This is part of a display of celebrity-donated shoes that’s currently at St. Patrick’s Hospital in Dublin. Adam has autographed both sneakers, as you can see below. If you’re curious, they’re by Alexander McQueen. (Spendy!)

The official Walk In My Shoes day is coming up on April 12th, but these shoes (and others) will be auctioned online at the end of April. Keep an eye on the Walk In My Shoes websites (link above) for more info.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

PHOTOS: Adam Clayton’s Donated Shoes for Walk In My Shoes 2013

That’s Bono done up in the shape of a giant egg … an egg that also happens to be up for auction this month. If you’re in Dublin during the next couple weeks, you’ll find this at the St. Stephen’s Green shopping center, near the site of the old Dandelion Market.

It’s part of a charity event called The Big Egg Hunt, which has 100 big eggs scattered around Dublin and on display prior to a live auction on March 23rd. The winning online bidder doesn’t automatically get the egg; s/he wins a chance to attend and bid during the live auction. All proceeds benefit the Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation.

The Bono egg is the work of well-known Dublin caricature artist Niall O’Laughin, who’s appeared on @U2 before.

Great thanks to Gary Paul in Dublin for the photo!

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Bono as an Egg (and You Can Bid on Him)

Today, December 1, is World AIDS Day. It’s a good time to remind ourselves that ONE.org is working diligently for and with the poorest of the poor in the fight against AIDS. These are perilous days for international aid programs as governments around the world consider austerity plans, which usually include a reduction of foreign assistance. The U.S. Congress will be faced with the same decisions about spending cuts within the coming weeks.

Bono has often reminded us that this effort is about justice, not charity. On ONE’s front page he says, “…the world is more malleable than you think and it’s waiting for you to hammer it into shape.” What a great thought: that we can actually change systems on behalf of those who have no voice.

TIME reports in a recent story:

In recognition of this year’s World AIDS Day, U2 singer and global activist Bono is stepping up his fight against HIV/AIDS by personally lobbying American legislators to maintain funding for global AIDS initiatives and awareness…. Bono showed up in Washington a few weeks after the presidential election to make his case and he didn’t just bring star-appeal, he brought data.

Here are a few stats:

More than 8 million people are on life-saving antiretroviral therapy
1 billion poor people are better off because of investments made between 1970 and 1990
More than 5.5 million child deaths were averted through vaccinations by the end of 2011
New HIV infections among children have dropped by 40%
The US uses less than 1% of its annual budget to fund life-saving programs

On this World AIDS Day, learn more at ONE.org and consider signing the petition asking Congress not to cut international AIDS programs for the poorest of the poor.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

World AIDS Day, December 1

Though Bono hasn’t done another TEDTalk, he has put together a playlist of his eight favorite talks. These are the ones that have motivated and inspired him.

It’s an impressive list including Bill and Melinda Gates, world-renowned physicist Stephen Hawking, World Bank Institute VP Sanjay Pradhan, Egyptian revolutionary Wael Ghonim and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. Bono adds his own personal comments to each of the eight videos. He says of Seth Godin’s talk, “Describing a revolution in media in the most unrevolutionary terms, this talk is an understatement.”

With a total run time of 2 hours and 19 minutes, this is a set of “ideas worth spreading.” Here is the link to Bono’s playlist.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Bono’s TEDTalks Playlist

Bono: "Let her face be our face tonight"

This past weekend, Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), an opposition party to the ruling junta in Burma (officially known as Myanmar by the government there) won an astonishing 43 out of 45 seats up for grabs in a general election. Suu Kyi herself will now sit in one of the parliamentary seats.

Burmese activists remain hopeful but cautious as the votes still need to be verified by the military-run government. If the Burmese people continue to support the democratic vision of the NLD, Suu Kyi and her party have the potential to gain a majority of seats in parliament in the 2015 election.

U2 have long been supporters of the pro-democracy leader, likening her to Martin Luther King. During the recent 360 tour they honored Suu Kyi by dedicating several songs to her. On their first swing through America, the band offered a prayer by singing “MLK” – “sleep, sleep tonight / and may your dreams be realized” – and then blazing into “Walk On,” a song written about her for the album All That You Can’t Leave Behind.

But an amazing thing happened just before U2 returned to the States for the final leg of their tour (beginning with the fourth leg). Suu Kyi was released from nearly 22 years of captivity and house arrest. U2’s petition became a prayer of thanksgiving by substituting “MLK” with “Scarlet.” Only one word was needed: “Rejoice!” The anthem “Walk On” then became a celebration of peace and justice over and against the military oppression of the Burmese government.

It’s uncertain as to whether the junta will honor the election (they haven’t in the past), but the eyes of the world are now on Burma, and the pressure to become a democratic nation is expansive. In speaking of this “new era,” Suu Kyi reminded her supporters, “What is important is not how many seats we may have won, but that . . . the people participated in the democratic process. We invite all parties who wish to bring peace and prosperity to our country [to work together].”

Past comments on Aung San Suu Kyi from Bono

From 2007
I have a little bit of a relationship with Aung San Suu Kyi. I’ve met her family and corresponded with her. U2 actually wrote a song – Walk On – for her. I’ve always followed her progress and that of the Burmese people. She is a study in grace and they are a study in patience.

From 2004
It’s hard not to become a monster when you are trying to defeat one. Aung San Suu Kyi is the moral leader of Myanmar, the country more correctly known as Burma. She has been, in effect, under house arrest since 1989.

Suu Kyi is a real hero in an age of phony phone-in celebrity, which hands out that title freely to the most spoiled and under qualified. Her quiet voice of reason makes the world look noisy, mad; it is a low mantra of grace in an age of terror, a reminder of everything we take for granted and just what it can take to get it. Thinking of her, you can’t help but use anachronistic language of duty and personal sacrifice.

Here is a clip of “MLK” and “Walk On” from October 25, 2009 in Pasadena, California.

Here is a clip of “Scarlet” and “Walk On” from July 26, 2011 (after Suu Kyi’s release) in Pittsburgh.

For readers who are interested in more info on U2 and Aung San Suu Kyi, see my personal blog here.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Aung San Suu Kyi: “Walk On”

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Bono on The Ellen DeGeneres Show

AIDS has killed more than 25 million people between 1981 and 2007. Despite recent and improved access to antiretroviral treatments in many regions of the world, AIDS still claimed 2 million lives in 2007 (270,000 were children). It seems cold to “crunch” some numbers here, but it really does hit hard when you read it.

December 1, 2011 marks World AIDS Day which has been occurring since 1988. It was originally conceived in August, 1987 by James W. Bunn and Thomas Netter, public health officers for the Global Program on AIDS (now known as UNAIDS), at the World Health Organization in Geneva , Switzerland.

Each year has featured a theme with 2011′s being “Getting To Zero by 2015.” The hope is to have zero deaths, (not zero funding which had steadily decreased in recent years) , zero new infections, and finally zero discrimination of those who suffer with it. There will be many events worldwide that will focus on many aspects of the disease including new treatments. No one will be more vocal about how devastating it would be to lose more funding for these antiretroviral drugs that have saved so many lives than Bono. He has worked tirelessly for this cause for many years and this year is no exception. You can find him on television shows like The Daily Show (November 30), Good Morning America and The Ellen Show (December 1) speaking about AIDS, how far we’ve come, and how far we have yet to go.

Bono will be the first to say that he is not the hero in this fight. Though he has done so much through his ONE organization, DATA and Product (RED), he has been quoted that the real heroes are in the trenches  fighting this devastating disease each and every day. One of those warriors is his friend , Ugandan nurse and AIDS activist, Agnes Nyamayarwo who was our guest speaker at the first U2 Conference held in North Carolina in 2009. For some who may not be aware, Bono was so taken by Agnes’ work to educate people about AIDS in the villages around her while she herself was HIV positive and not healthy. He paid for her and a number of women in her hometown of Kampala to get on the ARV drug treatments. The ladies got healthy and formed the Mulago Positive Women’s Network. The MPWN’s mission is to assist women in coping with the ramifications of HIV/AIDS in their lives. It works to empower its members by providing them with essential information on their health status and by helping them to obtain marketable job skills to support their families.

The main source of income for the women of the MPWN is the traditional African craft items they make and sell at their modest store in Kampala and through their website. I made a personal decision a few years ago to honor World AIDS Day by selling the crafts at a local holiday fair and sending 100 percent of the proceeds back to Agnes and the women. Among the many items I sell are dolls, paper bead jewelry, and even wooden animal statues carved by the children. Two very special items that I featured this year were the beaded Bono bracelets and small friendship baskets. The ladies made the bracelet in honor of the man that literally saved their lives.  The small basket (pictured on the website) is often used for storing coffee beans and rice in Africa, but I actually use it to hold my wedding ring. It has a side by side color pattern which represents how two friends walk side by side and support each other. It is a lovely sentiment and both items truly represent the deep and meaningful connection they have with their friend, Bono. If you would like to purchase these or any of the items to support the women and their families especially during this holiday season of giving, please go to their website or get more information by contacting info@mpwn-uganda.org.

I now have a special connection with Agnes and the women of the MPWN. It has made the “numbers” become real faces just as Bono wanted to do when he took Agnes on the Heart of America Tour to launch the ONE campaign in 2002. He , too, made those numbers become real people. AIDS does not discriminate. It takes men, women, and children of all races, creeds, and countries. We are all the faces of AIDS.

It is my wish for Christmas to have an AIDS free generation by 2015. I want to be a part of the generation that makes it happen. I chose to do an event for Agnes in honor of two of my family members who lost their lives to this disease before there were ARV treatments. Now that it is available, it is my hope that it continues to be made accessible to all those who suffer. There are many ways to observe this day. Bono is using his platform while Agnes will remain in the “trenches” fighting the good fight as only Agnes can. I chose to support Agnes and the MPWN by selling their crafts. Others may visit the final resting place of those lost. Some may visit those who are suffering with the disease right now. Some may sign a petition for ONE telling legislators it is not ok to cut funding that is saving millions of lives. Still others may simply buy a cup of coffee at Starbuck’s , one of the many supporters of (RED). Those few dollars will buy a vaccine that will save a life. Every contribution matters. We don’t have to be celebrities to make a difference and end this disease that has been taking lives for over 30 years.

Peace and love to all of you this holiday season and in 2012.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

World AIDS Day 2011

For those who may not know, Elsha has a form of Muscular Dystrophy. When she was born, her parents were told that she would probably not be able to do anything. Though unable to walk, Elsha has proved those doctors wrong. She graduated high school with a 4.0 GPA and is a talented and award winning artist. She devotes her time to many important causes including ONE’s campaign to make poverty history and the African Well Fund which helps bring clean water to those who so desperately need it.

U2 is near and dear to Elsha’s heart. In fact, she has met the the band on a number of occasions.  I do believe she holds a special place in their hearts as well.

Since 2006, Elsha has used her talent to design holiday cards which she sells and gives part of the proceeds to the African Well Fund.  She recently  revealed her new card design for 2011.  She has now decided to call them “hEArt” cards (art with a heart)  as some of them can be used for any occasion. You will notice a certain U2 reference here and there too! Purchasing the cards are a wonderful way of giving back to those in need this holiday season or any time of the year.

Here is more information on the card designs and how to order, her favorite charitable organizations , and the story of her remarkable life.

I wish you love and peace (or else!) this holiday season.  May all your dreams be realized in 2012.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Holiday Cards From Elsha’s Heart

The Rainforest Foundation was founded by Sting and Trudie Styler in 1989, and over the years has worked in more than 20 countries to support “indigenous peoples and traditional populations of the world’s rainforest to protect their rainforest homes and fulfill their rights to land, life and livelihood.”

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Autographed Uber Achtung Baby Box Up For Auction

Many in the stadium did not realize that Bevell was blind. At the end of the song, Bono gave Bevell his Gretsch Goal Is Soul guitar.

Bevell has turned this experience into the song, “Hand In The Darkness,” as a thank you to Bono. He said to Arizona’s FOX television, “I was able to send him a thank you letter to pass it on to Bono. I didn’t think the thank you letter was enough so I ended up writing a song.”

He described the song title’s inspiration:”I thought how often has it happened to me that someone has reached out to me through the darkness and led me to safety. … I thought that idea, a lot of people can relate to that idea, because you don’t have to be blind to have lost your way… and that whole idea of hand in the darkness came along and I felt inspired to write this song.”

“Hand In The Darkness” is available for download on iTunes for 99 cents and all the proceeds will be donated to ONE.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Thank You To Bono: Hand In The Darkness