(RED)

ONE is embarking on a listening and learning trip to Senegal, Ghana, Mozambique and Kenya with members of our board and other supporters. Christy Turlington Burns checks in:

I met an inspiring woman a few days ago in Accra, Ghana. Her name was Elizabeth*. She is a mother, a widow and she is HIV positive. This may sound pretty grim, but what I learned from spending some time with her is that Elizabeth and her two-year-old daughter Abigail* are getting the care they need here at the Tema General Hospital.

Elizabeth learned about her HIV positive status when she came here to be tested after her husband died a few years ago. She was pregnant at the time, which was actually a blessing, because it enabled her to begin antiretroviral treatment at a critical time for Abigail. Abigail takes a prophylactic drug to prevent infection of the AIDS virus.

I also spent some time with the nurses here who counsel the families who come into the clinic from up to a 15 kilometer radius to be tested. They shared other stories like Elizabeth’s, where women sought them out to be tested and then treated if their results were positive. 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, a mere 4% of babies whose mothers have begun treatment test positive. I was told that just a few years ago things were not nearly as hopeful.

Before the Global Fund and (RED) started distributing money to treat and prevent AIDS, there was very little incentive for the poor in Ghana to test because having HIV was a virtual death sentence.

Dr. Patricia Nsamoah, a senior medical officer and HIV focal person at TEMA, told us about the state of the clinic before they received Global Fund (RED) money.

“We’ve been testing HIV for a very long time, but basically people just didn’t know what to do if they tested positive for HIV,” Dr. Nsamoah said. “So when ARVs came, the Global Fund made it possible for us to have access to ARVs. You can at least see a patient, treat opportunistic infections, test for CD4, and at the point when they need the ARVs it is available and you can have a success story. Previously if you were working in the fever unit as the doctor in charge, what you did at the beginning of every morning was to sign death certificates because overnight by the time you came people had just died. But now a lot has changed… I’m telling you the clinic just grows bigger because people do not die.”

Today, Tema serves more than 2,200 people infected with HIV/AIDS in Ghana. These families are thriving and they are hopeful despite all they have endured. Abigail is a beautiful, curious little girl. She is confident with wise eyes that have seen the future.

*Elizabeth and Abigail’s names have been changed to protect their privacy.

ONE’s sister organization (RED) just released this great new video. It comes just days before Arsenal hosts Manchester United at Emirates Stadium which will turn (RED) as a display of both teams’ commitment to fighting AIDS in Africa.

Tune in this Sunday at 11 AM EST on Fox Soccer to watch the match. You can read more about the event here.

The blog Aid Watch has a thought-provoking post today from William Easterly, Professor of Economics at New York University and Co-Director of NYU’s Development Research Institute. In the past, Easterly has been critical about ONE’s sister organization (RED)–and of Western aid, more generally– so it might come as a surprise to some that he recently sat down for coffee with (RED)’s co-founder Bobby Shriver.

Below is an excerpt from Easterly’s account of the exchange:

Displaying exceptional cool in the face of this mockery, Bobby Shriver, the other co-founder of RED, met me for a coffee. He could have gone all angry and defensive and preachy about His Great Initiative (which others in his place have done). Instead, he asked for suggestions on how to improve RED.

In response to my suggestion that RED source more products from Africa, he pointed to the “From Africa To Africa” coffee from Starbucks and said they had apparently not done enough to advertise they were already doing that. He also said he was open to discussing it more. I think RED marketing to support self-help by African entrepreneurs to sell in the US would be brilliant. (I have to report that the RED coffee I tried was OK, but nowhere near the Tomoca Coffee I purchased in Ethiopia – the best coffee I have ever had but difficult to buy outside Ethiopia.)

I too tried to be open-minded. He understands the politics of advocacy much better than I do: “You’ve got to get them talking about the cause at the Pig Roast” (the typical fund-raising event for a congressional candidate). Let’s give Shriver and RED credit for raising awareness of AIDS in Africa, not to mention of African poverty in general (although I’m sticking to my argument that the Bono/RED approach has led to some paternalistic and misguided remedies to those problems.)

Yesterday we posted a great column by Susan Smith Ellis, CEO of our sister organization (RED), commemorating World AIDS Day. But there were plenty of other notable people spreading the word about (RED) in the press. Here’s a recap:

June Ambrose: (RED) is Hot (Stylelist)

Maxwell: Walk in AIDS patients’ shoes (CNN.com)

Kelly Rutherford: Caught Caring (Celebrity Baby Blog)

John Legend: The Good News on AIDS (The Daily Beast)

Bruce Mau: Seeing (RED) for Joy and Hope (Advertising Age)

James Frey: Guest Blog: James Frey shares his devastation over losing his son (Strollerderby)

In honor of World AIDS Day, Susan Smith Ellis, CEO of our sister organization (RED), wrote a great article for the Huffington Post.

Check out an excerpt of her piece below—and read the full article here. Don’t forget to share it with your friends!

On World AIDS Day, we don’t celebrate with fireworks or champagne. We take note of what has been accomplished and we resolve to keep at it. We are proud of what our partners have accomplished. We like to say that they have gained market share for life (and for themselves) and in so doing they have changed the course of a part of human history.

In 2006, it was estimated that only 8% of HIV-positive pregnant women in Ghana received the antiretroviral medicine necessary to reduce the chance of transmitting HIV to their unborn children. Without the medicine, the chances of HIV transmission were (and are) roughly 50-50. With the medicine, the chances of HIV transmission drop to between 1 and 2%. By the end of 2008, nearly 40% of Ghanaian women in need received the medicine that will transform the lives of their children. That is market share for life. And it is growing year-over-year.

On this World AIDS Day, there is improvement in HIV detection across sub-Saharan Africa. The percentage of pregnant women who were able to take an HIV test increased from 17% in 2007 to 28% in 2008. We have every reason to believe that the percentage figure will increase substantially again this year (the final data are not yet available). The goal obviously is to keep ramping up testing until the chain of HIV transmission from mother to child is one day broken altogether. That day is coming, if we keep after it.

And don’t miss the new video recently posted to the (RED) website on the Lazarus Effect (the extraordinary transformation that often takes place in critically ill patients after just months of ARV treatment):

Today, on the eve of World AIDS Day, ONE’s sister organization (RED) announced that Nike, Inc. will become its newest partner in the global fight against AIDS, joining existing partners such as Apple, Starbucks, GAP, Hallmark, Converse, Emporio Armani and Dell.

Nike and (RED) will team up to market (RED) shoelaces, inviting people to “Lace up. Save Lives.” All of the profits from the sale of these laces will be split between the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and Nike initiatives that promote education and awareness of HIV/AIDS prevention at a community level. Nike and (RED) are hoping that their unique partnership will support programs for prevention, treatment and education of HIV/AIDS.

At the launch of the new partnership in London today, international soccer stars joined (RED) CEO Susan Smith Ellis, Nike President and CEO, Mark Parker, Executive Director of the Global Fund, Professor Michel D. Kazatchkine and ONE and (RED) co-founder Bono.”The fight against AIDS in Africa needs great brands to drive awareness and engagement,” said Susan Smith Ellis. “Nike is the right partner to connect education with sport, and in so doing help drive social change, prevention and understanding of HIV/AIDS. We are thrilled to have them with us.”

Check out (RED)’s press release for more info and be sure to look out for Nike’s (RED) shoelaces in stores around the world starting tomorrow!

Susan Smith Ellis, CEO of our sister organization (RED), has an article in the Huffington Post I thought readers would be interested in.

She offers her take on the vaccination report issued by the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and UNAIDS that we blogged about recently.

Excerpts below. Read the full article here, and share with your friends!

There are now more than 4 million people on antiretroviral treatments; up from 3 million the previous year. Nearly half of all HIV positive pregnant women who need treatment to help prevent the transmission of HIV to their child during birth are now getting it. And, there are more people with access to testing and counseling for HIV than ever before. The greatest progress has been achieved in sub-Saharan Africa.

As the CEO of (RED), I’m extremely proud of the progress that has been made and the contributions made by our partners (through the sale of (RED)-branded products) to the Global Fund. To date, through the sale of those (RED)-branded products and some (RED)-sponsored special events, we have generated over $135 million for the Global Fund in less than three years.

But the story behind the numbers is much more profound. On recent trips to both Ghana and Rwanda, where (RED) grant money is at work, I was fortunate to be able to see firsthand the impact that access to lifesaving medicine has. I met with HIV positive mothers who were able to give birth to healthy babies because the medicine given to them during labor prevented the transmission of this deadly virus. I talked with doctors, nurses and other health care providers who spoke of the transformation of their own work. Where once they could offer little hope to someone with AIDS, now they can provide medicine that is transformative.

Our sister organization (RED) was featured on CNBC recently. It’s a great clip, and a really good illustration of the work (RED) does with the Global Fund.

Definitely worth a watch:

For those who might not have had a chance to peruse the (RED)TM site lately, I wanted to highlight the fantastic and truly interactive (RED)NIGHTS section. In case you’re not familiar, (RED)NIGHTS is ‘a concert series that saves lives’ featuring 26 concerts by different musicians including Santigold, Fall Out Boy, Built to Spill and many others in support of (RED)’s goal to eliminate AIDS in Africa. We blogged about “Hal Willner Presents: Evening with Gavin Friday and Friends”, which was the 16th concert in the series, here.

The web portion of the series relies heavily on users to share photos, videos, and tweets—a lot of which are then posted on the site. All told it is a very cool site, so be sure to check it out and share with your friends here.

As you know, a portion of profits from each (RED) product sold goes directly to the Global Fund to invest in African AIDS programs. To date, (RED) has generated over $135,000,000, which supports AIDS programs that have reached 4 million people.

On Sunday night in New York City, our friends at (RED) hosted “Hal Willner Presents: An Evening with Gavin Friday and Friends,” a benefit concert at Carnegie Hall.

In part a birthday celebration for Gavin Friday, a notable Irish musician in his own right, the night welcomed an array of performers and was also part of the (RED)NIGHTS concert series, generating support and awareness of (RED)’s goal to eliminate AIDS in Africa. Learn more about (RED)NIGHTS here.

As the evening unfolded, the members of U2, Scarlett Johansson, Shane MacGowan of the Pogues, Lady Gaga and Rufus Wainwright and others all took their turns on stage. Lou Reed also stopped in for an impromptu performance along with his wife Laurie Anderson and numerous other special guests.

What a show.

You can read more about it here.

-Chris Geer, NY Field Organizer