Ambassador: Anan Bouapha , Laos
Anan founded Proud to be Us to address the persecution of the LGBT community in Laos. The initiative raises awareness of HIV and AIDS and advocates for equal health services for key parts of the population including drug users and sex workers. They have directly impacted at least 1,000 people through their advocacy and awareness raising initiatives, helping 650 people gain access to sexual health education and testing. This is the first LGBT awareness group in Laos. The outcome value will be the cost of having HIV and AIDs medical testing and the provision of drugs which Anan is advocating. He also advocates for preventative measures but these are harder to measure and so are not included. Around $3,000 has been invested by different donors such as the US Embassy and European Union. Anan also puts in around four hours of voluntary work a week.