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WORLD MS DAY 2021

World MS Day brings the global MS community together on 30 May to share stories, raise awareness and campaign with everyone affected by multiple sclerosis (MS).

First initiated by the MS International Federation (MSIF) and its members in 2009, World MS Day is a day to celebrate global solidarity and hope for the future.

The World MS Day 2021 theme is ‘Connections’. This is the global theme for three years (2020 – 2022), and aims to build community connection, self-connection and connections to quality care.

The MS Connections campaign challenges social barriers that leave people affected by MS feeling lonely and socially isolated.

The campaign tagline is ‘I Connect, We Connect’ and the campaign hashtag is #MSConnections.

World MS Day is an opportunity to advocate for better services, celebrate support networks and champion self-care.The World MS Day 2020-2022 theme is ‘Connections’ and campaign is ‘MS Connections’!

MS Australia is contributing to this significant international exploration of relationships, connections and the impacts of social isolation and loneliness for people living with MS. We are inviting all Australians to stand shoulder to shoulder with those affected by this disease. This World MS Day, we ask you to reach out to someone you know living with MS. Tell those you love that you are there for them. Invite them out for a coffee and check in on how they are going.

 

Animation: Connecting with Family and Friends

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We have been working hard with the MS community to bring you our animation: Connecting with Family and Friends. 

Having a chronic illness, like MS, can leave you feeling lonely and isolated. Our animation highlights the importance of connections, especially after the events of 2020. By staying connected with family and friends, you can weather any storm. 

 

Take Action - Participate in a World MS Day Event

Wondering how you can get involved in the MS Connections Campaign?

There are many ways to celebrate World MS Day and come together to form MS Connections.

We have created a dedicated events page for World MS Day. Click here to view the World MS Day events!

There are also many other ways to get involved this World MS Day. Here are a few ideas:

  • Organise an activity or fundraiser for the MS Connections campaign
  • Make headlines: get World MS Day covered in you local or national news
  • Advocate for change by using the #MSConnections campaign to raise awareness for better services and support
  • Social media: share the toolkit to start a conversation about MS Connections and remember to use the #MSConnections and #WorldMSDay hashtags to feature on the social media wall.
  • Stay up-to-date by subscriving to the World MS Day newsletter here.
  • Share your World MS Day activities by contributing to the World MS Day Map. From activities to stories, an MS Heart photo, a resource - we want to see the global MS community in action.

 

MS Connections Toolkit

To support World MS Day, MSIF have created a free MS Connections toolkit, to bring positive change to the lives of more than 2.8 million people around the world.

The MS Connections toolkit includes:

Click here to access the MS Connections toolkit.

 

MS Connections – How YOU can celebrate World MS Day 

MS Connections is a flexible, wide-ranging theme. Whether you’re individual or an organisation, you can choose to focus on a variety of angles when celebrating World MS Day, including:

  • Challenging social barriers and stigma that can leave people affected by MS feeling lonely and isolated
  • Building communities that support and nurture people affected by MS
  • Promoting self-care and healthy living with MS
  • Lobbying decision makers for better services and effective treatment for people with MS
  • Connecting people affected by MS to MS research.

MS Australia has launched several resources and experiences for the MS community, including our animation: Connecting with Family and Friends and a dedicated World MS Day event page. These experiences are aimed at supporting people to connect or reconnect with family and friends, and for some, to establish new friendships.

As part of the global working group for MSIF, we look forward to keeping you updated on how you can get involved in this MS Connections campaign this World MS Day.