Thematically and geographically, RENEWAL is scaling up. The third phase of RENEWAL activity (RENEWAL 3) will extend over the period 2007-2010. The twin goals of RENEWAL 3 are to further extend and deepen understanding of the two-way interactions between HIV/AIDS and food and nutrition security, and to improve the effectiveness of food and nutrition-relevant policy and programming in the context of HIV and AIDS. Activities will be intensified in the five hub countries of Malawi, Zambia, South Africa, Uganda and Kenya where fully fledged networks, coordinators and researchers are increasingly active, both in the field and in policy discourse. From this critical mass, links will be established and strengthened with other countries in the region and outside. In terms of the action research agenda for 2007-2010, and following an intensive consultative process at country level, RENEWAL aims to extend and complement its past and ongoing work with a focus on the following three themes:
- AIDS, Agriculture and Livelihood Security
- AIDS, Community Resilience and Social Protection
- AIDS and Nutrition Security
Strategically, while the core pillars of locally-prioritized action research, capacity strengthening and policy communications will continue to ground RENEWAL, the network continues to evolve. A progressive shift in emphasis into more direct operationally-relevant research is a logical progression from the early focus on mapping interactions and impacts. And now, in addition to mainstreaming an understanding of HIV and AIDS into agriculture, food and nutrition policy and programming, RENEWAL is increasingly engaging directly with the international AIDS community -- to demonstrate the relevance of mainstreaming food and nutrition considerations within a truly broad-based response to the epidemic.