Washington Post Profiles Kate Roberts, Founder of YouthAIDS

The Washington Post on Tuesday profiled Kate Roberts, the founder and director of Washington, D.C.-based AIDS organization YouthAIDS. Roberts, who has worked as an advertising and marketing executive in Russia and Romania, "has turned YouthAIDS into a global effort, using theater performances, media, concerts, fashion and sports to reach millions of people," according to the Post. Roberts operates YouthAIDS "as a business, not as a charity seeking a handout," the Post reports. "We don't just beg for money," she said, adding, "We develop campaigns that are a win-win for both the cause and for the company" that makes a donation. Population Services International provided Roberts with the money to start YouthAIDS, which has a staff of six people and an annual budget of about $2 million, the Post reports. "AIDS is literally the worst pandemic of all time, a sexual holocaust, a threat to all mankind and you die alone. It's not a cause but an emergency," Roberts said (Strauss, Washington Post, 9/7). The complete article is available online.

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