We are excited to announce the upcoming selection of the headquarters for World Vitiligo Day (WVD) 2024. This international event, which circles the globe annually, is a powerful opportunity to galvanize local dermatologists and activists, spark national media discussions, and promote systemic healthcare changes for improved vitiligo management. The WVD Presidential Board eagerly invites applications from potential host cities. We will confirm the 2024 WVD host city by October 31, 2023, to ensure ample time for effective preparation and fundraising. Let's continue this transformative journey together!

Get ready for an extraordinary journey into the world of vitiligo awareness and education as Kazakhstan gears up to host World Vitiligo Day (WVD) 2023, running from June 23rd through June 26th. Our Honorary President, Dr. Aliya Kassymkhanova, and Vice-President Dr. Anar Abdrakhmanova, lead an invigorated team ready to advance the vitiligo conversation. The event, bursting with dynamic activities like a live microsurgery demonstration, a scientific Q&A session, and patient-focused events, is designed to forge new pathways in vitiligo treatment and patient care. Embrace this unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the most significant event on the global vitiligo calendar. Details

Marking a milestone in vitiligo education and awareness, Mexico vibrantly hosted World Vitiligo Day (WVD) 2022, with the theme "Learning to Live with Vitiligo." Honorary President Prof. Jorge Ocampo Candiani, MD and a team of eminent dermatologists pooled their expertise, amplifying the dialogue on vitiligo. Unfolding with a press conference at the Senate of Mexico, the event unveiled vitiligo's latest research and treatment breakthroughs. The heart of the celebration, a Patient Information Session, featured inspiring talks, empowering workshops, and a captivating photo exhibition, all designed to foster a better understanding and enrich the lives of those with vitiligo. Details

Each year WVD is officially hosted by a different city and in 2021 it was the turn of Jakarta, Indonesia to act as campaign headquarters. The honorary captain was Dr. Srie PrihianGondokaryono, supported by a strong team from the Indonesian Society of Dermatology & Venereology (Advisor: Dr. Yulianto LisBawan, Vice-President: Dr. Andreas Widiansyah, and Secretary: Dr. Hanny Nilasari). Media release

Unfortunately, the large-scale, in person activities that typify WVD were not possible this year, due to COVID restrictions, so online events took take place everywhere.

June 25th encourages us all to reflect on equality for people with a different skin tone – or lack of it. No wonder that World Vitiligo Day theme of 2020 was 'SELF: Awareness, Love, Respect, Care.' As the world grappled with a global pandemic, World Vitiligo Day has moved online.

So, there was a different vibe for June 25th this year – but no less memorable or important. The virtual headquarters continued its international journey and moved to Belgrade – the outspoken, proud and audacious capital city of 🇷🇸Serbia – under the firm leadership of Prof. Ivana Binic, MD. And the week-long celebration took place in people’s minds, hearts and homes.

World Vitiligo Day 2020 hit all-time record with 5,5 million online participants. Brief report

A week-long World Vitiligo Day 2019 campaign amalgams efforts of numerous activists around the world to bring this once forgotten skin disease to the attention of general public, healthcare system and biopharma industry.

WVD 2019 started on June 21st with a three-day event in Sugar Land town in Texas, USA organized by Houston Vitiligo Awareness Movement. The U.S. national theme this year was “The Mental and Medical Journey of Living with Vitiligo – The Journey Starts with Me!”, with an impeccable collection of speakers and experts on hand to discuss the current state of affairs and look to the future.

Next week in Hanoi, VIETNAM – headquarters for global WVD 2019 – the theme was “The Quality of Life of Vitiligo Patients” to promote understanding and help vitiligo patients avoid discrimination and become more optimistic in life.

Full Report, Photos & Videos

The 8th celebration of World Vitiligo Day was held at UMass Medical School in Worcester, MA on June 22-24, 2018. The conference was hosted by Dr. John Harris, the Director of the Vitiligo Clinic and Research Center at UMass Medical School, and Valarie Molyneaux, founder and President of VITFriends.

From the pre-event planning and build-up to the event itself, the World Vitiligo Day USA conference 2018 was the most successful yet. More than 400 people attended the conference, which included two keynote speakers and more than 20 presenters, five sessions and lab tours over the course of three days. The networking and social events were enjoyable and re-instilled the sense of camaraderie that UMASS is known for.

The theme “Children, Research, and Hope for the Future” not only reflected our commitment to the cause but also the foundation upon which vitiligo community continue to thrive.

Full Report, Photos & Videos

The campaign headquarters were set up in Sao Paulo, Brazil, under the presidency of Professor Paulo Cunha. He is well known for his unerring support for the vitiligo cause and he does incredible work with underprivileged communities, including with many Amazonian tribes - who have no access to medical care or dermatological services.

Prof. Cunha is truly committed to bringing the best tools and techniques in the treatment of vitiligo and to fellow dermatologists and patients, organizing national master classes on vitiligo in 2013 and 2016, and holding World Vitiligo Day events since it's inception.

In the US, main celebrations were held in Detroit on June 23-25, under the leadership of Lee Thomas, hosted by Southeast Michigan Vitiligo Support Group, check photos on Facebook.

This year's rally and other events were one of the largest and most exciting in history of the World Vitiligo Day. Prof. Jana Hercogova, the Chair of WVD 2016 campaign, held a key media event in beautiful Prague.

Celebrations across the world continued the whole weekend. A series of events were held in Washington DC on June 24-25. This idea came alive after a successful rally at the Massachusetts State House organized by VITFriends from Boston last year. Yet nobody could expect that number of participants would grow exponentially. This year, Valerie Molyneaux led a 300-plus rally, representing an array of activists, nonprofits, and also researchers, healthcare workers, politicians and elected officials. We posted a quick report about World Vitiligo Day 2016 campaign

World Vitiligo Day 2015 campaign headquarters are in Shenyang, China, under the presidency of Prof. Xing-Hua Gao, MD. Thousands of vehement volunteers around the world raise awareness for vitiligo on the streets and in the media, in addition to 30+ major hospitals receiving vitiligo patients and holding education events today. This year all events started much earlier, on 13 Feb 2015, when the General Body Meeting of Indian Association of Dermatologists, Venereologists and Leprologists (IADVL), the largest representing society of Indian Dermatologists, has approved the changing of IADVL VITILIGO Day from May 19th to 25th June.

In the last three years, campaign grew from a few volunteers handing out fliers in the streets and a small number of dedicated doctors to 484,687 activists and 50+ clinics offering free skin check-ups in 17 countries. We have already set up two new 'world records' with 225 vitiligo patients seen by dermatologists in the morning at the PIGMER hospital, and 800+ doctors attending events in the afternoon. Forty WVD-branded rickshaws paraded the city of Chandigarh, host of World Vitiligo Day 2014, all day long.

This year, the World Vitiligo Day changed it's headquarters from Rome (Italy) to Detroit (USA) and was celebrated in a series of events, from the distribution of leaflets to large gatherings, which have made each World Vitiligo Day a huge success and generated worldwide media interest: Fox TV interview with entertainment guru Lee Thomas, roundtable with Henry Ford Hospital Dermatology Chair Dr. Henry Lim, art-project with Stephanie Corne and so on. We collected 130,929 signatures to date.

An ambitious global event, the second World Vitiligo Day was held on the week of 25 June this year. It also marks the passing date of pop-star Michael Jackson, a long-time vitiligo sufferer. The event started with the press conference in Rome on June 22nd, continued with free dermatology consultations across Italy over the weekend, rolled into street events in Brazil and Nigeria, appeared on media radars and screens in Botswana, Chad, China, Czech, France, India, Macedonia, the UK and USA on June 25th, and finished at the national dermatology congress in Russia on June 26th.

The first Vitiligo Awareness Day or Purple Fun Day - what it was called then - was brought to life by Ogo Maduewesi, Founder and President of Vitiligo Support and Awareness Foundation (VITSAF) at Silverbird Galleria, Victoria Island in Lagos, Nigeria. The online petition was launched on the website Petitions24 on June 18, 2011. First 111 signatures were collected on the Vitiligo Awareness Day.

Early next year, VR Foundation and VITSAF joined forces to start the World Vitiligo Day campaign. VRF launched www.25June.org, which became the official site of the World Vitiligo Day campaign, on January 18, 2012.