Bono and DATA to receive the Liberty Medal tonight

We just learned that the Philadelphia Inquirer will bathe its tower in red tonight to honor (RED) co-founder Bono, who is receiving the National Constitution Center’s 2007 Liberty Medal award with DATA at 7PM EST in Philadelphia. Read interviews with Bono by the Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News to learn why Bono and DATA are this year’s recipients of the Liberty Medal, and his thoughts on this honor.

If you're in Philly, check out the Inquirer's tower tonight at 400 N Broad St., Philadelphia, PA 19130. We'll be tuning in to watch the webcast at libertymedal.org, but we'd love to see photos from Philadelphia as well. Send your photos to moblog@joinred.com!

--bn

Tamsin's remarks at the Global Fund's Donor Pledging Conference

Tamsin spoke today at the Global Fund’s Donor Pledging Conference in Berlin, where donor countries pledged $10 billion over the next three years to help fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. She explained to these government officials how (RED) works and our results to date, giving them an idea of how individuals can also help fund the Global Fund’s tremendous work.

Here are Tamsin’s remarks as prepared:

I am humbled to sit amongst such a distinguished group, and honored to speak on behalf of (RED). In representing (RED), I hope to convey in person the commitment of many who are present here only in spirit. Among these are: (RED) founders Bono and Bobby Shriver; (RED) product partners Apple, American Express, Converse, Gap, Giorgio Armani, and Motorola; (RED) shoppers around the world; and the (RED) stakeholders in Africa, who are alive today because of (RED) shoppers and the catalytic impact of the Global Fund.

The concept of (RED) was launched in January 2006, with the simple idea of engaging global companies to focus their creative genius on designing and marketing special (RED) product lines, which would share up to half the profit on sales with the Global Fund. The Global Fund targets 100 percent of these (RED)-generated funds to help HIV-impacted people in Africa. The first recipient countries are Rwanda, Swaziland and Ghana – chosen for their records of performance and intensity of need.

In engaging private sector partners to bring the (RED) idea to life, we asked the selected companies to make multiyear commitments to ensure that this would be a serious, sustained effort. From the beginning, we worked to ensure that (RED) would not become a short-lived promotion. Awareness is important, but money is essential, and we were determined to make a material difference in helping the Global Fund tap the resources of the private sector.

We could not have projected then what a year plus would yield, but I can say now that we are very pleased with results to date. Since the first items when on sale in March of 2006, (RED) has infused the Global Fund with an additional $45 million.

What can we expect in the next three years? The future of (RED) has many authors. We must continue to bring on smart, strategic, committed companies to invent still more compelling (RED) offerings. Additionally, we must continue spreading understanding of and excitement about (RED) – its value proposition and the impact it’s having on (RED) shareholders in Africa – so that more and more shoppers around the world choose (RED) over non-(RED).

To this end, I can tell you we believe we are on the crest of a powerful wave of consumer engagement. Here I mean both marketplace consumers and consumers of information in the marketplace of ideas. Historically governments and civil society organizations have carried the water on funding and administering public health programs. That is appropriate and critically necessary. However, too few regular, everyday people out there really felt connected to what their taxes or donations were supporting. (RED) opens the window and lets them in – to see and feel and directly participate in the incredible challenge of eradicating a treatable, preventable disease.

This is power. It is a power that benefits governments, individuals and institutions like the Global Fund. I cannot tell you today how far beyond $45 million the (RED) revenue stream will stretch by 2010, but I can tell you that we do have exciting new global partners to announce and plenty of huge concepts and events planned. We believe the promise of these early days is bounded only by the imaginations of inspired shoppers, brilliant brands, and shareholders, such as those around this table, who can help spread the word.

Thank you again for this opportunity.

Tamsin Smith
President
(RED)

A busy weekend

(RED) volunteers in Texas at the Dave Matthews Band show.
For more photos from the tour, check out our flickr page for the tour.

(RED) volunteers at Global Mala.
Check out our flickr photo set from this event!

The (RED) / ONE teams were out in full force across the country this past weekend!

We met back up with Common, talking to fans at his shows in Minneapolis and Milwaukee. Common’s tour is proving to be a really amazing experience – we talk to countless fans who are really excited to get behind the idea of what (RED) is working to do. Our field team commented that they couldn’t believe how many people they met over the two nights this weekend that had been to or were going to Africa, doing projects with NGOs and even on their own. As always, the Common team was super supportive and helpful – we are really excited about the remaining dates of the tour!

Our Dave Matthews Band team was also hard at work, taking on Texas this weekend. We got thousands of fans involved with ONE and (RED) while in Houston and Dallas, working, as always, with a bunch of very cool volunteers to make it happen. We had a super crew join us in Houston, including long time ONE volunteers Tracey, Al and Lisa, as well as new volunteers Kelly, Sarah, Luke, Cindy, Fernando and Katie. The team did great – hitting the ground running, so to speak, after going through their training!

The next night in Dallas proved to be even more successful – we had a great location right around the curve of the west concourse. Somehow, all of our volunteers arrived within 5 minutes of each other – always a good sign of how the evening would go! Joining us to help in Dallas was Kelly, a fifth grade teacher; Robert, Elliot, and Eliza, all students; and Melody and Cheryl, long time friends and advocates of the ONE Campaign and (RED). Since all of our volunteers were familiar with the campaign, training was a snap, and we all had a little time to relax before the doors were open to the fans. Once the venue was open, our crew was all business, everyone staying out the entire time without rest, only returning to the booth to get more sign up sheets. The booth was in full swing as well thanks to a great location, and many new people as well as several old friends of the campaign stopped by to show their support. By the end of the night, our high-energy crew was getting pretty tired, but this didn't stop them from staying till the very end – all of our volunteers stayed for the full effort! Great crew, super attitude, and just and all around fun team!

We also were getting our inner yogi on with Global Mala in Los Angeles. (RED) took part in this first-time event, recruiting lots of new support for our work and spreading the word in a big way how much (RED) had raised for the Global Fund. Attendees were very impressed to learn that (RED) had raised $45 million in our first year of existence – and they were very interested in checking out the (RED) products we had on display so they could continue to contribute! We were joined by a great team of volunteers here as well – Drea, Jenny, Melodie and Maria came from all across LA and Orange Counties to join us, and Thomas even came up all the way from Oceanside, where he lives with his fellow Marines, to help out! Sunday was a bit slower, but we still had fun hanging out with Lena, a UCLA student, and Carol and Roquel, hospice workers that joined us for the afternoon.

All things combined, it was a big weekend for (RED) and ONE, as we continued to work to build support across the nation! Watch for updates as the Dave tour comes to California and Common hits the east coast next week!

--Brande

Wings of Desire (and Virtue)

Yesterday we announced that (RED) shoppers had generated $45 million for the Global Fund. Tremendous! We took that news into a wonderful lunch hosted by the Ad Club to honor Bobby Shriver and the entire (RED) community, and highlight the power of consumer action. Bobby looked nervous as the toasting/roasting began. Richard Plepler, Russell Simmons, Dave Maddocks and Mark Dowley all told hilarious and wonderful stories, as did Bobby's cousin Caroline Kennedy. The remarks that put a finer point on all those before came from Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, former finance minister of Nigeria, who spoke of the need to rebrand Africa as a vibrant center of entrepreneurship and opportunity. She applauded Vanity Fair’s Africa issue and the efforts of (RED) partners to source products and materials from Africa. Always more to do and her message was a good rallying call.

This morning, I spoke on a panel for Self Magazine, which is focusing on empowering their readers with more information about how to "do good." It's always fun to stand up and talk about what (RED) shoppers are doing, especially as I am now on my way to Berlin, Germany for the Global Fund's Donor Pledging Conference… yet another chance to explain the (RED) model and results to date, this time to governments that are called upon to do their part to help eliminate AIDS in Africa.

--Tamsin

Stories about Sipho, Part 1

Today, (RED) is proud to announce that thanks to our (RED) community, the sales of (PRODUCT) RED products have generated more than $45 million in contributions to the Global Fund.

Also today, we received this great letter from Dr. Ryan Phelps, who works at the Baylor Clinic in Swaziland – a medical center that specializes in treating children with HIV, and also treats their mothers and the rest of their family. Regular blog readers may remember Adele and Karen’s visit there in March this year.

Dr. Ryan writes below about Sipho, a young Swazi boy who is starting to benefit from the antiretroviral treatment that (RED) money is helping to pay for, through the Global Fund.

Dr. Ryan has promised to us posted on little Sipho’s progress, with photos to come, so stay tuned…

Every reader of this blog knows what an anonymous dying child looks like. Pictures of unnamed, deathly ill children (especially African children) are in our newspapers and on our TVs.

Like you, when I see such pictures, I feel chilly and restless.

Every reader of this blog knows that, when it comes to the global HIV epidemic, the numbers have a lot of zeroes in them, and that the anonymous sick and dying can fill most of the sports stadiums of the world. As for the dead…well, we would have to build more sports stadiums.

Sipho does not play sports. When I met him last month, he could barely stand.

When I first shook his hand, it felt more like a garden fork than a hand, and, as I held it, I thought Sipho was going to die. Today I can begin telling this child's story, because now I believe that he is not going to die. I am not sure about this, for he is still very sick.

On the other hand, Sipho started taking antiretrovirals (ARVs) on July 26, 2007, and I know of no medicines more transformational and redemptive than those that make up highly active antiretroviral therapy, the lifesaving medication that (RED) funds are helping to buy, through the Global Fund grant to Swaziland.

Sipho is an 8-year-old boy. He lives in a rural area called Nlangano here in Swaziland. He is HIV positive.

I met Sipho mid-afternoon in mid-August, 2007 after shouting the number "eighty two" into a crowded waiting room. He was the eighty-second in line to be consulted at the Swaziland Baylor Center of Excellence (COE), where I work.

“Eighty two.” Hearing his number, Sipho rose with his mother's help and, with his mother's hand under his right arm, walked towards me. As he approached, I shook his rake-like hand and felt that sad, empty feeling that comes when I see the ruin of what should be a healthy child. I unwittingly sighed. It was one of those why-and-how-does-this-still-happen sighs, the type of slow, labored exhale one gives when reality casts its shadow on hope.

Sipho did not cast much of a shadow, at least not literally. The redundant waistline drawstring of Sipho's khaki sports pants dangled around his knees. No, this child definitely did not play sports.

After a couple minutes of small, slow steps, I closed the exam room door behind Sipho. The reverberating din of the remaining patients in the waiting area became barely perceptible, white noise. With a careful pivot and bow, Sipho's mother lowered the child into a one of the room's nondescript plastic black chairs, where he supported himself with both arms.

There he sat, looking at me. The white of his eyes were picket-fence white, contrasting sharply with his espresso-colored irises. His eyes were shiny and alert like those of a child, but his eyelids were heavy, like a very old man's.

His face was thin but creaseless, except for where his heavy lower eyelids rested against his cheekbones. He did not wear a smile and there was little evidence that he ever had, so creaseless was his face.

His expression was that of one who was accustomed to expecting the worst.

On July 5, 2007, when Sipho first arrived at the Baylor Center of Excellence just before his eighth birthday, his CD4 count was 0.1%. (Unlike adults, the CD4 count of pre-teen children is monitored as a percentage rather than an absolute number. Normal is around 30% or more.) When Sipho was first weighed, the COE scale read 13.4kg. (Placed in a room of a thousand other boys his same age and height, he would easily be the skinniest.) The medical terms for his condition are "severely immunocompromised" and "severely wasted."

When Sipho first come to us, he had been having watery diarrhea six times a day for three months and a cough for the same amount of time. HIV was suppressing his bone marrow's creation of red blood cells, and his hemoglobin was 3.4 (the lowest value I have seen in a living child). He had been transfused an estimated 10 times over the previous three years.

In addition to whatever was causing his current diarrhea and pneumonia, Sipho had been host to several other bugs that were taking advantage of his weak defenses, so-called “opportunistic infections.” These microbiological opportunists included pulmonary tuberculosis, oral thrush, oral herpes, human papilloma virus, ringworm, and impetigo (plus any pathogens that had evaded diagnosis).

After reviewing Sipho's records, it was no surprise that this child was expecting the worst, for that is what he knew. The surprise was that the Sipho was still alive.

Sipho’s heavy-eyed gaze persisted. Looking up from my chart review, I suddenly realized that, as the pediatrician in the room, it was my turn to do something.

TO BE CONTINUED…

About the Baylor Center of Excellence
In southern Africa, 40 to 60 percent of all deaths of children under age five years are caused by HIV/AIDS. Despite this fact, in almost every resource-limited setting worldwide where HIV/AIDS treatment has been initiated, children are grossly underrepresented among its recipients. The Swaziland Center of Excellence is helping to address this discrepancy. The COE is part of a global network of clinical centers created by the Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative (BIPAI) at Baylor College of Medicine. These clinics are modeled after two landmark HIV/AIDS care and treatment centers that BIPAI constructed and opened in Constanta, Romania and Gaborone, Botswana. The purpose of this network is to build critical infrastructure and human capacity to catalyze access of children worldwide to HIV/AIDS care and treatment.

These clinics are staffed by local health care workers and members of the Pediatric AIDS Corps, a group of over fifty health professionals that are linked to one of the Baylor Children's Clinical Centers of Excellence for purposes of professional development and training, continuing education and clinical consultation. In collaboration with local health professionals, we spend our time here building local capacity through one-on-one clinical mentorship and didactic trainings. We also provide high-quality pediatric HIV care for children like Sipho.

For more on Dr Ryan Phelps’ experiences in Swaziland, go to pediatrician-in-swaziland.blogspot.com.

Making Dallas and Austin (RED) with Common

Converse (PRODUCT) RED volunteers Jimmy and Amy in Dallas.
To see all of our photos from the Common tour, go to our Flickr page.

We were really excited to get our partnership with Common launched this past weekend! Common is the spokesman for Converse (PRODUCT) RED – lending his voice and name to help fight AIDS in Africa. Though this tour is a short one, we are very eager to get to talk to his fans all across the country about how they can join us in this fight against AIDS and poverty. Check out the tour dates on Common’s website and MySpace page – be sure to stop by and say hi if you are at any of the shows!

We kicked off our outreach project in Dallas this past Saturday night. We were lucky to have two great volunteers join us. Jimmy is a self-described “huge U2 fan” who first learned about (RED) through his interest in the band. Amy has been involved with poverty and AIDS related work for a while now – she also volunteers at a local elementary school, helping underserved youth, when not going to school full time. They both showed up sporting (RED) Chuck Taylor’s as well – I couldn’t ask for more! After helping me finish setting up, we went through a training, and before I knew it, my team had placed themselves right at the entrance and were catching nearly every other person walking in! On Sunday night in Austin, I was joined by Cristina, a UT biomedical engineering student. She is studying ways to help curb the AIDS epidemic globally, and has been involved with the ONE Campaign for some time now. Like my crew on Saturday, she too jumped right in and started getting lots and lots of people signed up and informed.

I was really impressed by how knowledgeable and supportive Common fans were with the campaign – I met several Gap employees, in fact, that told me how much they liked (RED) and what it was doing. As always, we also talked to social workers, people who had volunteered in Africa and students studying poverty related issues – I’m always amazed at the diverse experiences the fans we talk to have had. Plus, everyone was very eager to play around with the two computers we have set up and opened to MAKEMINERED.COM – I saw some very impressive shoe designs during my weekend in Texas, and likewise, fans were excited to know that by designing and ordering their shoes and “making them red,” they could also contribute to the Global Fund.

A big thanks to our volunteers and the Common crew for being so helpful and supportive during our first few days. Our next shows are in Minneapolis and Milwaukee – watch for more info soon!

--Brande

Taking on West Palm Beach

Dan gets DMB fans signed up with (RED) and ONE.
To see all our photos from the DMB tour, go to our Flickr page.

We continued our trek through Florida this past weekend, working to spread the word about (RED) and ONE to Dave Matthews Band fans in West Palm Beach. The shows were a big success – lots of people got signed up and involved, our volunteers were great, and we even were spared the worst of Florida’s rain – especially in comparison to the night we had in Tampa!

Friday night we had yet another great crew of volunteers join us. Jeanette and Mariel hit the lawn with great success, while Brenda and Maika canvassed the concourse and helped out at the booth. Our second group of volunteers arrived, and once they received their training we were at full force! The constant flood of eager fans kept us busy right up until show time, and by the time the music started we were all ready for a break as we regrouped for the second half. Once the band was done, the flood of fans reversed its path as 18,000 people headed for the gates. Our second group of volunteers, Bo, David, Wendy, Jordan, and Eric all put forth a great final effort working the gates and catching many of the exiting fans, while Jeanette and Mariel headed up the concourse and yard area, and Maika helped pull fans into the booth. Great crew, accessible venue, and no rain: all in all, a very good night!

Saturday got off to a bit of a mild start – the crowd seemed to trickle in at a little slower rate than last night, and this gave us a chance to walk the lawn a little more before the show. We had three volunteers, as opposed to our usual average of seven or eight, and this made things a little more difficult, but our team was definitely on top of the game! Nancy came out full force, returning to the table twice sporting full sheets on her clipboard, and Tricia and Dinorah weren't the least bit intimidated by the mass of party people crowded on the lawn. The booth saw its fair share of curious and interested fans, and lots and lots of fans went home with new ONE shirts. What are the odds that there would be five fans that would fit the extra small women’s EDUN shirts in the same day? We also had a little lizard hanging out on our table all night – this IS Florida – we tried to convince fans it was Dave’s pet lizard and we were watching it for him, but people weren’t believing us.

All in all, we had a very eventful week in Florida – thanks to our stellar crew of volunteers who joined us! We’re heading off to Texas next, more updates soon…

--Brande

Where's (RED)?

It's been a busy few weeks, so I wanted to post our tour itineraries to make sure you catch us on the road, from the Dave Matthews Band tour to Common's Finding Forever tour to the Global Mala Project.

COMMON
Converse (PRODUCT) RED and our (RED) crew have embarked on a tour with Common as he promotes his new Billboard Chart-topping hit album Finding Forever. Join us as we spread (RED) to his fans! Here are the tour dates where you'll find us:

Fri 09/21/07 - St. Paul, MN - Myth
Sat 09/22/07 – Milwaukee, WI – The Rave
Thu 09/27/07 – Charlotte, NC – Amos’ South End
Fri 09/28/07 – Greensboro, NC – N Club
Sat 09/29/07 – Myrtle Beach, SC – House of Blues
Sun 09/30/07 – Orlando, FL – House of Blues
Mon 10/01/07 – Atlanta, GA – The Tabernacle
Wed 10/03/07 – Baltimore, MD – Sonar
Fri 10/05/07 – Washington, DC – Love Nightclub
Sat 10/06/07 – Worcester, MA – The Palladium
Sun 10/07/07 – New York, NY – Nokia Theatre Times Square
Mon 10/08/07 – Norfolk, VA – The NorVa

DAVE MATTHEWS BAND
Catch (RED) and our sister organization the ONE Campaign on tour with the Dave Matthews Band, as we spread the word about how to help eliminate AIDS in Africa. Here are the remaining shows where you’ll find (RED):

Fri 09/21/07 - The Woodlands, TX - The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Sat 09/22/07 - Dallas, TX - Smirnoff Music Centre
Tue 09/25/07 - Phoenix, AZ - Cricket Pavilion
Wed 09/26/07 - Irvine, CA - Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Fri 09/28/07 - Chula Vista, CA - Coors Amphitheatre
Sat 09/29/07 - Mountain View, CA - Shoreline Amphitheatre
Mon 10/01/07 - Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Bowl
Tue 10/02/07 - Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Bowl

GLOBAL MALA
We are delighted to be part of the upcoming Global Mala Project, a worldwide event taking place September 21-23, 2007. The Los Angeles Convention Center will serve as the international epicenter and locale of a 14- hour event on September 22. A portion of proceeds from all VIP, Weekend, and Full Program (including Night) ticket sales at the Los Angeles event will be contributed to the Global Fund, INSPI(RED) by (RED). The program in Los Angeles includes yoga, dance, inspirational speakers and musical performances by DJ Cheb I Sabbah, Sheila Chandra, Jai Uttal, and a surprise guest!! Be sure to stop by the (RED) tent and say hello! For more information, check out globalmala.org, or buy tickets now.

Hope to see you soon!

--bn

Rise with (RED)

We are delighted to be part of the upcoming Global Mala Project, a worldwide event taking place September 21-23, 2007. The Global Mala Project was created by international yoga teacher Shiva Rea with support from global teachers, thinkers and musicians to raise awareness and funds for some of the world's most pressing issues including AIDS, global warming, and child refugees of war.

The Los Angeles Convention Center will serve as the international epicenter and locale of a 14- hour event on September 22. A portion of proceeds from all VIP, Weekend, and Full Program (including Night) ticket sales at the Los Angeles event will be contributed to The Global Fund, INSPI(RED) by (RED). The program in Los Angeles includes yoga, dance, inspirational speakers and musical performances by DJ Cheb I Sabbah, Sheila Chandra, Jai Uttal, and a surprise guest!! Be sure to stop by the (RED) tent and say hello!

Other U.S. events will be happening in New York at Jivamukti, in Chicago on Michigan Avenue, and in Texas at Arlington Stadium. There are more than 40 participating countries including Australia, Israel, Tibet, India and Japan. For more information on how to get involved, visit www.globalmala.org. To find an event near you, please click here: www.globalmala.org/world.php

We will post pictures and stories from the LA event next week and look forward to seeing you there. If you attend an event outside of LA, please send your pictures to the (RED) moblog at moblog@joinred.com.

--Colette

ADVENTU(RED) in Florida

Our fearless (RED) / ONE volunteers. For more photos, go to our Flickr page!

We’ve had an adventurous few days here in Florida so far. I don’t think I’ve ever come to Florida for shows and came back with a report that is was “normal” or “kinda boring.” SOMETHING of note always seems to happen in the Sunshine State, and typically that something will involve bugs, heat and/or bad weather.

Gainesville got off to a bit of a rocky start. The venue was much smaller than anyone had anticipated – we were able to have a table inside, but we couldn’t float around like we normally do. So that meant our table was in, but our volunteers were out. It ended up working fine though – we had an amazing team join us, and they pretty much talked to about every other person that was coming to the show!

Our team of volunteers included Tricia, who had volunteered with us at the Daytona 500 NASCAR event last year; Brady, a freshman at UF who has been involved with ONE for a while but was volunteering for the first time; and Christine and Leah, UF students who definitely figured out the best way to get their fellow students on board with our work! We also had Holly and Jaimie joining us, and Yee, a UF law student who was technically suppose to be volunteering for another non-profit, but that non-profit couldn’t set up and since she was already there, she joined us! They all did AMAZING – this was seriously one of the best volunteer crews we’ve worked with all year long! I love nights like the night we had in Gainesville – the odds were stacked against us, the day started off with everything going wrong, but our volunteers all showed, we had a great training, and they worked harder than we could have ever asked and even looked like they were having a good time doing it!

We hit Tampa the next afternoon, ready to work, and deal with Florida’s never ending late summer rain. We were expecting a typical light summer Florida shower while we set up. We were able to set up with no problems, we went through another great volunteer training with no problems, and we got to work with no problems, but then our luck turned. Our light summer shower turned out to be a storm of what seemed like apocalyptic proportions. Before we knew it our tents had turned into a shelter for a bunch of very wet DMB fans and our bewildered volunteer crew. Our team in Tampa included Joe, a first time volunteer who came to the show with his friend Katherina; Penny who was a first time volunteer, Missy and Dave, a couple from upstate New York who are going to school in Florida; and Sam and Kelley, who get bonus points for offering to come volunteer with about 12 hours notice! The team did great, getting hundreds of Dave fans signed up before the rain cut our night short. Loading out wasn’t much fun, but so it goes!

My team will be in West Palm Beach this weekend, and I’m heading off to start the Common Tour in Dallas – watch for more updates soon!

--Brande

(RED) and our 7th grader friends invade Atlanta

(RED) and ONE got to take part in the massive – and some fans are saying historic! – show at Piedmont Park this past weekend. We hit up Atlanta with clipboards, white bands and stickers in hand! The show this weekend was unusual – 60,000 people in Piedmont Park, and the show was a double bill with the Allman Brothers Band – pretty chaotic, but also a lot of fun.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have much of a volunteer turn out this weekend – I think people were freaked out by the size of the show and the fact that you had to take public transport and couldn’t park. Because of that, we were extra excited to have Elaine from Birmingham join us – she was already coming to the show and volunteered to spend several hours of her time with us behind the booth. We were really grateful for her help – we were pretty busy back there, and my touring partner Joe was spending most of his time floating around getting sign ups, so I definitely needed the help! I hadn’t seen Elaine since she volunteered with us at one of the U2 shows back in the fall of 2005, so it was great to get to hang out and catch up. She is one of our super volunteers – always doing amazing work for ONE and (RED) in her community in Alabama, having been involved with the campaign since its launch three years ago.

All night long we got to meet fan after fan that was excited to be involved with ONE and (RED). In the process of talking to thousands of people, I somehow managed to become the best friend to a group of about eight 7th grade boys. They kept coming back to the table – first they were just hanging out, wanting to know “what can I get for free?!?!?!,” giving me flashbacks to Warped Tour. I talked to them about the campaigns though (the fact that I teach elementary and middle school aged kids when not touring definitely helped!) and eventually they all signed up and all took pins. Then they came back to get stickers. Then they came back yet again, so I gave them all a white band on the condition that they’d each get at least three of their friends to go online and join the campaigns. They obliged, so I took their photo as a group. I then I had to sign a “contract” on a piece of scrap paper stating that I most absolutely promised to put their photo online (I posted it on my flickr site, and I’m hoping BN also posts it on the (RED) blog or I might have problems…) or else they would sue me. I explained that I work for non-profits and thus had nothing to sue for, but that did not seem to register with them. Then they declared I was the coolest person at the show that day. They stopped by a few more times throughout the afternoon, somehow managing to find yet more 7th grade boys to bring with them to sign up, so I guess they are already working to make good on their word!

We also met lots of other cool people – many wearing and carrying (PRODUCT) RED items, a fan from Africa, a teacher working ONE into her curriculum this year, and countless others. Sometimes you can feel like you live in a bubble – you wonder how far these campaigns reach, but night after night of doing this work always reminds me of how people will always find their place, their purpose and calling and run with it.

We’ve got some Dave shows in Florida coming up early this week, and then I am taking off from DMB to launch an all new (RED) project with Common, something I’m really excited about. As always, more updates soon…

–Brande

Read Gap's Social Responsibility Report

We thought you'd be interested to see the latest Gap Inc. Social Responsibility Report [see page 72 for a focus on Gap (PRODUCT) RED]. It is quite impressive and profiles the many positive impacts of their partnership with (RED). You (RED) consumers are a key part of bringing this partnership to life. The results are yours to share.

Both the tone and content of this report help make clear why (RED) chose Gap to help us launch. It's with their passion and commitment -- and that of the other (RED) companies -- that we are now approaching the $40 million mark in money generated for the Global Fund.

So, thank you!

Tamsin Smith
President
(RED)

Apple introduces iPod shuffle (PRODUCT) RED

Apple’s new iPod lineup also includes a refreshed iPod nano (PRODUCT) RED Special Edition

If you've been waiting to get a new music player, now's your chance to go (RED) with the latest Apple products!

The iPod Shuffle (PRODUCT) RED edition features 1GB of memory, and is shipping today at $79.

The most popular music player in history, the iPod nano, is now smaller than ever, and features a 2” video screen, an enhanced user interface with album “Cover Flow” and three new games. Its battery life has been upgraded as well: 24 hours of audio and 5 hours video playback.

The iPod nano (PRODUCT) RED Special Edition is available with 8 GB, priced at just $199. The nanos have shipped from Apple warehouses, and will be in stores by this weekend.

For more information, go to http://www.apple.com/ipod/red.

Turning Washington (RED)

Brande, our fearless tour leader, just sent off another dispatch from the Dave Matthews Band shows last weekend, along with another batch of photos that I’ve added to our DMB tour set on Flickr… and now, some words from Brande:

The Gorge shows this past weekend were a great success – even if they got off to a windy start! Immediately after setting up our booth, we were greeted with near hurricane force winds. Most of the other vendors around us broke their tents down, but we decided to keep ours up, even if it meant we spent most of the night hanging on, trying to keep them from going airborne!

We trudged on though, working to turn Washington (RED) and spread the word about ONE. Friday night we had veteran volunteer Sammi join us, coming in from Seattle, as well as Rachel and Carnie, first time volunteers who got involved via (RED) and drove all the way up from Portland. The crew did great – they kicked off the weekend in style, getting hundreds of DMB involved with fighting AIDS and poverty. Rachel and Carnie really seemed to have a good time – they were excited by how receptive people were to walk they were talking about. As always, the night was full of unique stories – people planning trips to Africa, Peace Corp volunteers and more – I am always amazed at the extent of stories we get to hear doing this work.


We had a great team on Saturday night – Kelly and Jason are leaders of the ONE Spokane group. Kelly is a high school teacher who was in Uganda earlier this summer, and he also brought two of his students along, Jamie and David. David is property of the Navy as of Wednesday, so we were very honored that he choose to spend the last of his free time with us. He and Jamie have been active with ONE and other Africa focused organizations at their high school. Sandra drove in with Jason and Kelly – she too is active with ONE in Spokane. Kristina was a first time volunteer who signed up to volunteer via (RED) – she came in a bit late and missed part of our volunteer training, so we were concerned that she wouldn’t feel 100% in doing outreach, but she proved us wrong, and ended up getting more signups than anyone! Tim had joined ONE at a U2 show a few years back, he’s not totally sure how he got on my volunteer list, but he was glad he did! Ryan first learned about (RED) via the Vanity Fair Africa issue earlier this year – this was his first volunteer experience and he did great. Rounding out our team was Sammi from Seattle, for her second night in a row. I couldn’t even find most of our volunteers while they were working – they took to the lawn as soon as we were done with our training and talked to hundreds of fans in the process. We ended up having one of our best nights of the whole tour thanks to this amazing crew!

Sunday brought more wind, and more great volunteers. Jennifer and Sean both are involved with the ONE Spokane group, and both are also teachers. Sean teaches college part time, and Jennifer is an elementary school teacher. We also had Colette and Zach join us, a couple from Seattle that got involved as volunteers through (RED). And of course, Sammi joined us again as well! Once again, our volunteer team proved to be rockstars, getting a ton of DMB fans involved with ONE and (RED).

All weekend long, we were greeted with flashes of white bands and thumbs up from those that had joined us at an earlier show or on another tour. I also met two fans who had to buy new bands because their dog ate theirs, the best story I heard all weekend! We met countless people who shared what they were doing to fight poverty and AIDS in their own community, and heard from dozens of people that had already bought (RED) products and were excited to learn they could do more.

A special thanks to all of the volunteers that helped out this weekend – because of the location of the Gorge, everyone had to drive at least an hour and a half to join us, and we really appreciate the time and commitment of you all. A extra special big thanks to veteran volunteer Sammi, who went so far as to get a motel room so she could join us all three nights – AND she even brought me and Brian cookies!

We’re heading to Atlanta next (assuming that check engine light that keeps coming on in the truck doesn’t mean anything really bad…) where I’ll be joined by our New Guy Joe – watch for more updates soon!

--Brande