The HIV/AIDS epidemic has impacted women profoundly; in fact, women are the fastest growing group of people becoming HIV infected. In this year of 2001, the Centers for Disease Control estimate that women now account for 30% of new HIV infections each year. In New York City, it is estimated that by the year 2010, women will account for 50% of all AIDS cases. Moreover, while there have been great advances in the battle against HIV/AIDS, women have not benefited from those advances at the same rate as men. Despite the fact that New York remains the epicenter of the HIV epidemic and that women in 2001 account for 32% of new AIDS cases, there is no other broad based coalition effort exclusively dedicated to addressing the full range of women and HIV issues. The Collaborative was formed to address this void.