Look To The Stars News: UNAIDS

George W. Bush Announces Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon Partner Country

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 14:30:00 +0000

During a visit to the George Urban Health Center in Lusaka last week, President George W. Bush, Mrs. Laura Bush and First Lady of Zambia Dr. Christine Kaseba were joined by United States Ambassador Mark Storella to announce that Zambia will be the first Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon partner country, expanding the availability of vital cervical cancer screening and treatment, and breast care education to those in need.

Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon is an innovative partnership between the George W. Bush Institute, the U.S. Department of State President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) that leverages public and private investments and existing health infrastructures to combat cervical and breast cancer, the two leading causes of cancer deaths among women in Sub-Saharan Africa. The cervical cancer partnership will utilize the platform and resources at PEPFAR and will draw from lessons learned in the significant scaling-up of access to HIV interventions in recent years.

Ronaldinho To Promote AIDS Awareness Through Sport

Fri, 21 Oct 2011 14:30:00 +0000

Ronaldo de Assis Moreira—the Brazilian football star also known as Ronaldinho—has accepted an invitation from the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and Brazil’s Ministry of Health to promote AIDS awareness through sport.

“Ronaldinho is a great inspiration to young people the world over,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “His voice will reach millions of people and bring new energy to our vision of achieving zero new HIV infections.”

Drawing on his years of experience in professional football, Mr de Assis Moreira will use sport as a means of engaging young people and raising awareness around AIDS. “I am honored to stand together with UNAIDS and the Ministry of Health of Brazil in the response to HIV,” said Mr de Assis Moreira. “I am delighted to make a small contribution to this important cause by doing what I do best: playing football.”

Annie Lennox To Attend UN General Assembly Session On AIDS

Tue, 07 Jun 2011 14:00:00 +0000

Annie Lennox is in New York this week to attend a series of high level meetings as part of her role as a UNAIDS ambassador.

Thirty years into the AIDS epidemic, and 10 years since the landmark UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS, the world will come together to review progress and chart the future course of the global AIDS response at the 2011 UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting on AIDS from 8–10 June 2011 in New York.

Member States are expected to adopt a new Declaration that will reaffirm current commitments and commit to actions to guide and sustain the global AIDS response.

Janet Jackson To Host Celebrity Charity Life Ball

Mon, 04 Apr 2011 20:00:00 +0000

Janet Jackson will host this year’s amfAR Life Ball in Vienna.

Life Ball is the world’s most extravagant HIV and AIDS benefit held annually in the beautiful historical city of Vienna, Austria. Life Ball combines the great Viennese Ball tradition with glamorous, outlandish performances and inspirational speeches. Life Ball has always provided an opportunity to speak out against ignorance and prejudice and celebrate diversity. Organized by AIDS LIFE, Life Ball has raised more than $20 million during the past 18 years for HIV/AIDS projects worldwide through partnerships with amfAR, the William J. Clinton Foundation, the Elton John AIDS Foundation, and UNAIDS. Through the Life Ball, AIDS LIFE has been a major supporter of amfAR’s TREAT Asia Pediatric HIV/AIDS Initiative.

Since accepting a volunteer position with amfAR, Janet Jackson has travelled internationally on behalf of the foundation. At each of her numerous public appearances, she has worked tirelessly to heighten awareness of HIV/AIDS as a threat to social and economic stability and to underscore the urgent need for continued AIDS research.

Annie Lennox To Be Honored With Harry Chapin Humanitarian Award

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 14:00:00 +0000

NARM, the music business association, has announced that it will honor Grammy and Oscar-winning artist, activist and campaigner, Annie Lennox, with its Harry Chapin Memorial Humanitarian Award in recognition of her outstanding work on behalf of HIV/AIDS awareness and other health, human rights and environmental causes.

The presentation will take place at the 2011 NARM Convention Awards Dinner Finale at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles on Thursday, May 12.

Annie Lennox Joins Body Shop HIV Campaign

Mon, 29 Nov 2010 14:00:00 +0000

The Body Shop has teamed up with world-renowned photographer Rankin to launch an international HIV campaign, which invites you to be ‘an activist’ and join the fight against HIV.

HIV knows no boundaries and to highlight this irrefutable fact, the campaign links everyday ‘activists’, people from all walks of life, captured by British portrait and fashion photographer Rankin. This campaign – which features Annie Lennox – is in partnership with UNAIDS and serves as a timely reminder that being an activist means many different things – from taking to a podium and speaking out, to wearing the red ribbon on World AIDS Day and supporting the fight against HIV.

Annie Lennox Sings Out About HIV/AIDS

Thu, 12 Aug 2010 11:30:00 +0000

Annie Lennox will appear at two events at the Scottish Festival of Politics this month – Annie Lennox and The SING Campaign – One Year On (Thursday 19 August), and Power of the People (Wednesday 18 August), where she will form part of a panel.

Lennox will provide an update on developments of The SING Campaign one year on. Those in attendance will find out about the positive impact SING and the Treatment Action Campaign continue to have on people living with HIV/AIDS. Annie will also act as a panel member, alongside Martin Bell and Mark Thomas during Power of the People, a session examining how people who are not professional politicians can have a significant impact upon the political landscape, and how this affects parliaments and government.

She recently gave the organizers of the Festival of Politics (FoP) a special interview about what she will talk about during the event:

Paul McCartney To Stream Concert Online For Charity

Fri, 25 Jun 2010 13:00:00 +0000

Carla Bruni-Sarkozy and The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria are proud to announce that singer/songwriter Paul McCartney is throwing his support behind the BORN HIV FREE campaign.

His performance this weekend at Hard Rock Calling 2010 will be exclusively available through the BORN HIV FREE YouTube channel around 8:30pm GMT (2:30pm E.T) on Sunday, June 27.

McCartney’s concert from London’s Hyde Park will be the first musical performance streamed globally from Europe on YouTube. It will remain in the BORN HIV FREE YouTube channel for a month after the show, giving people who want to watch it again or view it for the first time a chance to do so. Visitors to the channel will also be able to learn more about Born HIV FREE and sign up to show their support for the campaign.

Annie Lennox Named Charity Ambassador For UN AIDS Program

Thu, 03 Jun 2010 15:00:00 +0000

Annie Lennox has been named as International Goodwill Ambassador for the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

With an award winning career spanning several decades, Ms. Lennox is one of the world’s most outstanding musical voices. Now, she renews her commitment to speak out for women and girls affected by the HIV epidemic.

 "The daily brutality faced by millions of women and girls is unacceptable," said Lennox. “If we are to end the cycle of human devastation triggered by the AIDS epidemic, we must address the rights of women and girls and challenge their second class citizen status, which puts them at greater risk of HIV.”

Naomi Watts To Cut The Lights For World AIDS Day

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:30:00 +0000

The lights on the Washington Square Park Memorial Arch will go off at 6:15 pm tonight, December 1, for World AIDS Day.

The New York City Light for Rights event will feature United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, amfAR chairman Kenneth Cole, UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador Naomi Watts, New York City Speaker of the City Council Christine C. Quinn, and 13-year-old AIDS activist Keren Dunaway-Gonzalez.

The lights will be out for 5 minutes as part of the Light for Rights event. Light For Rights events are happening in cities and towns all over the world and will bring thousands of people together on World AIDS Day, December 1, 2009, to honor those we have lost to AIDS and to highlight the fundamental rights we all share

Carla Bruni Raises AIDS Awareness

Thu, 19 Feb 2009 11:30:00 +0000

Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, the French First Lady and singer, will travel to Burkina Faso to visit Global Fund-supported Aids programs in Burkina Faso on what will be her first official trip as a Global Ambassador for the Protection of Mothers and Children against AIDS.

According to the Joint United Nations Programme HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), approximately 130,000 people are living with the disease in Burkina Faso, of which slightly less than half are women. Approximately 10,000 children in the country are estimated to be living with the HIV virus or AIDS.

Burkina Faso managed to bring down HIV infections from 7.4% in 1997 to 2% in 2005 according to a UN report published in 2008.

Jackie Chan Hands Over Cash To Boys' And Girls' Club

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 12:00:00 +0000

Action star Jackie Chan took a break from filming his latest movie last week to present two checks to organizations that benefit children.

The actor is currently filming The Spy Next Door in New Mexico, and was asked to attend the ceremony to present the money to the children’s charities in Albuquerque. Chan – who told Look To The Stars that the biggest problem in the world today is the “suffering of children” – presented the checks on behalf of Pulte Homes, which owns the model home village where The Spy Next Door is being filmed. The company donated $5,000 to the Boys’ and Girls’ Club of Albuquerque and $5,000 to Southwest Multimedia.

“I’m very lucky to be able to help children who are suffering the the world,” Chan told Look To The Stars last year. “Since I am Ambassador for UNICEF and UNAIDS, I am able to help raise interest in the problems that children face. Plus I am involved with my own charities here in Asia – the Dragon’s Heart Charity and the Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation. There are so many problems for children! Sometimes I feel that I just can’t do enough for them – as soon as I solve the problem of one group, I notice that another group is suffering. I try, but it’s never enough.”

Jackie Chan Receives UNICEF Award

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 15:30:00 +0000

Action star Jackie Chan has received a special UNICEF award for his work with children.

Chan was a guest at a UNICEF reception held in China on August 9, where awards were presented to UNICEF supporting partners and goodwill ambassadors who have aided the organization’s efforts to help children all over the world. The event – called Champions for Children – served two purposes: to advocate for vulnerable children and to thank all of UNICEF’s partners, including the Chinese government, for their tireless work.

Attendees at the function listened to talks from Chan and world reknowned pianist Lang Lang, as well as the words of young survivors from the Sichuan earthquake.

Bill Clinton Speaks At AIDS Conference

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 15:30:00 +0000

The eyes of the world are this week firmly fixed on AIDS 2008, the XVII International AIDS Conference in Mexico City.

The week-long conference officially opened on Sunday night, and last night (August 4) featured a rousing speech by former US president Bill Clinton.

“AIDS is a very big dragon. The mythological dragon was slain by Saint George, the original knight in shining armor, but this dragon must be slain by millions and millions of foot soldiers,” he told activists, leaders, and experts who gathered for the conference. “We know there is so much yet to be done: to expand prevention, treatment and care, to strengthen undeveloped health systems.”

Kelly Rowland Tested For HIV To Raise Awareness

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:30:00 +0000

R&B singer Kelly Rowland has undergone an HIV test in Africa to raise awareness of the disease.

The 27-year-old Destiny’s Child singer took the test while in Nairobi on Thursday to help reduce the stigma of the disease in the country, where people fear discrimination if they are tested.

“Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to HIV infection, and it is important for everyone to know their HIV status,” she said. “The quicker you know your status, the sooner you can receive treatment if you’re HIV+, and reduce the risk of inadvertently infecting future partners.”

Jackie Chan Urges For A Peaceful Olympics

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 08:19:50 +0000

Jackie Chan has come out fighting for the Olympics – despite the current protests occuring around the world as the Olympic Torch makes its way to Beijing.

The 54-year-old star of over 100 action films believes the Games should be used as a platform for peace – not politics – and should represent “unity and love” to heal the problems of the world. The UNICEF and UNAIDS Ambassador is a strong believer in philanthropy and goodwill, and although he can understand the protestors’ desire to be heard, he is disappointed with the way they are doing it.

“They wish to find an outlet to voice their opinions, but I don’t think they should use the Olympics to do so,” said Chan after arriving in Beijing with Jet Li for the world premiere of The Forgotten Kingdom yesterday. “I hope people do not mix sports with politics. This is wrong. I don’t understand why people would want to destroy the Olympics.”

Exclusive Interview: Jackie Chan Talks To Look To The Stars

Fri, 30 Nov 2007 10:50:00 +0000

One of the greatest things about our work at Look To The Stars is the chance to ‘discover’ the wonderful things that celebrities do everyday. In doing so, we often find that our idols are true heroes. This is especially true of action hero Jackie Chan, a legend of Hong Kong cinema and star of the three “Rush Hour” movies. Chan volunteers his time to help many charities, the closest to his heart being the Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation, an organization that has helped thousands of people since he started it in 1988.

Jackie Chan is a great example of someone who always uses his star power to help others. This can best be seen in his Build a School for a Dollar
program, and in his plea to advertisers to

Fiennes, Shilpa Raise AIDS Awareness in India

Fri, 09 Feb 2007 12:23:18 +0000

British actor Ralph Fiennes and the UK Celebrity Big Brother winner Shilpa Shetty are doing their parts to raise AIDS awareness in India.

With 5.7 million infections, India has the world’s largest number of people living with HIV and AIDS. According to UNAIDS figures 202,000 of these are children, with about 60,000 more children likely to be born with HIV every year.

Although the Indian government offers free drugs and people are gradually beginning to speak openly about the issues involved, a social stigma commonly surrounds the disease. People affected by HIV and AIDS are often disowned by their famies, denied treatment at hospitals, made outcasts in their communities, and their children barred from schools.