The Joint Learning Initiative on Children and HIV/AIDS (JLICA) is an independent, time-limited alliance of researchers, implementers, activists, policy-makers, and people living with HIV. Its goal is to improve the well-being of children, families, and communities affected by HIV and AIDS by producing actionable, evidence-based recommendations for policy and practice. JLICA has worked to: generate and mobilize evidence to strengthen children's outcomes; expand space for new thinking across disciplinary, sectoral, and geographical lines; advance action through recommendations and advocacy; facilitate linkages among bodies of knowledge, communities, and institutions engaged in children's well-being in the context of AIDS. JLICA's research activities have been conducted by four thematic Learning Groups: Learning Group 1: Strengthening Families; Learning Group 2: Community Action; Learning Group 3: Expanding Access to Services and Protecting Human Rights; Learning Group 4: Social and Economic Policies.