YouthAIDS

During my time with PSI, I created YouthAIDS a $30M global initiative of PSI that filled a critical gap fighting HIV/AIDS.  We took a cause marketing approach by engaging leading corporations and foundations in raising funding and awareness for HIV programming and innovation.  Some of those corporations being Keil’s, Levi’s, Michael Stars, ALDO, Johnson and Johnson, MTV Networks, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Viacom and more.  The annual YouthAIDS gala raised up to $1.7M at it’s peak with honorees in attendance Bono. Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Sir Richard Branson, Clive Davis, Ted Leonsis and Sheila Johnson.  YouthAIDS was the charity chosen by MTV’s Staying Alive, the global HIV Awareness campaign.  The star-studded concert with P Diddy and Alicia Keys as headliners was broadcast in 160 countries rights free.

Most notably by far, one of the most successful cause marketing partnerships was ALDO Flights AIDS.  Raising $5M in it’s duration, just from the sales of dog tags sold in store highlighting AIDS prevention messages.  The campaign shot by Peter Lindbergh replaced ALDO’s traditional advertising and featured black and white images of various celebrities such as Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys, Pink, Josh Lucas and others. ALDO reported a 40% increase in sales during the campaign with not a single shoe in it’s advertising!

 Funding garnered through the YouthAIDS campaign seeded vital innovation in the fight against AIDS.  Most notably funding a PSI clinic in Zambia to endeavor to drive men in to voluntarily be circumcised as an HIV prevention method.  We proved that a man circumcised is 60% less likely to pass on or contract HIV and it quickly scaled to six African countries.  The initial YouthAIDS investment was $400k and it’s measured results leveraged $350M of further funding from Gates, DFID and USAID to scale the program across multiple NGO’s.  This is still one of the leading HIV prevention methods to this day.

Having recruited PSI’s Ambassadors Debra Messing, Ashley Judd and Mandy Moore we took field trips to over 20 countries.  A trip of note was to Zimbabwe with Debra Messing which led to securing $100M from USAID for HIV/AIDS support for PSI’s AIDS programming.  Mandy Moore strengthened relations with The Global Fund and much needed mosquito nets in The Congo and Ashley Judd led to extended funding from USAID in Central America, strengthened by Juanes and Salma Hayek who joined the trip during the ALDO campaign.