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This Year's Pioneers Forum features Ms. Elleni Gebreamlak West. The event will be held on November 27th, 2000 at Kresge Auditorium, Stanford University. A native Ethiopian, Ms. Gebreamlak West has extensive experience in public service as a social worker and counselor dealing with youth-related activities. Currently she is the President and CEO of African Aids Initiative International, Inc. Her interest in the fight against AIDS arises out of a concern for the impact the disease is having on Africa. Realizing that the AIDS epidemic can only be successfully combatted if every individual sees it as a priority, Ms. West has taken an active approach to creating a strategic battle against the virus. Last November she organized the First International Conference on AIDS in Ethiopia. The legacy of that historic summit is the African AIDS Initiative, Inc., an international non-profit organization dedicated to HIV/AIDS awareness in Africa through work in prevention, education, outreach, teaching and counseling. Among the many distinguished persons serving on Ms. Elleni Gebreamlak West's advisory board are Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Former Presidential Candidate Bill Bradley, Professor and Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison, Professor Henry Louis Gates, Professor Cornell West, Professor and Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel, and Director of Kudirat Initiative Hafsat Abiola. The Organizing Committee and Sponsors of the 2nd Annual Pioneers Forum Program In the Fall of 1999 SESU launched an annual program called Pioneers Forum. The program was designed to introduce accomplished Ethiopians who are paving the way to scientific breakthroughs and making concrete efforts to advance economic progress in Ethiopia and elsewhere around the world. The guest speaker for the first annual Pioneers Forum which was held on November 5th, 1999 was Mr. Noah Samara, Founder and CEO of WorldSpace Corporation. The event was attended by approximately 400 people from Stanford and the Bay Area community. The event was extensively covered by the two major Stanford papers and a local public radio station as well as the Addis Tribune printed in Ethiopia. Mr. Samara's visit to Stanford University resulted in the initiation of a joint project between three prominent Stanford professors and WorldSpace Corporation to deliver Stanford education via satellite broadcast to students in Third World countries. Read about Mr. Samara's visit to Stanford in the press: Stanford Daily Article Stanford Report Article Addis Tribune Article The Organizing Committee and Sponsors of the 1st Annual Pioneers Forum Program