en-(COURAGE)-ment

Because I need courage to face our world, maybe you do too. I've been losing heart lately. And I'm a LEO! I need to be more lion-hearted.

So I'm choosing to lay aside skepticism and cynicism for a minute and take (COURAGE) from Paul Hewson, aka Bono, and his partner Bobby Shriver. It's been a year since they launched the (PRODUCT)RED campaign. They targeted HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis in Africa, through the Global Fund.

Companies GAP, American Express, Converse, Apple and others send 50% of the profit for these target (RED) products to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which uses 100% to fight disease and poverty in Africa. All customers have to do is choose products that are supporting the campaign, such as a red iPod, a (red) Motorola cell phone, a (red) t-shirt from GAP, a (red) American Express card (only in the UK, darn), cool (red) Converse sneakers, etc. Please go here to see the full list of products promoting health in Africa.

In the year since the (RED) campaign was launched:

* $47 million donated to the campaign

* 1 million new people are now receiving daily treatment for HIV/AIDS; 1400 new people a day are getting meds

* 2 million new people are now being treated for tuberculosis

* 20 million new people are now being treated for malaria

Sure, these companies are making a profit. But when companies make a profit, it makes campaigns like this sustainable. Let's be smart, people.

Hey, Bono's Irish, but he knows how to market this campaign in the U.S. He says, America needs to "redescribe" itself in the world.

That's the kind of marketing I like. Let's be gullible and believe we can make a difference. Look at the difference these two men have made.

Click on THE (RED) MANIFESTO below to read it:

I got me a (RED) GAP t-shirt, the (2 WEEKS) one. Gap's contribution to the Global Fund from the sale of each (2 WEEKS) t-shirt is equivalent to the average cost of 2 weeks of antiretroviral medicine in Africa, which, along with appropriate nutrition and care, enables people living with HIV to lead healthy, normal lives. That gives them COURAGE, which is (WAY) more important than giving me COURAGE. But giving them COURAGE also gives me COURAGE.

Be en-(COURAGE)-ed. Don't give up. Please never give up.