The Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) was established in the United States in 1992 by Sir Elton John, and is headquartered in New York City. In 1993, Sir Elton also established his Foundation as a registered charity in the United Kingdom, headquartered in London. These two organizations function as separate entities with their own distinct grant-making portfolios, but both pursue the same mission – to reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS through innovative HIV prevention programs, efforts to eliminate stigma and discrimination associated with HIV/AIDS, and direct treatment, care, and support services for people living with HIV/AIDS. The Foundation supports this mission through proceeds from special events, cause-related marketing projects, and voluntary contributions (large and small) from individuals, corporations, and foundations.
Today, EJAF is one of the world’s leading nonprofits working in this field. Collectively, the two organizations have raised more than $300 million since inception in support of worthy projects across the globe, including significant funding dedicated to programs in their respective home countries. The U.S. organization awards grants to community-based projects across the United States, the Americas, and the Caribbean. The U.K. organization focuses its grant making on programs in Africa, Asia, and Europe.
EJAF’s grant-making encompasses grassroots and community-based programs, regional partnerships, national strategies, and international cooperative efforts. The Foundation’s grant-making focuses on HIV prevention, harm reduction, community health and human rights empowerment campaigns, stigma eradication, and compassionate public policy development. The Foundation also supports direct services for persons living with HIV/AIDS, including medical and mental health treatment, testing and counseling services, case management and social service coordination, legal aid, and professional training.
In addition, the Foundation is an international leader and champion on politically marginalized issues, backing up its grant-making with speeches, editorials, and other public communications calling for access to life-saving medicines for the poor, for gay men’s health, for accessible sexual health services for young people, for health and economic equality for African Americans, and for fully funded post-prison community re-entry programs for HIV-positive ex-offenders.
EJAF’s regional, national, and international leadership in this field is predicated upon (1) its vigilant attention to the constant changes and challenges of this ever-evolving global epidemic, (2) its commitment to the development of strong partnerships with like-minded organizations in order to maximize resources and minimize duplication of effort, and (3) its strategic investment of donor dollars to have the greatest possible impact in reducing the incidence of HIV/AIDS. The U.S. organization targets key regions and populations poorly served by current prevention efforts and most at risk of infection: critically under-funded communities in the United States, the Americas, and the Caribbean; stigmatized and marginalized populations including men who have sex with men, injection drug users, and incarcerated individuals; and under-served populations including African Americans and young people.
EJAF’s strong financial health and dynamic and flexible grant-making philosophy position the organization ideally to respond to sudden emergencies involving the life and health of people living with HIV/AIDS, to adjust its grant-making priorities to address the needs of the ever-shifting demographics of this global epidemic, and to advocate for policies that protect and strengthen the health and rights of people affected by HIV/AIDS.
