Robin Smalley

Activist, Concerned citizen, Connector, Global soul, Idea generator, Parent, Social entrepreneur, Startup, World traveler, Writer/Editor

In 2004, Robin Smalley uprooted her family and moved to Cape Town, South Africa to take the reigns of a tiny, grassroots organization, mothers2mothers (m2m), an empowerment and education program for pregnant women and new mothers with HIV/AIDS. As its first Executive Director, Robin set up an organizational infrastructure, developed a budget, raised funds, hired staff, and traveled throughout sub-Saharan Africa, growing this fledgling NGO. Within one year of her arrival, mothers2mothers grew from 9 sites in Cape Town to 72 sites throughout South Africa, with affiliated programs in Ethiopia and Botswana. Relocating back to Los Angeles in the fall of 2005 as m2m’s Co-Founder/International Director, Robin has continued to guide the organization in its strategic planning as well as developing its partnership, government and funding relationships. Through her efforts, mothers2mothers has established formal partnerships with UNICEF, the Clinton Foundation, the Presidents Emergency Fund for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), USAID, and other major players in the global health arena. Under her stewardship, the organizational annual budget has grown to an annual income in 2010 of $20 million. Currently, m2m is operational in 645 sites across 7 countries in Africa, employs over 1600 HIV-positive women, and is reaching over 300,000 pregnant women and new mothers living with HIV annually, accounting for 20% of the global population of HIV-positives pregnant women and new mothers. Under Robin’s guidance, mothers2mothers is a very different organization than it was just six short years ago. Robin and mothers2mothers have been honored by First Lady Laura Bush at the White House, she has spoken at Fortune Magazine’s Most Powerful Women Conference , the Women Deliver Conference, and the International AIDS Conference in Mexico City. Her work has been highlighted at the White House Conference on Literacy and at the Clinton Global Intiative Conference, and she moderated a bi-partisan briefing hosted by Senators Joe Biden and Dick Lugar in the Senate. Recognitions include the Ambassadors of Caring Award, the 2008 Skoll Entrepreneurial Award, the 2009 Schwab Entrepreneurial Award, a 2009 Ashoka Fellowship, and the Global Health Council’s 2010 Best Practices Award. Robin came to mothers2mothers from The Media Project where she also served as Executive Director, working with television writers and directors in the area of adolescent sexuality and reproductive health. As the organization’s Director, she guided a seven year period of expansion, overseeing the increasing popularity of its annual celebrity awards gala, the SHINE Awards (Sexual Health in Entertainment), planning and executing regular informational briefings for health care professionals and the media, and managing the implementation of Viacom’s KNOW/AIDS campaign in Los Angeles. Her contributions at the Media Project were recognized with a Telly Award, Cindy Award, a National Health Information Award, a National Council on Family Relations Award and a Society for Adolescent Medicine Award. Robin’s entry into the nonprofit world followed a long and varied career spanning 15 years in the entertainment industry. She directed the Emmy Award winning “Woman to Woman” as well as “Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous,” and “Entertainment Tonight.” She produced a variety of television shows including “Hour Magazine,” “The Home Show,” “Jones & Jury,” “Public People, Private Lives,” “George & Alana” and “Leeza.” Although she enjoyed a successful career in television, Robin has never looked back. The wife of architect husband Jeffrey and the mother of two teenage daughters, she has found that her greatest fulfillment lies in doing her best to better her community and her world. Robin serves on the Advisory Board of the Children Affected by AIDS Foundation (CAAF) and is a member of both the Writers Guild of America and the Directors Guild of America.

Prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS, equality, justice

mothers2mothers’ vision is a world where babies do not have HIV and where mothers with HIV live long and healthy lives. mothers2mothers (m2m) was founded with the purpose of improving outcomes of prevention of mother-to-child-transmission (PMTCT) programs providing care to HIV-positive pregnant women and new mothers. m2m has built a sustainable and scalable program which increases effectiveness of treatment by employing and training HIV-positive new mothers who have recently undergone PMTCT as professional peer educators. Since 2001, m2m has grown from a single support group in Cape Town to a multinational NGO operating in almost 700 sites, employing more than 1600 HIV-positive women, in nine countries in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2009, mothers2mothers enrolled nearly 300,000 pregnant women and new mothers living with HIV as clients.

Public speaking, mothering, writing, travel, counseling