The Student Stop AIDS Speaker Tour has been bringing the stories of those most deeply affected by the AIDS pandemic to the UK for over five years. Young people from across the world who have overcome huge adversity to lend their weight to the global response travel around universities and schools across the country to share their experiences and inspire action.

Daniel Kettor, 28, Freetown, Sierra Leone

Daniel was motivated to become an activist following the death of his sister, Marietta, from AIDS. At the age of 17 she was kidnapped by rebels during the civil war and held prisoner for over three months. During captivity Marietta was raped and became pregnant. An attack on the camp by peacekeeping troops gave her the chance to escape. In the aftermath of her ordeal Marietta miscarried and suffered from heavy bleeding. Taken for medical attention by the UNHCR, she tested positive for HIV. She died at the age of 19. Since then Daniel has thrown his heart into rebuilding his country – raising awareness and understanding of HIV, gender violence and human rights. He works with Students Partnership Worldwide, supporting young people to build their skills and understanding to ensure the traumas his family have experienced are never repeated.

Chinyanta Chimba, 20, Zambia

Sadly, the fact that Chinyanta’s life has been affected by HIV and AIDS is not unusual for young Africans. With close relatives having died from AIDS and others living with HIV, her circumstances are all too common. Chinyanta though has reacted not by accepting these circumstances as fate, but by tackling the problems which allow them to persist. Chinyanta has worked hard to speak honestly and openly about the often taboo subjects surround HIV. Through peer education and outreach in Zambia, representing and speaking for young girls at the UN in New York, and being prepared to broach conversations with her parents and elders about topics such as condom use and sexuality, Chinyanta is an example of the generation of young leaders needed to role back HIV.

Tony Ray, 23, New York, USA

“I discovered I was HIV positive four year ago and saw it as another aspect of my life that I had to deal with”; the words of Tony, a young man from the Bronx in New York City. Tony has never let his diagnosis stop him doing what he wanted to do with his life, but it did alter his priorities. Tony has become a facilitator and counsellor on HIV prevention and harm reduction programmes, speaking out about his status and the importance of positive prevention. He has taken part in the Campaign to End AIDS, helping to put together rallies and build media attention on the issues facing those living with HIV in the United States. He now works with the Bronx AIDS Service as a facilitator and peer educator.