In order to make the youth of Canada more aware of the problem of HIV/AIDS in their communities, the United Youth Initiative (UYI) launched a project called ‘One Million Red Ribbons’ on December 1st, 2008. The project hopes to educate youth by mobilizing many hundreds of young people as peer educators to distribute information on the serious of the illness known as AIDS.
“We’re committed to working with our own hands to effect change and raise awareness about pressing social issues in our own communities,” says Justin Lee, one of UYI’s members.
This project was created by a young man named Ryan Tremblay, the 18 year old founder of UYI. Tremblay has been working on issues related to AIDS awareness since he was a student in high school.
“I did a survey at my school and I found out only two percent of students knew the difference between HIV and AIDS,” says Tremblay. “That really shocked me and the more I looked into it the more I realized how many people believe incorrect information. That was a call to action.”