Some stats revealed in a recent survey of 2,000 young people (16 – 24) from around the world:

• 7 out of 10 women believe it is a man’s job to provide contraceptives – while a third of women believe carrying a condom will mark them as being ‘easy.’

• 1 in 6 women carry condoms in their handbags – with many saying that a pen or gum were more essential contents for a good night out.

• 52% of young people list HIV and AIDS as their biggest concern but 34% surveyed had unprotected sex with two or more partners.

• Men are more worried than women about getting AIDS but engage in riskier behaviour. When asked, only 44% of men, compared to 68% of women, would refuse their partner sex if they were not wearing a condom.

Pretty unnerving numbers if you ask me, that reflect the current attitudes toward safe sex amongst today’s youth. For more stats, read on.

There’s a current campaign to increase awareness of HIV and AIDS but I have mixed feelings when it comes to pushing consumerism on people. Getting all of us to come together and work toward the greater good of society shouldn’t require the use of incentives and gimmicks. As a Western society (and to a lesser degree the European), the ever increasing move towards individualistic mentalities is arguably a greater concern than the issue at hand. BUT I digress. Utopia exists only in fables so I’ll cap the rhetoric there.

Quite plainly, what I’m talking about today is buying a product, namely The Body Shop Limited Edition Guarana Lip Butter to help raise funds for MTV’s Staying Alive Foundation. Now in their second year of successful collaboration, these two organizations have thus far raised approximately $860,000 CDN (£430,000) towards a foundation committed to fighting stigma and discrimination, and empowering young people to protect themselves against HIV and AIDS. The funding from last year’s campaign went directly to the Staying Alive Foundation Awards, which gave small grants to 85 young people to mobilize HIV prevention efforts to educate their peers and influence or inspire others to think about HIV/AIDS.
That’s why I have no qualms about promoting the Move Your Lips Campaign. Let’s be honest. In today’s over-commercialized world, you can’t get far with a cause without an initiative like this. Give people the option to donate $8 or offer a product from a reputable source for the same amount and guarantee that partial proceeds will go towards a worthy fundraiser. This is math even a toddler can do. With the purchase of a jar of Guarana Lip Butter, an average of $5 will go to the Staying Alive Foundation. That ain’t half bad. And you know why this works? Well, besides the obvious affordability, no one really has an excuse for not getting involved. If you think one purchase can’t possibly make a difference, then think again. The Body Shop has more than 2,200 stores in over 60 countries, including 122 locations in Canada alone. Again, put two and two together.

So go and buy a Guarana Lip Butter for someone you care about and get lippy! Think of it as a solid investment in the karma bank.

Here are some more statistics from the survey:

• Men are more likely to rely on factors such as “trust” and “healthy” physical appearance when it comes to having unprotected sex.

• Amongst those surveyed, Swedes were the least worried about HIV and AIDS and the most likely to be willing to have unprotected sex with someone just because they appeared healthy.

• Young people in South Africa, Mexico and Singapore were the most worried about HIV, but also the most responsible when it came to using condoms.

• Asian men were much more likely to carry condoms than women, reflecting a strong stigma among young Asian women over buying condoms.

• For some men, their reluctance to carry a condom is linked to a superstitious attitude. 36% of men feel that if you go out to “hook-up” you will fail.

• 37% of women (ages 16 – 20) believe that HIV and AIDS isn’t something that would happen within their social circle.

Young people are very open when it comes to talking about sex – and they discuss a wide variety of sexual topics.

Sexual topics they discuss with friends (% saying they discuss topic):

Sexual positions: 55%
Number of sexual partners: 48%
Orgasms: 46%
Using condoms: 55%
The pill: 48%
Risks of getting STDs, such as AIDS: 46%
Sharing advice or sexual tips: 54%
Other topics about sex: 52%

Only 14% claim to NOT talk about sex with their friends.

MoveYourLips.com is a site which gives young people the opportunity to discuss the campaign on the ‘Lip Love’ wall and to join the ‘protest’ by encouraging users to join the campaign on social networking sites.

About the Survey:

Commissioned by The Body Shop and MTV Networks International, the survey took place in 10 countries: South Africa, Singapore, Mexico, Sweden, India, UK, Russia, Hong Kong, Germany, and USA, with 200 young people, aged 16 – 24 (18 -24 in South Africa, Hong Kong, Singapore and India) taking part in each country. To qualify for the survey, respondents had to have had at least one sexual experience. All interviews were carried out online using nationwide online panels and took place February 8 – 15, 2008.

About the Staying Alive Awards:

Staying Alive Awards are made twice yearly at the beginning of June and December. Applications can be submitted year round via Staying Alive Foundation partners and directly to the Foundation. Awards range from $1,000 US to $12,000 US and are made to youth-led organizations and young individuals in communities where HIV/AIDS is prevalent.

Do you know someone who could apply for a Staying Alive Award? The chosen award recipients are selected based on a number of factors such as: their work to educate young people with responsible information about HIV and AIDS; their support or mentoring of youth leaders responding to HIV and AIDS; their work to help eliminate or eradicate the stigma and discrimination associated with HIV and AIDS; and areas including their efforts to encourage young people to take action to protect themselves from HIV infection.

To be eligible for an award, projects must demonstrate credibility – and provide independent references, government accreditation, verifiable banking and accounting systems, and will be committed to following the Staying Alive Foundation guidelines.

About the Product:

The new Limited Edition Guarana Lip Butter has a unique formula to restore moisture levels and protect delicate lips, and contains guarana berry from the Amazon Basin in Brazil. For ultimate moisturization, this Lip Butter also contains Community Trade shea butter from Ghana and beeswax from Zambia. Both ingredients are sourced through The Body Shop Community Trade Program, ensuring communities get a fair deal for their ingredients and accessories.