Vida - Now at School and Aiming for the Fast Lane!

We wanted to share another success story with you. Another story that showcases the promise of ARVs, another full, healthy life being lived thanks to HIV medication. Meet Vida a 10 year old girl from Ghana.


Young Vida is playing catch up and she’s proving to be a fast learner.


Vida couldn’t start school until she was 9 years old because of AIDS and other opportunistic infections. However she now impresses her teachers, her Doctor and her Dad, Raphael, with her appetite for life and learning.


Currently Vida says her favorite subjects at school are math, art, English and natural sciences.
Vida lives with her Dad as her mother, who is also HIV positive, was paralyzed by a stroke some years ago and lives some hours away in her hometown where she is being cared for by family.



Vida and her Dad live in greater Accra so he can continue to work in construction to support his daughter and disabled wife.


Vida attends the Tema General Hospital HIV clinic which receives (RED) and Global Fund funding to help care for patients there. Vida’s doctor, Dr Patricia Mkansah Asamoah, says she is very happy with the way Vida has been responding to antiretroviral therapy in the past year. “Since we started her on antiretrovirals she’s been doing great. ….Now she’s fine, she’s able to go to school, she does her house chores, she does all the things she wants to do.”


In the future, Vida’s Dad Raphael is hoping Vida will continue to do well at school as he would love to be able to send her to university.


And Vida herself? She says she currently wants to be a Bank Manager with the Bank of Ghana…. so she can buy a car!


Meet Vida and Raphael and see other good news from Ghana here...

(RED) contributes $130 million for the Global Fund – impacts 4 million people

As you may know, the money that (RED) partners and events generate goes straight to the Global Fund, the organization we work with that puts the money to work on the ground in Africa. And we just received a great report from the Global Fund updating us on the impact (RED) dollars are having. Since we launched, (RED) dollars have supported Global Fund financed grants that have reached more than 4 million people impacted by HIV or AIDS in Ghana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Rwanda. That’s really incredible to hear!

Specifically, that means that there are more than 111,000 HIV-positive people on antiretroviral therapy, more than 70,000 HIV positive pregnant women have received preventative antiretroviral therapy to reduce the risk of mother-to-child transmission and more than 3.4 million people have undergone HIV testing and counseling due to support from funds from the Global Fund and (RED). And, beyond this, the (RED) money also supports grants that finance health facilities, train health practitioners and care for children orphaned by AIDS.

The beauty of the (RED) model is that 100% of the money generated goes straight to work in Africa. (RED) doesn’t touch the money that our (RED) partners contribute. And the Global Fund doesn’t take any overhead either. So, $130 million has been raised in three years thanks to your purchases and $130 million will go to these programs. Thank you so much.

You can find out more details about all of the impact that (RED) and the Global Fund is making on the ground in Africa at http://www.joinred.com/Learn/HowRedWorks.aspx

Julie @ (RED)

What it's like to be Young, Beautiful and on HIV Meds

At (RED) we talk a lot about getting medicine to those living with HIV in Africa, by way of the Global Fund, the organization we work with to put the money on the ground in Africa. What most people might not realize is that one of the most important aspects about (RED) is that it creates a sustainable flow of funds to Africa. Our partners commit to an on-going partnership to create amazing products that you want, and that continue to send funds to those who need it most. This means those who need the medicine, get it and can stay on it. HIV is treatable but it is a lifelong responsibility.

Marvelyn Brown, author and AIDS activist who recently was honored by dosomething.org, paid a visit to our offices. While Marvelyn’s story comes from the U.S., and not Africa, we think it’s important to share her story, what it is like for her to be HIV+ and the responsibility it takes to stay healthy. Although (RED) money is put to work exclusively in Africa, our mission is to raise awareness of HIV and AIDS everywhere, and recognize that it is a worldwide issue that affects us all.

Marvelyn shares what it’s like to be on HIV meds:

I said "I DO" to my meds July 21, 2003. At the time I was not ready for a commitment but I had no choice. It was an arranged marriage. With HIV come meds, they’re hand in hand. It was not something that I wanted to do or felt that I was ready to do, but I had to do for the sake of my health and me. The day I married my meds I knew that there was no turning back because it was a lifelong commitment and by not being fully committed there could be consequences like becoming resistant to my meds forever.

Like any marriage, my meds and I do not always get along. I experience side effects that consist of vomiting, diarrhea, nausea and mood swings to name a few, but in order to make this marriage work, I deal with them. I refuse to take the easy way out so divorce is no option and if I cheat it only affects me. When our marriage is going thru problems, I just consult with my primary doctor for reassurance (‘cause no relationship is too good for counseling). Even though I married at a young age of 19, I was not always a responsible teenager. I am glad that I finally took responsibility over my future and my life, by deciding to start my meds and staying committed. I must admit, marriage is not all that it is cracked up to be.

Marvelyn has written a book about what it’s like to be diagnosed HIV+. It’s called ‘The Naked Truth: Young, Beautiful and (HIV) Positive’ and you can buy it in bookstores and on Amazon.

To find out more about Marvelyn check out her website - http://www.marvelynbrown.com/

Free, Exclusive Access To John Legend from Gap & (RED)

Would you like exclusive access to see John Legend at Madison Square Garden on August 13th?

Now through August 12th, when you make a purchase at select GAP stores, you will receive a special code that will allow you – with the purchase of a ticket – access to exclusive (RED)ZONE seats at John Legend’s Madison Square Garden show on August 13th.

And, for every ticket purchased, you get a second ticket FREE – plus, a portion of the ticket sales will help eliminate AIDS in Africa.

Hear from John directly:



Want in?

Step 1)
Find a participating Gap store near you: www.gap.com/johnlegend

Step 2)
Get the code from Gap after your purchase

Step 3)
Purchase John Legend (RED)ZONE tickets at www.johnlegend.com/red

It’s that simple. Buy (RED). Buy Ticket. Get One Free. Save Lives.

Visit our John Legend Event on Facebook

Gap Give & Get - It's Back!

Between July 30th and August 2nd, 2009, you can save 30% off any purchase at Gap, Banana Republic and Old Navy*. In addition to the 30% off, Gap will contribute 5% of your total purchase amount to the Global Fund to help eliminate AIDS in Africa. The best part? You can use this coupon multiple times at ANY store. And, you can share this offer with your friends so they can shop and save lives too.

So get shopping. And sharing. For these few days, you can essentially turn any of your favorite Gap products (RED. That means every product sold sends money straight to Africa to help those living with HIV. No overhead is taken out, so every penny goes to those who need it.

Can just a few days of shopping make an impact? You bet. Through our past efforts teaming up with Gap as part of this Gap Give & Get promotion, we’ve been able to generate over $600k for the Global Fund. Let’s use these next few days to cross the $1mm mark. We’ll see you at the Gap. Get your coupon here.

*Available in the US, Canada and Puerto Rico

Win VIP Tickets to Katy Perry's Sold Out (RED)NIGHTS Show in NYC

We’re gearing up for our next (RED)NIGHTS show with Katy Perry at NYC’s Hammerstein Ballroom on Tuesday July 28th and we can’t wait to see Katy go (RED). If you’re in the NY area and forgot to get tickets we’re offering you a few last minute ways to score them. Tickets are sold out now so they’re some of the only ones left!

We’ve partnered with Thrilllist.com, Going.com and Time Out New York – those places famous for bringing you the best events in your area– to give you the chance to win tickets to the show. And they’re not just any tickets. They’re each giving away 1 pair of VIP tickets which provide admittance to the show, access to the VIP (RED) room, a (RED) goodie bag and a meet and greet with Katy herself! No transportation or travel arrangements are being provided so you’ll have to find your own way there – but we promise a good time from there.

So if you’re over 18, live in the NY area* and can’t imagine staying home on Tuesday night and missing this show, visit the links below for your chance to be there:

On Thrillist
On Going
On Time Out

*Entrants must live in New York City, Nassau, Suffolk or Westchester Counties in New York State; Bergen County, New Jersey; or Fairfield County, Connecticut.

Look who stopped by to say hello to (RED) at TEDGlobal…

Yesterday, on a well dressed stage within an old Playhouse theatre in Oxford, England, two men called Bruno and Chris kicked off TEDGlobal. TedGlobal is a 4 day conference with 700 attendees, including some of the world's most brilliant and bravest minds, coming together to discuss how to change the world for the better.

This week the particular focus is the 'substance of things not seen'. We know that when we look around there are things we can observe: buildings, people, nature. And then there are things that run unseen through our lives. These hidden forces - social conventions, biological links, cultural frameworks, coded meanings - are the connective tissue that binds societies together, the engines that propel organisations and individuals forward. When illuminated, they offer vital insights into our relationships with one another and our world.

As TEDGlobal concentrates this week on those things not seen which drive change for the better, (RED)’s happy to be a part of it.

The (RED)Café at TEDGlobal

We’ve created a (RED)Café at this year’s TEDGlobal. And we’re so thrilled that so many people have stopped by already to say hi and to offer their help. One of which was a real privilege - his name was Gordon.

Unknown to all the attendees at TED the British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, was making a surprise speech in the afternoon. Also unknown to the conference was that Mr. Brown has asked to meet the (RED) team to find out more about the (RED) initiative.

So, in the very small and very hot 'green room' of the Playhouse theatre the (RED) team had a private conversation with the British Prime Minister, discussing all our products, informing him about all the great support (RED) has on our social networks and providing him with an overview of the results in Africa.

British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, with (RED) International CEO, Seb Bishop

After words of thanks and great encouragement to everyone involved in (RED) Mr. Brown went on stage to deliver an important speech about our need to develop our shared global ethic to confront the challenges of poverty, security, climate change and the economy. You can enjoy this speech here: http://www.ted.com/talks/gordon_brown.html

We would love to tell you which (RED) product Mr. Brown will be ordering but this is a national secret which we have been sworn to secrecy...

Mark @ (RED)

Denise's Success Story

Name: Denise Mushimiyimana
Country: Rwanda
Age: 11 years
Work: School student
Family: Mom, Dad and 3 brothers
Treatment: Began antiretroviral therapy in 2006

When (RED) first met Denise in May 2006, she was lying ill in hospital in Kigali with full blown AIDS. Her parents were desperately worried she wouldn’t make it to her 8th birthday on 4th July that year.

Fortunately Denise was started on antiretroviral therapy which is available free in Rwanda thanks in part to financing from (RED) and the Global Fund. As a result, Denise not only made it to her 8th birthday, but by August 2006 she was out of hospital and back at school as this photo of her below at the time shows.

Photo Credit: © The Global Fund

Denise’s swift recovery is another example of the “Lazarus-like” ability of antiretroviral therapy to restore very sick people with AIDS back to health in a short period of time.

It’s now over three years since Denise started her treatment, and she is thriving, enjoying school and taking her antiretroviral (ARV) pills every day. The only clue of how sick Denise was just two years ago is some paralysis in her left arm, a result of an AIDS-related neurological condition.

Denise’s Mom and Dad are also HIV positive and on antiretroviral therapy. Happily her three younger brothers are all healthy and HIV negative.

While Denise’s parents struggle to make ends meet they ensure their family has love in abundance. And, thanks to having their health, they also have hope for the future.

September 2008 Denise with 2 of her brothers

For more stories on other recipients of lifesaving ARVs click here

Keep the Answers Coming

We have another couple answers for you if you responded to our call for questions on Facebook and Twitter of ‘what do you want to know about (RED)?’ Thanks for that! And if you didn't ask we hope you're learning a lot about us anyway! We’ll be responding to the top 5 questions and today we’ve got questions 3 and 4.

How do you choose your partners and how much do they give away?

Let’s start with the first part of this question - how do we choose our partners? It’s about finding that right fit. We choose them and they equally choose us. We look for a couple of key things in the brands we partner with: a commitment to eliminating AIDS in Africa, great products and services, and a commitment to marketing those products so that we can generate a substantial amount of money for the Global Fund. Each part is equally important to us. Our partners make a contribution to the Global Fund, at no cost to you, each time you chose a (RED) product so its vitally important that we have great products that you’ll love.

The kinds of brands that turn (RED) are progressive leaders in our mind. They are putting their best designers, merchants and retailers to work for people who may not be their customers but who are part of our global community. These companies give up to 50% of their profits to help fund AIDS treatment for people living with HIV in Africa who would otherwise not have access to treatment. The actual amount each company contributes varies – you can see this on our partner’s section of our web site at – and to see the impact that individual products have, check out our impact calculator.

What new (RED) products are out there and do you have any new partners to come?

Yes! There are lots of great (RED) products out there. We’ve put together an album for you so that you can see highlights of what’s currently on offer. Have a look, and if you like a product click on it to get more information about price and availability.

Our partners are constantly launching new (RED) products and some of the latest that have been launched are Gap’s line of Graphic T-shirts for (RED) with new designs hitting stores every few months, the DELL (PRODUCT) RED Mini netbooks, the new (STARBUCKS) RED range, new Converse ONE HUND(RED) designs continue to be launched online, and new Hallmark card designs hit stores every few months. Please keep in mind that availability varies by country (and we’re working on making (RED) available in as many countries as possible!).

As well as all these exciting products, we do have more partners to come. We can’t share who they’ll be just yet. But we do want you to be the first to know that we’re launching several new partners by the end of this year!

IT'S SUMMER. IT'S STARBUCKS. IT'S (RED).

Summer is here (finally!) and now there are even more ways that you can be (RED) this season thanks to our friends at Starbucks. From the new (STARBUCKS) RED water bottle to the return of the (STARBUCKS) RED Card that will turn all of your Starbucks purchases (RED), you can continue to buy (RED) and save lives. Here’s what’s available (US & Canada only for now):

(STARBUCKS) RED Card

The (STARBUCKS) RED Card is back by popular demand. And let’s you turn ALL your purchases at Starbucks (RED). Every time you use your (STARBUCKS) RED Card, Starbucks will contribute 5 cents US to the Global Fund to help eliminate AIDS in Africa. All those cents add up and can make a real difference – especially as the medicine that’s needed only costs around 40 cents a day per person. Limited availability so get yours today!

Available: At participating Starbucks stores in the U.S. and Canada and online in the U.S. Price: You decide how much money you want to load on the card. Minimum for online purchase is $15 (US).

(STARBUCKS) RED Double Wall Stainless Steel Water Bottle

Now you can help two causes in one: be eco-conscious while fighting AIDS in Africa. Available: At participating Starbucks stores in the U.S. and Canada and online in the U.S. Price: $19.95 (US) with $1 (US) being contributed to the Global Fund to help eliminate AIDS in Africa.

(STARBUCKS) RED Soft Touch Tumbler

Tired of disposable cups for your coffee? Use the (STARBUCKS) RED Tumbler instead. Available: At participating Starbucks stores in the U.S. and Canada online in the U.S. Price: $15.95 (US) with $1 (US) being contributed to the Global Fund to help eliminate AIDS in Africa.

(STARBUCKS) RED African Whole Bean packaged coffee

This blend of beans from East Africa is balanced and complex, with delicate acidity and a flavorful interplay of exotic floral and citrus notes. Available: 1 lb bags of (STARBUCKS) RED whole bean coffee available at participating Starbucks stores in the U.S. and Canada and online in the U.S. (STARBUCKS) RED 12 oz ground coffee bags also available at Target!
Price: 1 lb whole bean bag: $11.95 (US) with $1 (US) contribution and 12 oz. ground bag: $.075 (US) being contributed to help eliminate AIDS in Africa.

(STARBUCKS)RED African compilation CD ‘Whole World Is Africa’

Here’s your gateway to the rich musical treasures of Africa. This compilation features Ethiopian jazz, Sengalese hip-hop and Malian Afro-pop.Great tunes by African artists, such as Alèmayèhu Eshèté, who's known as the "Ethiopian James Brown." Available: This summer only, at participating stores in the U.S. and Canada and online in the U.S. Price: $12.95 (US) with $1 (US) being contributed to the Global Fund to help eliminate AIDS in Africa.

Why the colour (RED)?

Thanks again so to all of you who answered our call for questions on Facebook and Twitter of ‘what do you want to know about (RED)?’. We’ll be responding to the top 5 questions and today we’re on to question number 2:

Why the colour RED?

Because AIDS in Africa is an emergency and red is the color of emergency. 4,100 people die in Sub-Saharan Africa everyday from AIDS. There are 33 million people in the world living with HIV, 22 million of them are in Sub-Saharan Africa*. Its impact disrupts families, societies and economic development. Those who are ill are not able to work and take care of their families.

Yet AIDS is preventable AND treatable. For around 40 cents each day we can give someone the antiretroviral (ARV) medicine they need to regain strength and live a productive life. And this transformation can happen in just 60 days. It’s a true transformation called the ‘Lazarus Effect.’ It’s what happened to Sylvia when she started ARV treatment. Just click on the video to have a look.

*According to the UNAIDS 2008 Report on the Global AIDS epidemic

The Future Gets a Big Kiss

At the end of U2’s first set of their first show on their first tour in three years, as 90,000 fans roared for more, for the encore they knew they had earned, Camp Nou (the soccer stadium for FC Barcelona) went dark and the massive cylindrical screen showed the exuberant face of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, saying: “…Who are the same beautiful people I see when I look around this place tonight in 360 degrees (literally). We are those people, we are the same person. Because our voices were heard, millions more of our brothers and sisters are alive thanks to the miracle of AIDS drugs and malaria drugs. They will be doctors, they will be nurses, they will be scientists, who will live to solve GREAT problems. Yes there are many obstacles of course. There are always roadblocks in the way of justice. But God will put a wind at our back, and a rising road ahead, if we work with each other as ONE.”


At this final word – spoken in a rising soaring declaration of hope, the band was back, striking the first chords of “Where the Streets Have No Name” and the crowd pulsed, physically and audibly, like the fifth member of the band they are. It was one of the many moments in this show when this massive stadium - whose upper reaches felt, in the dusk before the band went on, like they were miles away filled with dots – suddenly curved in on itself and felt somehow small, intimate, immediate.

Part of this was due to the ingenious staging contraption that looked like that restaurant/control tower from LAX had just pounced into the stadium at midfield and was poised to jump off to Milan at any second. Its cylindrical screen expanded downward, spreading impossibly like those Chinese finger prisons.

But it was also because this crowd was a community. (RED) and ONE shirts were everywhere. Bono put on an FC Barcelona jersey (“Bono 1” on the back) “because they are the only team that, instead of advertising a brand, wears the UNICEF logo on their chests.”

And the coolest thing of all was that the stage, concentric circles at the center of an ellipse, was framed by the (RED) ZONES – the best seats in the house – placed (appropriately) like parentheses on either side. Leave it to U2 to devise a way to not only circumvent the secondary ticket market, but to do so in a way that raises funds for the Global Fund – creating, in a way, the ultimate (RED) product.

Friends asked me why I flew all that way to see the first show. “Go see them when they hit the US and the kinks are out,” they’d say. But as a long-time fan, and devout listener to the new album, I knew that this – the first time the band would play the songs from the new album in a true concert – was the moment the songs took on a life of their own. As 90,000 people followed Bono’s call and response on “Unknown Caller,” or erupted to Edge’s guitar in “Breathe,” echoed the “Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh”s of their masterpiece, “Moment of Surrender,” the fans completed the songs. And at the end of the third song, as the fans went crazy and the band built to another verse, the giant screen caught Bono’s face looking over at Edge with a huge smile. Happy to be back, I suppose, sending another album of amazing songs into the world.

Don @ (RED)

Bono's New York Times Op-Ed: Rebranding Africa

President Barack Obama is en route to Ghana on his first official trip to Africa and Bono writes about it in today’s New York Times. Here’s an excerpt:

"No one’s leaked me a copy of the president’s speech in Ghana, but it’s pretty clear he’s going to focus not on the problems that afflict the continent but on the opportunities of an Africa on the rise. If that’s what he does, the biggest cheers will come from members of the growing African middle class, who are fed up with being patronized and hearing the song of their majestic continent in a minor key.

I’ve played that tune. I’ve talked of tragedy, of emergency. And it is an emergency when almost 2,000 children in Africa a day die of a mosquito bite; this kind of hemorrhaging of human capital is not something we can accept as normal.

But as the example of Ghana makes clear, that’s only one chord. Amid poverty and disease are opportunities for investment and growth — investment and growth that won’t eliminate overnight the need for assistance, much as we and Africans yearn for it to end, but that in time can build roads, schools and power grids and propel commerce to the point where aid is replaced by trade pacts, business deals and home-grown income."

Click here to read the full article.

Click here to sign up for our newsletter and stay in the know about (RED)

Watch ONE’s video ‘Yes, Africa Can’ that captures Ghana’s excitement about the President’s visit

New (Gap) RED Tees Available Now

We're loving the new collection of Gap's Artist Edition graphic t-shirts for (RED). Perfect for the summer - from the beach to the BBQ. This time around the artists range from the established to the up-and-coming and include James Jean, Geoff McFetridge, Non-Format by Kjell Ekhorn and Jon Forss, Deanne Cheuk, Keiko Itakura, Kari Modén, nomoco, James Joyce, Stephen Kelleher, Stina Persson and Celia Calle. The exclusive designs for $28 are available at Gap stores and online at gap.com. And don't forget 50 percent of the gross profits from the sale of Gap (PRODUCT) RED Artist Edition T-Shirts will benefit the Global Fund, to help eliminate AIDS in Africa.

Here are some of our favorites:

Get yours now!

You've Asked. We're Answering.

Thanks so much to all of you who answered our call for questions. We recently asked our fans on Facebook and followers on Twitter: 'what do you want to know about (RED)?' and we've picked out the top 5 questions to respond to.

Here's the answer to question number 1:
How much money has been raised and where does it go?

In the three years since we launched, (RED) partners and events have generated over $130 million to help eliminate aids in Africa. 100% of this money is put to work on the ground in Africa through the Global Fund. (RED) doesn't touch any of this money and the Global Fund does not take any overhead, so every single dollar has impact. To date, the programs supported by (RED) and Global Fund financed grants have reached more than 4 million people.

To determine where the money goes the Global Fund and (RED) agree to select countries where there is both need and where existing Global Fund HIV and AIDS grants are already working effectively. Ensuring results is critical. Currently (RED) money flows to Global Fund financed AIDS grants in 4 African countries: Ghana, Lesotho, Rwanda and Swaziland. And we should be announcing a new country soon!

So, how’s the money used? While each program is unique and designed by the local country, they include antiretroviral treatment for children and adults, treatment to help prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV, essential counseling and testing activities to reduce the overall risk of HIV transmission, and clear and accurate communications campaigns to promote prevention. Already, the programs (RED) money supports have provided:

111,000 HIV-positive people with antiretroviral therapy.

Over 70,000 HIV positive pregnant women with preventative antiretroviral therapy to reduce the risk of mother-to-child transmission.

3.4 million people with HIV testing and counseling.

And, beyond this, the programs have helped build health facilities, train health practitioners and care for children orphaned by AIDS.

So although there is more work to be done the impact of (RED) money so far has been overwhelming, thanks of course to your (RED) purchases.

A Big Step Forward for People Living with HIV

The Global Fund has come out with great new global impact results this week and we wanted to share them with you.

In the past twelve months there has been an impressive 31% increase in the number of people living with HIV globally who have access to lifesaving antiretroviral therapy … all thanks to programs the Global Fund finances. What’s more, some of this increase is due to your support in choosing to buy (RED) which results in money flowing to Global Fund HIV grants in Rwanda, Swaziland, Lesotho and Ghana.

Other impressive Global Fund results released this week include the news that now 79 million people have been counseled and tested for HIV, that number is a 17 million person increase from the result the Global Fund reported at the end of 2008. Additionally more than 3.7 million AIDS orphans and vulnerable children have been provided with basic support – that’s a 500,000 person increase since the report at the end of 2008. Fantastic news!

So thanks again for your continued support and your (RED) purchases – it truly is making a difference. Click here to learn more about the contribution the Global Fund has made in fighting AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

(RED) Helps Facebook Launch Their New Fan Box

Become a fan of (RED) on Facebook in just one click. We're excited about a new tool that our friends at Facebook have launched. Check out the Facebook fan box widget on the right hand side of this blog. Now it’s easier than ever to become a fan of (RED) on Facebook and to stay up to date with what we’re doing to help eliminate AIDS in Africa. And even if you’re not on Facebook you can follow our news feed and stay in the know straight from our website or our blog. We’re excited to share this tool with you and to continue to grow our Facebook fan base. So if you’re still not a fan become one now, we're just one click away.

“Know Your Status” – a Visit to the Timber Market in the Old Port, Accra

A man dressed in a t-shirt and jeans walks through the timber market with a loud-speaker, addressing the area’s predominantly male workers in the local Twi dialect.
“Know your status. Come and test with us today, here in the market....” he begins.

Joshua is HIV negative, but his wife tested positive last year – a ‘discordant couple’ is the term used to describe them by health workers. Motivated by his wife’s status, he has volunteered for the last few months with the outreach programme run by the Ridge Hospital in Accra, and he regularly joins a team of nurses and counsellors taking a mobile testing unit out into the local community.

Dr Sally-Ann Ohene, one of the HIV and AIDS specialists in Accra attributes the enormous uplift in HIV testing and counselling take-up to just such programmes. The programme she works on, partly funded by (RED) money via the Global Fund and organisations such as the National AIDS Control Programme (NACP) has reached twice the number of people they had hoped with testing and counselling, over-delivering against their 2008 targets by more than 100%.

“People in Ghana do not go to hospital unless they are very sick – or visiting someone”, explains Kwadwo Asante, of the NACP. And so the medical staff from the hospitals, with the support of the NACP and Ghana Health Services decided to take the staff into the communities.

The Ridge Hospital outreach programme has been running for two months. The timber market where we watched them in action is a vast, busy industrial area, providing work for a large number of Ghanaians, many from rural areas who also live and sleep in the manufacturing area.

Four testing ‘centres’ have been set up, each providing broader sexual health information, HIV testing and counselling, often by people who are themselves HIV positive. They call these people ‘Models of Hope.’

Margaret is one such ‘Model of Hope’, and as well as volunteering at the Ridge Hospital, she is a key member of the outreach team. A large group of men were gathered around the testing table as we arrived, and one by one they took a number, sat themselves in the chair in front of her and were handed a plastic mouth swab. This relatively non-obtrusive means of testing – individuals vigorously rub the tooth brush-like swab stick around their mouths for half a minute - allows people to receive a result around ten minutes later.

Nearly 400 people were tested in total by this mobile unit on the day we visited; for those who test positive, immediate counselling was on hand and arrangements made to follow up with further testing at the hospital, and treatment being provided as required. People like Margaret, and Richard, another HIV positive counsellor, were able to give first hand advice and support. In Margaret’s words, “to make them know they are not alone.”

The professionalism, dedication and integrity of Margaret, Joshua, Richard, the medical teams and administrative staff is inspiring. They work tirelessly in the fight against HIV and AIDS, and their efforts are clearly being felt. The stigma of HIV within communities is still strong, but the prevalence levels of the virus are falling and the numbers of Ghanaians who ‘know their status’ is rising. For those infected, antiretroviral (ARV) treatment allows them to manage the virus and carry on living active lives. And the programmes funded by the Global Fund, with money from (RED) purchases are a significant factor in this huge shift. There’s a long way to go, but things are moving in the right direction, and with your support, these outreach teams will continue to play a fundamental role in helping to eliminate HIV and AIDS in Ghana.

Here’s to the teams in Ghana, and here’s to all of you for supporting (RED). Thank you. Buy (RED), Save Lives. It makes a difference.

Lisa @ (RED)

Starbucks Visits Rwanda to See (RED) Money in Action

photo by Riccardo Gangale

Starbucks chairman, president and ceo, Howard Schultz, joined (RED) at the Treatment and Research AIDS Center (TRAC) in Rwanda last Friday to see firsthand how funding generated by Starbucks and other (RED) partners can help to make a difference in the lives of people living with HIV/AIDS. TRAC is Rwanda’s national HIV and AIDS research center housing the country’s busiest HIV clinic. Read more about the visit and about Starbucks latest (PRODUCT) RED offerings in U.S. and Canada participating stores here.

U2 kicked off their 360 Tour in Barcelona last night: (RED)Zones are here!

What a great concert! U2 kicked off their 360 Tour last night at Barcelona's Nou Camp stadium. 'We’ve got a space station designed by Gaudi ' Bono told the rapturous 90,000 capacity crowd. The band opened the show with Breathe, a track from their latest No 1 album No Line On The Horizon and went on to dedicate Angel Of Harlem - originally inspired by Billie Holiday - to the late Michael Jackson.

Were you one of the lucky ones to get a ticket in the (RED)Zone? U2 have allocated a (RED) Zone VIP area at every show throughout the tour. These premium location tickets were auctioned when the tickets went on sale with net proceeds helping the Global Fund and (RED)’s work to fight AIDS in Africa. We’d like to say a huge thank you to all of you who lent your support and who successfully bid on these (RED) Zone tickets.

The U2 360 Tour will play 15 cities in Europe finishing at Cardiff's Millennium on 22nd August before heading to North America 20 shows starting in Chicago September 12th. In 2009, in just 44 shows the tour will perform for over 3 million fans. And (RED) will be at all shows, with our sister organisation ONE, letting people know how they can get involved in both helping eliminate AIDS in Africa through (RED) and fighting extreme poverty through ONE.

Back to the show though....

The 360° Tour features a round stage positioned on the stadium floor with the band surrounded by their audience, the natural progression of their previous tours. By elevating the sound and lighting equipment, the walls that traditionally obscure performers from their audience are removed. This has also allowed greater capacity and a lower general ticket price.

The stage is designed by long-time collaborator Willie Williams and architect Mark Fisher who have worked together with U2 since ZooTv. Advances in technology and digital communication have allowed Williams to create an overhead expandable cylindrical screen made up of 500,000 pixels.

'The band has been moving further into the crowd with every tour. Tonight they've arrived. Willie and Mark have spent five years perfecting this beautiful and extraordinary frame, once the crowd came in tonight, we got lift-off! Said U2 manager Paul McGuinness.

“U2 has always put on the most exciting live show. They've really raised the bar with this production they want the best for their fans and based on the reaction they have absolutely delivered” said Arthur Fogel, CEO Global Touring/Chairman - Global Music Live Nation. U2 360 Tour is produced by Live Nation Global Touring. For complete tour and ticket information visit: http://www.livenation.com/ and http://www.u2.com/