Created in partnership with ViiV Healthcare
Ending HIV was never going to be the work of a single person, lab, or breakthrough. Recognizing this collective effort, VICE and ViiV Healthcare are launching ‘The Unstoppables’—a campaign spotlighting the pioneers driving us toward an HIV-free world.
The campaign recognizes innovation in all its forms: the scientists, advocates, community leaders, and educators whose work is transforming HIV prevention, treatment, and care for all people impacted by the virus. From scientific breakthroughs to grassroots activism to tackling stigma, The Unstoppables celebrates the people at the forefront of that progress.
Around 40 million people are currently living with HIV worldwide.1 The progress we’ve made since the 1980s is remarkable, but the work is far from finished. Every day, people across the HIV community are refusing to stand still. They are challenging barriers, advancing science, fighting stigma and driving us closer to ending the epidemic. This is what The Unstoppables is here to document.
Every Unstoppable in this series has a unique story and lived experience. Doreen Moraa Moracha was born with HIV in Kenya, kept her diagnosis secret for years, and eventually went public — accidentally — when she emailed her story to a journalist. That one email turned into a global advocacy career, one focused on policy change and getting more people access to innovative therapies. Marty St. Clair started work in a GSK North Carolina lab in 1976. She was only meant to stay there for two years. After helping develop the world’s first antiretroviral medication for HIV, she spent the next 50 years at GSK and then ViiV Healthcare following its formation in 2009 working on everything that came after, including the HIV treatment and prevention medicines available today.
Professor Linda-Gail Bekker, Director of the Desmond Tutu HIV Centre at the University of Cape Town and former President of the International AIDS Society, spoke to why recognition like this matters. “Moving the needle in the HIV response has always taken a village, but the battle is far from over. We need new pioneers to continue to pass the baton, as it’s vital we maintain our momentum,” she said. “I believe in Ubuntu — the idea that we must look out for one another. If we can fuel the fire in the bellies of young leaders today to keep up the pressure, we will ultimately succeed.”
VICE’s Adam Stimpson added: “This is exactly what we’re here for — putting a spotlight on the people at the frontline of the HIV response who are doing work that deserves to be seen. The HIV epidemic is one of the most pressing global health priorities of our time, and we’re proud to use this platform to tell these stories.”
New profiles drop regularly. Read the first stories from The Unstoppables at vice.com/theunstoppables.
References:
- UNAIDS. Global HIV & AIDS statistics – fact sheet. Available at: https://www.unaids.org/en/resources/fact-sheet [Accessed: July 2026].
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