The New Year has sprung, and with it comes many wonderful things including Sex::Tech ’09 – March 22nd will be here before you know it!

Presenters: there is only one week left to submit abstracts. The deadline is next Monday, Jan 12, 2009. To submit, go to the abstract "submissions" page, and hit the “Click Now To Submit” link at the bottom of the page. This will lead you to the abstract “submission tool” which you can fill out and submit directly from the site.

Attendees: heads up, early bird tickets are flying and there are only 39 left, no wait, just looked again and now there’s 36 left, so get yours while they last!  Happy New Year to all and we look forward to seeing you all in San Francisco.

Wondering where we've been?  Planning contests and Sex::Tech 2009!

We asked people "what would your undies say if they had the last word" in safe sex and STI prevention.  As it turns out our undies had a lot to say because the 500+ entries to the campaign gave them a voice.  These undies have spread across the Internet and along with them ideas of safe sex, STI prevention and all around healthy attitudes toward sex are reaching viral proportions. The 500+ entries have gotten over 650,000 engagements through votes, views, reviews and content created and entries can be seen in close to 700 different places online. With the success of this contest, we at ISIS, were again reminded of the need to talk to young people about sex and sexual health.  We see that the Internet and mobile technologies have strengthened youth networks, provided new avenues for expression, and increased youth access to tools and information designed to improve their sexual health.  

ISIS would like to announce that the second Sex::Tech conference will be held March 22 & 23 in San Francisco.   Sex::Tech will explore available tools and methods for reaching youth with culturally appropriate STD/HIV prevention and sex education interventions from a youth perspective, with input from public health professionals, educators, researchers, and technology developers.

Here is a little bit about the winners of the inBrief underwear design contest:

Grand Prize winner Tina Nguyen (Pomona, CA) designed Riding Safely, a line of men's and women's underwear that lets partners know they need a ticket to ride. Ms. Nguyen will receive $1000 (scholarship or cash equivalent) and 12 pairs of women's underwear with her design.

Image Buzz winner Dan Brown (Corvallis, OR) designed The Real Reason Dinosaurs Went Extinct, that ponders what if dinosaurs knew about safe sex? Dan will receive $250 (scholarship or cash equivalent) for the best entry among the top 100 generating the most attention across the Internet as determined by the ISIS expert selection panel.

Community Sweepstakes winner Chrissy Olsen (Muncie, IN) will receive $250 (scholarship or cash equivalent) from among everyone participating in the contest in any way (whether viewer, reviewer, or voter) as selected by Brickfish.