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Obama, Bono, G8 Leaders...and YOU!

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Thu, 17 May 2012 20:46:00 +0000

Guest Post by Malaka Gharib - Social Media & Blog, ONE

Clear some space in your schedule this Friday for the Chicago Council on Global Affairs’ Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security, a discussion on new activities to advance global agricultural development, food and nutrition security in Africa.

Bono and President Obama, at last year’s World AIDS Day event, will meet again at the

Chicago Council’s Symposium on Global Agriculture. Photo credit: Ralph Alswang/ ONE

This event is a dream come true for us here at ONE — we’ve been trying to “plant the seed” in the G8 to put sustainable global agriculture at the top of their agenda at this year’s summit. And now, thanks to this event, President Obama, G8 and African leaders, businesses, international organizations and civil society, Bono and more will have the opportunity to devote time and attention to this topic. Although we can’t be certain it will affect the outcomes of the Summit, we think it’s a great way to kick off the G8.

The best part? You’re invited to the event, and you can participate, too. The Chicago Council is livestreaming the day’s panels, discussions and events on their website. Feel free to drop in, leave and come back to the event whenever you wish, all from the comfort of your computer. Panelists and guest speakers will all be on standby, ready to answer your questions on Twitter — so be sure to follow @GlobalAgDev and direct your questions and comments to #globalag.

Here’s a list of some of the guests who will be attending:

President Barack Obama
His Excellency Dr. Boni Yayi, President of the Republic of Benin & Chairperson of the African Union
His Excellency Meles Zenawi, Prime Minister of Ethiopia
His Excellency John Atta Mills, President of Ghana
His Excellency Jakaya Kikwete, President of the United Republic of Tanzania
The Honorable Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary, United States Department of State
The Honorable Rajiv Shah, Administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development
Bono, Co-Founder of ONE and (RED)
The Honorable Ertharin Cousin, Executive Director, UN World Food Programme
Dr. Kanayo F. Nwanze, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development
Ms. Josette Sheeran, Vice Chairman, World Economic Forum

And again, here’s how you can get involved:

- Watch the livestream of the event. It starts at 8 a.m. EDT. You don’t have to watch the whole thing, but make sure you keep it up in a tab on your browser so you can follow along. Find out which events you want to watch by checking out the agenda here.

- Follow live blog posts and analysis from Roger Thurow and other hunger experts at the Chicago Council’s Global Food For Thought blog.

- Ask questions to the panelists and guest speakers by tweeting at @globalagdev and using hashtag #globalag. They’ll be on the lookout for your questions, so you may get an answer from Josette Sheeran of the World Economic Forum or even Rajiv Shah of USAID!

I’ll be following along, too — so remember, you can always tweet at @ONECampaign with any questions you have about the event. See you on Friday!

ADO(RED): 5 (RED) Mother's Day Gift Ideas

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Thu, 10 May 2012 16:42:00 +0000

Mother's Day is just around the corner and we have 5 (RED) gifts to make your mom's day that much better. Every (RED) purchase you make helps fight for an AIDS Free Generation by 2015.

Mother's Day Gift Idea #1: Spread the LOVE - The (FEED)RED Special Edition LOVE 30 Bag

Mother's Day Gift Idea #2: For your tech loving moms - The (APPLE)RED iPad Smart Cover

Mother's Day Gift Idea #3: We know your mom still rocks them - (CONVERSE)RED Chuck Taylor All Star shoes

Mother's Day Gift Idea #4: Give your mum a boost - The (MOPHIE)RED Special Edition universal battery line

Mother's Day Gift Idea #5: Join forces - The (RED) and ONE beaded bracelet

How do you prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV?

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 14:15:00 +0000

UNAIDS (Outlook 30, 2011 Report)

Guest post by Erin Hohlfelder, ONE's global health policy manager

It’s hard to miss (RED) & ONE’s focus on The Global Fund and our goal to ensure that virtually no child is born with HIV by 2015. But many of you have rightfully asked, “How does this exactly work?” It’s a miracle of modern medical technology that we’re able to prevent the mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT). To help you understand, we’ve created a CliffsNotes version of how it works:

An HIV-positive mother can pass HIV on to her baby any time during pregnancy, labor, delivery and breastfeeding, so the transmission of the virus must be blocked at each stage. The 2010 World Health Organization guidelines recommend that HIV-positive pregnant mothers should go on a regimen of three antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) as soon as possible — and stay on these drugs until their infant is born and breastfeeding has concluded.

As soon as the infant is born, the baby should take nevirapine — a very inexpensive drug — daily for six weeks. The infant should be formula-fed rather than breastfed if possible, but it’s recognized that formula feeding is both expensive and difficult to do safely in resource-limited settings, so the mother is recommended to breastfeed her child exclusively for six months while continuing to take ARVs. In a recent study conducted by Harvard University in Botswana, mothers who adhered to this regimen reduced transmission of HIV to their babies by an amazing 99 percent.

These prevention guidelines have evolved over the years as scientists have learned more about how to most effectively reduce the risk of transmission while also working to minimize drug resistance for our most effective treatment tools. Many policymakers stress that access to effective contraception to prevent unintended pregnancies is also important for women who are HIV-positive.

For more details on the PMTCT process, including a chart that maps which drugs are used when and in what settings, visit AVERT’s handy guide. Also, be sure to check out WHO’s global strategic vision for 2015.

Win a Trip to See (RED) Creativity & Commerce at Work in Montreal

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 18:36:00 +0000

Remember when we were calling for the most creative people in the world to be part of the Sid Lee and (RED) Boot Camp? We've rounded up eight multidisciplinary talents, put their creative juices to work and are now giving you the chance to see their final ideas come to life at the

C2-MTL creative conference in Montreal.

Not only will you get to spend May 22nd - 25th in the fantastic city of Montreal, you'll also be part of exploring creative answers to commercial questions at the conference.

So how do you enter? We want to hear your favorite quote on creativity. (e.g. "Business has only two functions - marketing and innovation." - Peter Drucker)

Share your answer here by Thursday May 3rd 2012, at 11:59 AM for your chance to win and make sure to Like the C2-MTL and (RED) Facebook pages to find out when the winner will be announced! Get quoting - we can' wait to hear them!

Rules and regulations apply.

Don’t be fooled… we can reach the beginning of the end of AIDS

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 15:54:00 +0000

Guest blog by ONE's Chief Marketing Officer, Jeff Davidoff

ONE pulled a lot of legs this week. We launched our new spot “I Predict” across the web and in an April Fool’s Day email to our members with a series of crazy predictions for what could happen by 2015 — “kittens will be banned from YouTube,” “Charlie Sheen will be president,” “fax machines will make a comeback.” We got your attention. Now we want you to act to support the one prediction that can actually come true: the beginning of the end of AIDS.

“I Predict” was shot at the Sundance Film Festival back in January thanks to the generosity of our friends at the Sundance Channel, who made ONE their nonprofit partner for the festival. We used this amazing opportunity to engage the celebrities you see in the spot. Many of them asked what “the beginning of the end of AIDS” actually is, and how we planned to get there. Great question — here’s the answer.

We’ve defined the beginning of the end of AIDS as the point at which the number of people newly added to treatment outpaces the number of people newly infected with HIV in a given year. That year could be 2015. Even then, we’ll still have a long way to go — but we will have broken the back of the AIDS pandemic as we know it now.

Leaders from around the world have demonstrated the political and financial will to fight this disease. Leading scientists agree it is possible to see the beginning of the end of AIDS. But how will we do it by 2015?

ONE has outlined three goals that will get us there:

1. Work to virtually eliminate the transmission of HIV from mother-to-child

2. Accelerate access to treatment and get 15 million people on ARVs

3. Promote prevention techniques like voluntary male circumcision to stop new infections.

The fact is we’re at a turning point. The incredible progress we’ve already made –- and could make — is at risk.

Every generation is known for something. Ours could be the one that bends the curve of this pandemic. And it starts with you right now. Sign ONE’s petition to reverse budget cuts to life-saving AIDS programs — and ask your friends to do the same.

Sharing this news with your social network is critical. ONE has always been about the collective power of voices raised together. Now we’re asking you to take that to the next level by using your social media power to spread the word. ONE does not buy commercial time on TV or the web – you are our media plan — for every launch, for every message.

The beginning of the end of AIDS is an amazing story. But the world won’t hear about it without you. Here are some tools to get you started:

• Short link: http://bit.ly/HJZMnv

• Twitter Hashtag: #ipredict

• Twitter Handle: @ONECampaign

Sample tweets:

• #ipredict in 2015 we will finally see the Beginning of the End of AIDS http://bit.ly/HJZMnv via @ONECampaign

• #ipredict in 2015 we will see an AIDS free generation. Please join me http://bit.ly/HJZMnv via @ONECampaign

• Join me and @ONECampaign to support the Beginning of the End of AIDS http://bit.ly/HJZMnv #ipredict

So whether you tweet, post, pin or anything else, you can help make the beginning of the end of AIDS a reality — pretty amazing stuff if you ask me.

(RED) Goes to Washington

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 14:52:00 +0000

These days “red” and “blue” are pretty divisive colors around Capitol Hill, but when it comes to the fight against AIDS, being (RED) means something entirely different – it means a belief in the idea that we can be the generation to deliver an AIDS Free Generation.

On March 20, I traveled to Washington to speak at a briefing session for members of congress, congressional staff, and leaders in the global health community that highlighted the private sector’s critical role in the Global Fund’s lifesaving work. Coming from entertainment, I felt like a fish out of water on Capitol Hill. It was all quite formal, and following protocol is not my strength. That being said, I was honored to sit on a panel alongside our friends at the Global Fund, PEPFAR (the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), and Friends of the Global Fight, as well as (RED) Proud Partner The Coca-Cola Company, and Chevron, who has invested $55 million in the Global Fund.

Beyond financial support, we all contribute to the fight in different ways – from Chevron’s “Workplace Wellness” initiative, to Coke’s medical supply chain project in Tanzania, to (RED)’s success in raising public awareness and giving people new and exciting ways to take action. We bring unique strengths to the table, but one thing is clear, the private sector’s involvement is crucial. As Christoph Benn, Director of Resource Mobilization and Donor Relations at the Global Fund said at the close of the session: “With every dollar of private sector money, every dollar received from tax payers goes further. This is the unique contribution of the private sector … But it’s much more than the money. It’s helping to make programs run more effectively and efficiently. We have to put it all together … Together we have changed the course of these terrible pandemics. We can continue to do so. It is within our reach to achieve an AIDS Free Generation.”

Deborah Dugan – CEO @ (RED)

(RED) DJ Football Games Auction – Autographed gear from Tiësto’s Team Netherlands and Sebastian Ingrosso’s Team Sweden

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 20:59:00 +0000

Been wanting to grab one of those jerseys from the first ever (RED) DJ Football Games at Miami Music Week? The wait is over.

On March 21, 2012 Tiësto’s Team Netherlands – Sunnery James, Ryan Marciano, Nicky Romero, Sidney Samson, R3HAB, Afrojack and Quintino –took on Sebastian Ingrosso’s Team Sweden – Alesso, Adrian Lux, AN21, Otto Knows and Dada Life – with a final score of
13 – 11; but the competition isn’t over.

All (RED) DJ Football Games gear has been signed by the DJ’s and are being auctioned for (RED) at CharityBuzz.com/RED. Unique items including individual player’s game-worn jerseys, team jerseys, select cleats and even the game ball, have been signed by the DJ’s and are up for auction through Charitybuzz.com. Now the competition heats up even more to see which team’s apparel can raise the most money. Proceeds will benefit the Global Fund, the recipient of (RED) monies to fight AIDS on the ground in Africa.

So what’s on the auction block?

Soccer Ball, signed by:

Afrojack, Sebastian Ingrosso, Tiësto, Alesso, R3hab, Adrian Lux, Samson, Dada Life, Otto Knows, AN21, Sunnery James

Netherlands Team Jersey, signed by:

Tiesto, R3hab, Quintino, Afrojack, Samson, Romero, Ryan Marciano, Sunnery James

Sweden Team Jersey, signed by:

Sebastian Ingrosso, Alesso, Adrian Lux, Dada Life, AN21, Otto Knows

Signed Jerseys:

Netherlands Signed Jersey, Tiësto (Captain)

Netherlands Signed Jersey, Afrojack

Netherlands Signed Jersey, Nicky Romero

Netherlands Signed Jersey, Quintino

Netherlands Signed Jersey, Sidney Samson

Netherlands Signed Jersey, R3hab

Netherlands Signed Jersey, Sunnery James

Netherlands Signed Jersey, Ryan Marciano

Sweden Signed Jersey, Sebastian Ingrosso (Captain)

Sweden Signed Jersey, Alesso

Sweden Signed Jersey, Olle from Dada Life

Sweden Signed Jersey, Stefan from Dada Life

Sweden Signed Jersey, AN21

Sweden Signed Jersey, Otto Knows

Sweden Signed Jersey, Adrian Lux

Signed Cleats

Tiësto

Afrojack

Sebastian Ingrosso

Olle from Dada Life

Stefan from Dada Life

Alesso

The auction is open to bidders internationally through April 17th at Charitybuzz.com/RED. Don’t miss your chance to own an item from the epic (RED) DJ Football Games while helping the fight for an AIDS Free Generation. Let the bidding begin!

The INC(RED)IBLE Women Series: A Voice in the Fight Against AIDS

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 15:37:00 +0000

As Women’s International History Month and our INC(RED)IBLE Women series comes to an end we want to recognize some of the women who use the power of their voice in the fight for an AIDS Free Generation - Ellen Degeneres, Dr. Patrica Nkansah-Asamoah, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Dr. Mphu Ramatapeng. Thank you for delivering such an important message at a critical turning point for the Beginning of the End of AIDS.

It’s not too late to have the INC(RED)IBLE Women in your life featured in our series. Find out how here.

Ellen Degeneres

Ellen's panel on the (2015)QUILT

In November 2011, Ellen Degeneres was appointed Special Envoy for Global AIDS Awareness by Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton. Secretary Clinton stated, “Ellen is going to bring not only her sharp wit and her big heart but her impressive TV audience and more than 8 million followers to raise awareness and support for this effort.”

Dr. Patricia Nkansah-Asamoah

Dr. Patricia Nkansah-Asamoah on Stage during (RED) & ONE’s

World AIDS Day Event, “The Beginning of the End of AIDS.”

Dr. Patricia is the Director of the PMTCT Clinic at Tema Hospital in Ghana, witnessing first-hand the impact on the ground that Global Fund monies funded by (RED) provide.

“By far the most gratifying part of my job is taking an HIV positive mother through labor and delivery, and following up with her and being able to tell her after 18 months that her baby is HIV negative. I have seen, first-hand, that when mothers have access to ARVs, they use them. And when they use them the chances of vertical transmission (when the virus travels inadvertently from the pregnant mother to her child) are minimal. At Tema General Hospital, a mere 5% of babies whose mothers have begun treatment test positive... I am hopeful that as we focus our energy and resources on eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV by 2015, that our transmission rate will drop to zero and I’ll have more stories…where we are able to give our babies the gift of being HIV-free at birth.” –Dr. Patricia Nkansah-Asamoah

Dr. Mphu Ramatapeng

Photo Credit: ONE

Dr. Mphu Ramatapeng is the minister of health for Lesotho. Her commitment to global health issues, including the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) and HIV-TB co-infection is inspiring and relentless. In an interview with our friends at ONE, Dr. Ramatapeng relates her country’s progress in PMTCT treatment thus far:

“In Lesotho, the possibility of achieving what was once an elusive target — an AIDS-free generation — is very real. In some of the most difficult to reach, very remote areas, we’re now having children born HIV-free. We are actually a model country for PMTCT efforts in the sense that we didn’t adopt single dose nevirapine [a cheaper, less effective PMTCT treatment regimen] from the onset, but instead we adopted the best lines of treatment — much earlier than South Africa, in fact. Every pregnant woman in Lesotho in the last five years has been tested and followed by community health workers from village to village.” –Dr. Mphu Ramatapeng

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton

Photo Credit:US Department of State

On November 17th, 2011 Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton delivered a powerful and important speech on the possibility of an AIDS Free Generation. She stressed the importance of concentrating on three key pieces to make that possibility a reality – preventing the transmission of HIV from moms to their babies, increasing access to lifesaving anti-retroviral medication, and scaling up innovative prevention techniques such as voluntary medical male circumcision and the use of treatment as prevention.

“The goal of an AIDS-free generation may be ambitious, but it is possible with the knowledge and interventions we have right now. And that is something we’ve never been able to say without qualification before. Imagine what the world will look like when we succeed. Imagine AIDS wards that once were stretched far beyond their capacity becoming outpatient clinics caring for people with a manageable condition, children who might have been orphaned and then trafficked or recruited as child soldiers instead growing up with the hope of a better future, communities where despair once reigned filled instead with optimism, countries that can make the most of every single person’s God-given potential. That is the world that has always been at the core of American belief, and we have worked toward it in our own history. It’s the world I think we all would like to live in. An AIDS-free generation would be one of the greatest gifts the United States could give to our collective future…Let’s not stop now. Let’s keep focused on the future. And one of those futures that I hope we can.” –Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton

If you missed Florence Ngobeni-Allen's INC(RED)IBLE story you can read it here.

What (RED)'s Reading: Instant Infant HIV Diagnosis to be Rolled Out in Rural Kenya

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 15:34:00 +0000

Credit: Isaiah Esipisu/IPS

New technology in Kenya is making it possible for the results of infant HIV testing nearly instant. Isaiah Esipisu shares the story on IPS News. Here's an excerpt:

"NAIROBI, Feb 20, 2012 (IPS) - Jesse Mtembe, a nursing officer at the Akithenesit Health Centre in Teso North, in Kenya’s Western Province, cannot wait for his centre to be connected to a new software system for diagnosing HIV in infants that is being developed in the country’s leading private university.

Soon Mtembe’s patients will be able to receive the HIV tests results of their infants as soon as the relevant tests have been conducted at one of the country’s central laboratories some 200 kilometres away. Currently parents in rural health centres wait up to 18 weeks for the results.

Since 2011, students at Kenya’s Strathmore University have been developing and refining software for infant HIV diagnosis. The software has been implemented in 75 health centres in the remotest parts of the country as part of first phase trials.

The software seems simple enough. Once blood samples arrive at one of the country’s four central Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) laboratories all samples are logged into the system. Once this is done, the software automatically generates a short message service (SMS) to the rural health centre the sample was sent from to confirm receipt.

Once diagnosis has been completed, the system generates another SMS to confirm this, and if the result is negative, the results are also given. Results are received in rural areas on SMS printers and parents are notified by the clinic that their results are ready."

Read the full article here.

Team Tiësto v. Team Sebastian Ingrosso: A DJ Footie Match to Fight AIDS

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 16:35:00 +0000

Miami Music Week has a bit of a different tune this year as the world’s best DJ’s showcase their massive skills on stage and off in a footie match for the ages – a face-off between the Dutch and the Swedes.

Tiësto, Sebastian Ingrosso and 12 other top DJ’s will take the field on Wednesday March 21, in a battle for bragging rights and to raise money for (RED). Each team will play in a custom jersey in their country's signature colors designed specifically for the game. At the end of the match the jerseys will be signed by each player and auctioned off by (RED) for you to get your hands on – all proceeds will go to (RED) supported Global Fund grants on the ground to fight AIDS in Africa.

So, which team do you think will win?

Team Netherlands – Captain Tiësto

R3HAB

Team Sweden – Captain Sebastian Ingrosso

Alesso

Adrian Lux

Dada Life (Olle and Stefan)

AN21

Otto Knows

Stay tuned to @joinred and @DJFootballGames for the latest updates on the match, the auction and more. Next week the exclusive footage of the game including highlight reels and interviews with the players will be on (RED)'s YouTube channel.

Now let's see who's got game.

How a Small Big Thing Can Help Fight AIDS

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 14:40:00 +0000

We are happy to announce the Spanish jewelry company Tous has joined the (RED) family to help fight AIDS. Recognizable by the iconic Tous bear, the (TOUS)RED Special Edition bracelet features a vermeil 18kt gold-plated sterling silver disc on a red nylon cord – now available in all Tous stores and at tous.com globally. The bracelet costs US$ 119 and Tous will contribute 5% of each purchase to the Global Fund, the recipient of (RED) monies.

It’s a small big thing. Click here to buy.

Calling All Creatives Worldwide: The (RED) Boot Camp

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 20:44:00 +0000

We’ve partnered up with Sid Lee and are looking for the most creative people on the planet in graphic design, web design, art direction, copywriting, creative technology, industrial design and architecture to be part of the Sid Lee and (RED) Boot Camp.

The challenge for the 2012 Sid Lee and (RED) Boot Camp? Be INSPI(RED) to Innovate. Creatives will be challenged to imagine the future of the fight against AIDS by generating powerful new ideas such as programs, events, technologies, products and places. What would you do to take the fight to the next level? How can (RED) continue to make an impact by mobilizing its supporters?

Think you have what it takes?

You have until March 30th to visit Sid Lee’s Facebook page and apply to be one of eight top creatives who will team up to explore innovation and ideas in the fight against AIDS.

The 240 hour creative blitz will be held May 15th – May 24th in Montreal at Sid Lee’s industrial space as well as on site at C2-MTL – an international conference on commerce and creativity.

For more info check out Sid Lee on Facebook and Twitter. Apply here now.

Must be 18 or older. Successful applicants will be flown at Sid Lee's Expense – Transportation to Montreal (up to Can$1,200), food, accommodations, activities.

Meet Another INC(RED)IBLE Woman

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 13:51:00 +0000

Panelists on Stage during (RED) & ONE’s World AIDS Day Event, “The Beginning of the End of AIDS.”

From left to right: Kay Warren (Founder, HIV & AIDS Initiative, Saddleback Church), Florence Ngobeni (HIV Educator & Ambassador for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation), Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA), Muhtar Kent (Chairman & CEO, The Coca-Cola Company), Panel Moderator Dr. Sanjay Gupta (Neurosurgeon & CNN Chief Medical Correspondent), Dr. Patricia Nkansah-Asamoah (Director of PMTCT Clinic at Tema Hospital in Accra, Ghana), Alicia Keys (Artist & Co-Founder of Keep a Child Alive), Bono (Lead Singer of U2 & Co-Founder of (RED) & ONE), Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL)

Florence Ngobeni-Allen is an HIV educator and programs consultant from Johannesburg, South Africa. As an HIV-positive mother and beneficiary of prevention-of-mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) treatment, she speaks out on behalf of women and children as an ambassador for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. She was also a panelist at (RED) and ONE’s World AIDS Day event on “The Beginning of the End of AIDS,” during which she shared her personal story of bravery and triumph.

Nearly 15 years ago, Florence lost her baby daughter Nomthunzi to AIDS. Shortly after giving birth in 1996, Florence’s husband fell ill and died a few months later. Nomthunzi had also become ill, so Florence brought her to Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto, South Africa, where they both were tested for HIV – they tested positive. Antiretroviral medicines (ARVs) were not available for children in South Africa at that time and Nomthunzi sadly passed away a few weeks later. She was only five-months old.

To help cope with her grief, Florence volunteered to become a counselor at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, the same hospital where she and Nomthunzi had been tested for HIV. She found that there was very little access to ARVs and countless mothers were losing their children to HIV. But thanks to the efforts of so many, including the Global Fund and PEPFAR, things began to change – there was finally a way to stop HIV transmission from mom to baby and treatment made its way to South Africa bringing with it, hope for an AIDS Free Generation.

Florence got married again and knowing about PMTCT treatment she began considering the possibility of having a family. She became pregnant and with access to ARV treatment was able to give birth to a healthy HIV-negative son named Alex who is now 5-years-old. Last year she gave birth to a second son, Kulani, who is also HIV-negative.

Florence believes in the dream of an AIDS Free Generation. As she said on World AIDS Day, “I have a reason to fight the fight that we’re all fighting. We still have women and children who will go through the same cycle. I’m glad that we think in the next 30 years we’ll eradicate HIV. We’ll get rid of HIV. And no child, no mother will die of HIV.”

Read more about the INC(RED)IBLE Women Series here.

Ashley @ (RED)

INC(RED)IBLE MOTHERS

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 20:47:00 +0000

It's Mother's Day in the UK on Sunday and what better way to continue our INC(RED)IBLE Women series than to recognize all the mums out there.

We've already introduced you to Doris – a seamstress, jewelry-maker, and proud mother. When diagnosed with HIV in 1998, treatment for HIV/AIDS was not widely available in Ghana. Now, thanks in part to Global Fund-financed programs supported by (RED) funds, life-saving antiretroviral (ARV) medication is available in Ghana and Doris has been taking ARVs since 2003. Thanks to treatment to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV – the kind of treatment also funded by (RED) supported Global Fund grants – she is the mother of Michael, her HIV negative son.

Now, we want you to share YOUR amazing mother with us.

There are two ways to have your mum be part of our INC(RED)IBLE Women series.

1) We'll send a tweet to your mum on Mother's Day! Just send us her twitter handle and your message.

2) Post your mum's photo on our Facebook page and tell us in one line why she is incredible.

All your photos and tweets will be added to our INC(RED)IBLE Women's album on Facebook and Pinterest which will go live at the end of the March.

Happy Mother's Day to all our UK friends!

INC(RED)IBLE WOMEN

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 17:58:00 +0000

Today is International Women’s Day. To celebrate we want to recognize the INC(RED)IBLE women in our life and yours.

Kektso and Doris are two amazing women we’ve met. Who are yours? Which woman inspires you? Share her photo and tell us in one line why she is INC(RED)IBLE to you. Post it on our Facebook page or tweet us.

At the end of the month your photos and stories will be gathered together in an album on Facebook and Pinterest to recognize each and every INC(RED)IBLE woman. We can’t wait to meet them. Until then, meet Keketso and Doris…

Keketso is INC(RED)IBLE for showing others that having

HIV should not stop them living their lives to the fullest.

Keketso learned she was HIV positive in 2000. Three years later, her husband died of AIDS, which Keketso believes he contracted in South Africa, working in the mining industry. Thanks to antiretroviral treatment which (RED) helps finance in Lesotho, Keketso is determined to show others that having HIV should not stop anyone. She now counsels other HIV patients. Keketso even won the title of “Queen of Positive Living 2008” and married the man of her dreams.

Doris is an INC(RED)IBLE mother.

Doris is a seamstress, jewelry-maker, and proud mother. When Doris was diagnosed with HIV in 1998, treatment for HIV/AIDS was not widely available in Ghana. Now, thanks in part to Global Fund-financed programs supported by (RED) funds, life-saving antiretroviral (ARV) medication is available in Ghana. Doris has been taking ARVs since 2003. As a founding member of the Wisdom Association, a Global Fund-financed support connecting with other HIV positive community members, “it makes me happy to help others who feel alone when they find out about their status.” Also, thanks to treatment to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV - the kind of treatment funded by (RED) supported Global Fund grants - Doris is the mother of Michael, her HIV negative son.

Will Your Story About Aid Change the World?

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 15:32:00 +0000

Guest post by Tom Scott– Director, Global Brand & Innovation at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Originally published on Impatient Optimists, the blog of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

In November of 2009, I read an article by the New York Times writer Nicholas Kristof for Outside magazine. In the piece, he talked about how positive, hopeful storytelling about development (financial aid given by governments to help developing countries alleviate poverty) could help save millions more lives; while negative stories overwhelm. People are more inclined to act in response to success stories.

I couldn’t agree more.

But the problem is negative stories are much more appealing and easier to tell. Studies in "Positive psychology"suggest that you need five “positive” interactions to replace just one “negative” interaction. The deck is clearly stacked to get those positive stories out.

One story that needs changing is that of development aid and the powerful impact it can have around the world. That's where you come in. We need to gather and share stories of aid that works well.

We constantly hear stories of corruption, waste, and broken systems when it comes to aid. But that’s not the whole story. Effective aid programs help developing countries become self-sufficient. They do not replace those countries’ efforts, but rather support the important work that’s already under way.

To foster new ideas and thinking on this, we are drawing on one of the most innovative programs at the foundation: Grand Challenges Explorations (GCE). It's a foundation program which funds early-stage projects which show great promise, even if they have never been tested before. For the first time ever, GCE will be used to help solve a communication challenge: changing the narrative on aid.

The goal of this challenge? To find inspiring, positive stories to tell. How? We're soliciting new approaches to communications that motivate the public in the wealthy countries of the world to change their minds about aid, and take actions to demonstrate their support.

It’s simple. Fill out a short form. Be clear. Be creative. Be prepared. Your idea for new ways to communicate about changing the world could be chosen.

The foundation is partnering with the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity to spread the word. In order to find the very best ideas, you have to tap the very best creative minds. The diversity of thinking and ideas should help push the limits of creativity around this critical issue.

When I joined the foundation just over two years ago, I was awestruck by the amazing ambition of my colleagues. Working just down the hall were people trying to find ways to eliminate diseases from the face of the earth.

I thought to myself, Couldn’t we have the same level of ambition when thinking about how to communicate about these really challenging issues?

If we, as a global community, are to succeed in ending extreme hunger and poverty and improving the health of the poorest, we must find ground-breaking ways to gather and share stories of aid working well. We must bring the data behind those stories to life. And we must do it on a global scale, making it relevant to audiences who are wrestling with tough economic decisions at home.

We want your ideas. Tell us your story.

Proposals are due May 15, 2012.

(MOPHIE)RED – CHARGE UP. SAVE LIVES.

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 15:25:00 +0000

Need to recharge? (PRODUCT)^RED Special Edition partner (MOPHIE)^RED is here. Now you can charge up your iPhone, iPod and iPad while saving lives – 5% of profits from (MOPHIE)^RED products sold will go to the Global Fund to help fight HIV/AIDS.

Better yet, Mophie is giving you a chance to win one! Once @mophie hits 6,000 followers on Twitter they’ll be handing out (MOPHIE)^RED juice pack airs to 6 lucky users. Stay tuned to @mophie for all the latest updates.

Here are the other products featured in the (MOPHIE)^RED collection:

· (MOPHIE)^RED Special Edition juice pack air for iPhone 4 & 4S— The juice pack air doubles the life of the iPhone 4/4S, while also protecting from drops, slips and bangs.

· (MOPHIE)^RED Special Edition juice pack plus for iPhone 4 &4S —Big brother to the juice pack air, the plus more than doubles the life of the iPhone 4/4S with a 2000 mAh battery capacity.

· (MOPHIE)^RED Special Edition juice pack reserve for iPod & iPhone—The zippo design-inspired reserve is perfect for a quick charge on-the-go. Featuring a 700 mAh battery, the reserve is lightweight, compact in design, and comes with a convenient key ring and integrated USB cable for easy charging.

· (MOPHIE)^RED Special Edition juice pack boost for iPod & iPhone—The sleek, pocket-sized backup battery also functions as a stand for the device. Utilizing its 2000 mAh battery capacity, the boost has the ability to fully charge an iPhone.

· (MOPHIE)^RED Special Edition juice pack powerstation for smart phones & tablets—The most powerful charger in the mophie family, the external battery with a 4000 mAh capacity can charge virtually any USB-enabled device including the iPad.

Charge up. Save Lives. It’s never been easier. Click here to get (MOPHIE)^RED online.

"This is not about charity. This is about justice."

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 21:40:00 +0000

Today is the last day of TED2012 – a week full of inspirational and innovative talks from some of the most provocative and riveting thinkers. Here’s a look back at Bono’s TED Talk from 2005 – ‘Join my call to action on Africa’.

Who wants to be on (RED)'s Facebook cover photo?

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 21:47:00 +0000

Our Facebook cover photo is full of (2015)QUILT panels and we want your panel to be on there too. How? That’s easy…

Create a panel on the (2015)QUILT to fight for an AIDS Free Generation by 2015. Be creative. Be inspired. Be (RED). You can even get one of the Killers' (RED) songs for free (check out the others on iTunes).

Post your panel to (RED)’s Facebook page or tweet @joinred the link to your panel for the chance of being featured. The deadline to submit a panel for our Facebook cover is 11PM EST/ 8PM PST on Sunday March 4^th– we'll be picking our favorites next week.

We can’t wait to see them!

The AIDS Memorial Quilt: A brief history of the quilt that comforted and motivated a movement

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 00:16:00 +0000

Guest post by ONE blog contributor Paulena Papagiannis

As you know, ONE and (RED) launched the vibrant and inspiring (2015)QUILT, a digital patchwork quilt designed to bring people together at this critical juncture in the fight against AIDS, last year on World AIDS Day. After more than 30 years of battling this devastating disease, we know how to limit its spread, treat its symptoms and effectively eradicate its presence from the planet. To date, more than 51,000 of you have shown your support by creating your very own panels. They stand as a testament to your dedication and to the nearness of an AIDS-free world.

But things weren’t always so hopeful. The (2015)QUILT, which draws its inspiration from a physical quilt called the AIDS Memorial Quilt, is the brainchild of Cleve Jones, a prominent gay rights activist from San Francisco. At a 1985 march honoring slain San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone, mourners recorded on placards the names of city residents lost to AIDS. They then mounted the signs onto the walls of the Federal Building, blanketing the sides with their tributes. When Jones stepped back to admire their statement, he saw a quilt.

His vision became a reality through the NAMES Project Foundation. The organization encouraged people to create quilt panels commemorating loved ones lost to AIDS and send them to the San Francisco office. Within two years, nearly 2,000 people around the country had sent their panels to California, where they became something more than the sum of their parts. The quilt provided an opportunity for collective grief and healing in a world that was largely intolerant of people with HIV.

In the 20 years since its inception, the quilt has continued to grow, serving as a tool for raising awareness, eliminating stigma, and inspiring action. At 54 tons, with more than 47,000 panels dedicated to twice as many individuals, the massive memorial is the largest piece of community folk art in the world. But it’s time for the quilt to stop growing. The tally of lives lost is high — but so is the number of people dedicated to making this disease history. Now.

If you haven’t made a panel yet, you can still add your colors to the 2015(QUILT). Create, browse, admire and be inspired!

How Africa Tweets – An Infographic

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 22:20:00 +0000

We love this - social networking for social good.

Fingers Crossed!

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 17:55:00 +0000

The Apple App Store is expected to hit 25 BILLION downloads worldwide soon! The App Store wants to say thanks - Download the 25 billionth app and you could win a US$10,000 App Store Gift Card (rules and regulations apply).

Our fingers are crossed that the 25 billionth download is the (SHAZAM)RED App for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad.

So why not go for the prize and fight for the end of AIDS while you’re at it?

Download the (SHAZAM)RED App here.

Turn the Super Bowl (RED) with (SHAZAM)RED

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:36:00 +0000

Calling all iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users! You can use your (SHAZAM)RED App during tomorrow’s Big Game for scores, stats, exclusive content, music and more.

How can you use it?

During the Big Game

• Tag the game for stats, up-to-the minute scores, special content and more.

At the Halftime Show

• When you use (SHAZAM)RED to tag the performance you can unlock exclusive content and experience more by the Interscope artists performing.

While watching Shazam-enabled Super Bowl Ads

• Be sure to look for the Shazam logo on screen or listen for a prompt from an announcer and start tagging.

• Enter to win a sweepstakes for a major prize

• Access to special offers and deals

So, whether you’re a fan of the Patriots or the Giants, watching the infamous Super Bowl ads, or tuning in for the spectacle of the halftime show - get ready to tag with the (SHAZAM)RED App! You’ll get more from the Big Game while helping to fight AIDS.

Get the (SHAZAM)RED App here.

Let’s Celebrate to Accelerate

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:11:00 +0000

Photo Credit: DATA

Guest Blog: Jamie Drummond, Executive Director of ONE

Ten years ago today, at a small press conference in New York, Bono and Bill Gates launched an activist entity called DATA, with start-up funds from Mr Gates, George Soros and Ed Scott.

I was one of the founders, along with Bobby Shriver and Lucy Matthew, and appointed the executive director. Though we started small, our oh so clever acronymic name stood for audacious goals: to campaign on debt, AIDS, trade and aid in partnership with African activists – in return for African governments offering more democracy, accountability and transparency to their citizens. We aspired to be data-based activists with a transatlantic bipartisan strategy, blending pop and policy, so that those with extreme global power would be forced to deal with extreme local poverty – and take the historic opportunity before us to end it.

This little unit evolved into ONE, and in partnership with others helped catalyse the Make Poverty History campaign, the Live 8 concerts and (RED), enabling tens of millions of people to take effective action against extreme poverty. Curiously, hardly anybody knows what all this, and the huge Jubilee Drop the Debt movement where we cut our activist teeth, really achieved.

Some think it achieved nothing or even backfired. So by telling you now the aim is not to blow our own trumpet but to sound a loud alarm, because if people don’t get to know about the wild successes of these struggles, as well as lessons learned from some big failures, they won’t get what’s at stake if progress stalls and programmes get cut back.

The statistics of success seem staggering. Maybe that’s part of the reason that people don’t know what’s been achieved; the super-sized statistics drown out more human-size stories. For example, since we and partners ramped up our campaigning for access to life preserving anti-AIDS medication, access increased – from only 50,000 people in Africa receiving the life-saving anti-retrovirals in 2002 to over five million people receiving the drugs in 2010. Such huge inhuman numbers have millions of human faces. Grace and Agnes are two HIV positive Ugandan activists who, when we first met them a decade ago, weren’t able to get the drugs they needed to keep them healthy. Their friends were dying in droves; surely they would themselves depart soon. They had formed a solidarity group, the AIDS Support Organisation, to sing to each other and find strength in the face of this daily struggle, and spread a hopeful message of AIDS prevention to those not yet infected. I recall our fury that these brilliant people would die so prematurely, leaving a generation of AIDS orphans. Yet just two weeks ago – ten years to the day after we first met them – we hung out with Grace and Agnes again, as the equatorial sun set on a veranda overlooking Lake Victoria. They are so alive and beaming with pride as they told us how, with a little help from their friends like Presidents Bush and Clinton, they’ve helped get nearly 300,000 more HIV positive Ugandans on to life-preserving, orphan-preventing medications.

Scale this up to 5 million across Africa, and 6.6 million globally, and we see an achievement on an epic scale. It is one of humanity’s greatest recent endeavours. Yet it is a tale rarely told. The story is similar in the spread of bednets and medications to beat malaria, which have cut death rates in half in 11 African countries. It is similar for education, with 46.5 million more children in school across Africa, in part because of dropped debts. It is similar for vaccinations: 5.5 million deaths have been averted through investments in the GAVI alliance for simple childhood immunisations. And it is similar for AIDS, TB and malaria, with the Global Fund, also set up ten years ago, saving over 100,000 lives every month from these three killer diseases.

It is hugely humbling to see a campaign you work for catch fire, shift from the margins to the mainstream and know that for each of the millions of lives changed, there are a million others on the other side of the planet across seemingly vast divides, who reached out in partnership. Real people believing in each other and working together to change the world.

But there is no room for smug self-congratulation as the struggles against disease, inequality and illiteracy are far from over, and especially as we learn the lessons of three scandalous oversights: on food security, on trade, and on support for African civil society and their drive for improved transparency and accountability.

Firstly, we were all far too late to campaign for increased investments into food security until the price of food spiralled out of control, hitting the poorest hardest. Still nearly a billion people go hungry every day. Thankfully, the combined leadership of Kofi Annan, Bill Gates and President Obama has put the importance of food security back on the map. But there’s still much, much more to do.

Secondly, we never got going on trade. Despite repeated efforts, the Doha Trade Round is dead, and the often promised Development Round has delivered nothing. Yet steps can – and must – still be taken, for example to support intra-African trade and integration, and provide greater access to all developed markets for African goods, quota and duty free. The better news is on investment as word of Africa’s booming economies has transformed perceptions. Ten years ago the Economist called Africa the “hopeless continent”. In December, the Economist wrote of an “Africa Rising”.

Thirdly, calls from African civil society for greater transparency and accountability have often been paid politically correct lip service, but real support was scarce. Now we’re trying to make up for lost time, in particular by backing activists’ calls for oil, gas and other extractive companies to “publish what they pay” governments for the right to extract natural resources. This will allow citizens to scrutinise official accounts and reduce space for corruption. Indeed, all public finances must be made more transparent and all projects more rigorously monitored for impact, especially by the marginalised – the very people these projects are intended to help. In the last ten years new technologies – led by the mobile phone and social media – make it now much more possible to turbocharge such transparency drives.

It’s an understatement to say that the world has changed utterly this last ten years, in some ways better, some worse. We’ve witnessed serious failures of political and corporate leadership bring on a devastating financial crisis. We’ve also seen that it is leadership from the people that is more often what inspires. From the Arab street to the millions of people delivering lifesaving support to each other on an epic scale we, as citizens and as organised global civil society, can change the course of history. In the face of such progress, and so many remaining challenges and opportunities, the abiding lesson must be that cynicism is unacceptable, apathy is the enemy, to care can be cool. There are grounds for optimism, for hope – for when we work together as one, across political divides, oceans, ethnicities, and beliefs we’ve seen we can achieve awesome results. With so much more to do forgive us if we celebrate – for it’s the best way to accelerate.

This post first appeared on the Huffington Post UK website

10 years of lives saved through the Global Fund

noreply@blogger.com ((RED) Digital) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 14:50:00 +0000

Guest Post: In celebration of the Global Fund’s 10th anniversary, ONE Global Health Policy Manager Erin Hohlfelder reflects on the organization’s accomplishments over the years.

When I was ten, I was busy doing important things like mastering long division, practicing softball and rocking the plastic glasses/bowl cut combo. While I’m proud of those accomplishments, I have to say I’m even more proud today to honor all the incredible things that the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has achieved in its first ten years of existence. To understand the Global Fund’s impact, it’s important to remember just how bad things were before it existed: Fewer than 50,000 Africans had access to AIDS treatment. Malaria was killing nearly 1 million people annually. Treating TB was considered too expensive for most of the developing world.

In late January of 2002, leaders came together in Switzerland to launch the Global Fund. Built to be what Kofi Annan called a “war chest” to respond to these global health emergencies, it had the backing of donors, public health officials, developing country leaders and NGOs. Intentionally, it was designed to be different than other aid models; it was rooted in having local stakeholders (rather than donors) say what they wanted to do to fight AIDS, TB or malaria, and how much money it would take to get the job done.

Though no aid model is perfect, the Global Fund has clearly been doing something right, because it has delivered incredible results over the last decade:

3.3 million people on AIDS treatment;

More than 1 million pregnant women on treatment to protect their babies from HIV;

More than 8.6 million cases of tuberculosis treated worldwide; and

More than 230 million insecticide-treated bed nets delivered for the prevention of malaria.

In delivering these services — often in partnership with aid efforts including PEPFAR and with national health systems — the Global Fund has helped change the global health landscape. Though they each still claim far too many lives, all three diseases are all on the decline globally. Now, the mantra has shifted from a “stop the bleeding” approach to a more hopeful, long term approach characterized by phrases like “we can achieve the beginning of the end of AIDS” and “we know how to end malaria deaths by 2015.” And, just as my own personal style has thankfully evolved from those outdated plastic glasses to contact lenses, the Global Fund has gone through its own strategic reforms in the last 12 months to become an even more targeted, efficient mechanism in the years to come.

Funding — as always — remains a challenge. The Global Fund has said it is currently unable to fund new programs until 2014 due to a roughly $2 billion funding gap. Constricting global budgets, coupled with persistent whispers of corruption, are convenient excuses for donors to pull back on their contributions to these diseases. But the Global Fund has made the changes necessary to ensure that money invested in its programs will be monitored transparently, evaluated rigorously and directed toward specific outcomes. As a result, donors should feel confident that maintaining or increasing their contributions will go toward the achievement of bold new goals: saving 10 million lives and preventing 140 to 180 million new infections between 2012 and 2016.

Of all the aid projects I’ve been able to visit, the one individual who stands out most is a playful little girl named Madeline who I met at a Global Fund clinic in Ghana. She was born HIV-positive, but thanks to the Global Fund, her mother was able to access the antiretroviral treatment that will keep her alive and healthy. I get that 10 million lives saved through the Global Fund seems too overwhelming to conceptualize. So instead, I’d suggest we simply think of Madeline, and then think of all the other Madelines out there who, thanks to the Global Fund, will be able to grow up healthy and one day also master long division and practice softball like me. I just hope they all skip the bowl cuts!