.

Note that in order to have the opportunity to participate in virtual meetings, you must be registered for the Summit prior to Sunday, May 22. Learn more about virtual congressional meetings at the 2022 Digital Lupus Advocacy Summit. 

Anyone from anywhere can participate in this online event! No matter what your connection to lupus is, the 2022 Summit will have something for you. It’s going to take all of us to win the fight against lupus, so whether you are living with lupus yourself, a caregiver for someone with lupus, a physician caring for those with lupus, or passionate about the fight against lupus for any other reason, we wholeheartedly welcome your participation in the Summit.

And while we welcome global participation on the first two days of the Summit, there is one small caveat — to participate in the virtual congressional meetings or Virtual Advocacy Day on Wednesday, June 29, you must have congressional representation, which means you must be a current US resident. If you reside outside of the US, World Lupus Day on May 10 will provide opportunities for you to engage your elected officials.

Nope — we are proud to offer the entire 2022 Digital Lupus Advocacy Summit completely free of charge. While we wish we could safely host an in-person Summit in Washington, DC this year, we’re excited that the 2022 Summit will be the most accessible and largest lupus advocacy event in history, and we can’t wait to once again bring together the entire lupus community in one digital space this June to continue pushing us towards our shared goal: a world without lupus.

That's up to you! There are two ways you can contact your members of Congress on June 29, the final day of the Summit. During registration, you'll be asked to select the method you prefer. Your two options:

1. Virtual congressional meetings. We'll schedule virtual meetings for you with the offices of your U.S. Representative and at least one of your U.S. Senators. On June 29, you and other advocates from your congressional district or state will meet with your elected officials or their staff via Zoom or teleconference and advocate for policies to improve the lives of people with lupus. 
   
   While participating in virtual meetings is not something that requires previous advocacy experience, please note that it does require more of a time commitment than Virtual Advocacy Day. Prior to your meetings, you'll need to connect with the other advocates who will be in the meetings with you, attend an additional training prior to the Summit (date TBD), and stay on top of your emails leading up to June. We'll coordinate all of this and make it as easy for you as possible, but be aware that it does require more attention than participating in Virtual Advocacy Day. To participate in virtual congressional meetings, you must be registered for the Summit and opted into this option by Sunday, May 22. Learn more about the process for virtual congressional meetings.
2. Virtual Advocacy Day. If you choose this option, on the morning of June 29 we'll email you links to contact your members of Congress via email and social media urging them to support policies that improve the lives of people with lupus. The links will include pre-populated messages for your elected officials – all of the Virtual Advocacy Day actions can be completed in less than five minutes, but they still make an enormous impact!

There is no deadline to register for the Summit, but we encourage you to register early so that you receive all of the exciting updates and important information we send out as we get closer to the start of the event.

However, if you would like to participate in virtual meetings with your members of Congress on Wednesday, June 29, you must be registered for the Summit prior to Sunday, May 22 in order to give us ample time to schedule your meetings. Advocates who register after May 22 will only be able to contact their members of Congress via email and social media as part of our annual Virtual Advocacy Day on June 29. For more information about the final day of the Summit and your options to advocate, check out the question above this one.

You should expect all of the best elements of an in-person conference, but from the comfort and safety of your own home. We have worked incredibly hard to put together a digital event that captures everything our advocates have come to love about the annual National Lupus Advocacy Summit. That means timely, informative content delivered by world-renowned lupus experts, opportunities to connect with and learn from lupus advocates all across the country, and impactful conversations with elected officials that have the power to support policies to improve the lives of all people with lupus. 

All of this, and much more, will take place in an easy-to-navigate online platform that will make you feel like you are actually at an in-person conference. 

Absolutely! We understand that everyone is busy and might not be able to tune in to each and every session of the Summit. The good news for the first two days of the Summit is that a recording of each session will be available for on-demand viewing until late July, so if you miss something live during the Summit, you can log back into the platform at a time that is convenient for you and catch what you missed. Please note that it usually takes around 24 hours for the live recordings to process and upload back into the platform. 

For the final day of the Summit, there are two options to advocate. If you are short on time, we recommend choosing the Virtual Advocacy Day option during registration – it should take you 5 minutes or less to participate and it can be done whenever you have the time. Please see the previous question for more information about your options on Wednesday, June 29.

If you can navigate this webpage, you’ll be able to navigate the Summit platform. It’s very intuitive and even if this will be your first digital conference, once you see the space, you’ll pick it up quickly and access everything easily. If you do find that you need help, we will have someone available to answer technical questions during each day of the Summit — but for context, they only had to answer 3 questions during last year’s Digital Summit, and that’s why we are so confident you won’t have any problems. 

The only thing you need to participate in the 2022 Summit is an internet connection and a device with a web browser — phone, tablet, or computer. The Summit platform is responsive and will work on any device, but for the best experience, we do recommend participating via tablet or computer. If your device has a camera, you will have the option to participate in video chats with our partners in the Exhibit Hall, but it’s not required. Closer to the Summit, we will send out some more tips to get the most out of your experience, as well as who to contact if you do have any issues.

You don’t need to do anything right now, but we would absolutely love it if you would help us spread the word about the 2022 Summit! If you are involved with a lupus support group or have friends, family members, or colleagues who you think might be interested in the Summit and learning more about lupus, let them know about it by sharing on your social media channels or through other communications. With no charge to participate, and no cap on attendees, it’s truly a “the more, the merrier” situation. 

Prior to the Summit beginning on June 27, we’ll be sharing exciting announcements about the agenda and speakers, as well as more information to make sure you are fully prepared for the event. If you signed up to participate in virtual congressional meetings on June 29, you’ll receive more information about your meetings over the coming months as well. If you have any questions at all about the Summit, please email Travis Smith.