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One key component in HIV prevention is serostatus disclosure. Until recently, many studies have focused on interpersonal factors and minimally considered meeting venues as they pertain to disclosure. Using data (N=3309) from an online survey conducted across 16 US metropolitan statistical areas, we examined whether HIV serodisclosure varies by online/offline meeting venues in both protected and unprotected anal intercourse encounters. Most of the sample (76.9%) reported meeting men for sex (last 90 days) both online and offline, versus 12.7% offline only and 10.4% online only. After controlling for other variables, we found that the men who meet partners in both online and offline were 20~30% more likely to report disclosing their HIV status prior to sex than men who met their partners exclusively either offline or online. While previous studies have identified the Internet as a risk environment, our findings suggest bi-environmental partner seeking may also have beneficial effects.

Over the last two decades, many African countries have undergone dietary and nutrition transitions fueled by globalization, rapid urbanization and development. These changes have altered African food environments and subsequently, dietary behaviors, including food acquisition and consumption. Dietary patterns associated with the nutrition transition have contributed to Africa's complex burden of malnutrition - obesity and other diet-related non-communicable diseases (DR-NCDs), along with persistent food insecurity and undernutrition. Available evidence links unhealthy or obesogenic food environments (including those that market and avail energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods and beverages) with suboptimal diets and associated adverse health outcomes. Elsewhere, governments have responded with policies to improve food environments. However, in Africa the necessary research and policy action have received insufficient attention. Contextual evidence to motivate, enable and create supportive food environments in Africa for better population health is urgently needed. In November 2020, the Measurement, Evaluation, Accountability and Leadership Support for Non-communicable diseases Prevention Project (MEALS4NCDs) convened the first Africa Food Environment Research Network Meeting (FERN2020). This three-day virtual meeting brought researchers from around the world to deliberate on future directions and research priorities related to improving food environments and nutrition across the African continent. The stakeholders shared experiences, best practices, challenges and opportunities for improving the healthiness of food environments and related policies in low- and middle-income countries. In this article, we summarize the proceedings and research priorities identified in the meeting to advance the food environment research agenda in Africa, and thus contribute to the promotion of healthier food environments to prevent DR-NCDs, and other forms of malnutrition.

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