The New Zealand AIDS Foundation needed to help fight the stigma of HIV by showing the world that through effective treatment, people living with HIV have an undetectable viral load, meaning they can’t transmit the virus to another person.

On World AIDS Day 2019, alongside NZAF, Body Positive and Positive Women NZ, we launched Sperm Positive: The World’s First HIV-Positive Sperm Bank. The online sperm bank gave men living with HIV the opportunity to become sperm donors, creating a story shared in 94 countries to an audience of over 1.8 billion, and showed the world that HIV could not be passed on in the most undeniable way possible – childbirth.

Now, Sperm Positive isn’t just changing beliefs; it’s changing lives. To date, four babies are due, 32 women have registered as recipients, 27 HIV-positive sperm donors have joined, and at 2:05 pm on January 27th, 2021, the first baby from an HIV positive sperm bank was born, creating a living proof that HIV cannot be passed on. She’s a girl.

Credits
Advertising Agency: DDB Group New Zealand
Client: New Zealand Aids Foundation | Website
Campaign: Sperm Positive | Website
Category: Public Awareness Ads
Format: Digital Campaign
Tags: World AIDS Day