The group, dubbed the New York City Student Discount Initiative for AIDS, gives cards to students in exchange for a $15 donation to an international AIDS charity.

In return, students can use their cards to earn discounts at a network of lower Manhattan business created by the group, which is student-run. The red and white card allows any New York City college or university student to receive a discount at participating businesses. To date, nearly 40 retailers, restaurants, cafés, pizzerias and music stores have signed on for the cause, organizers said.

The group, run entirely by NYU undergraduates, donates all of the money students pay for the card to Médecins Sans Frontières, or Doctors Without Borders. Médecins Sans Frontières is a private group of medical personnel, administrators and technicians who assist with the medical needs of those lacking medical and economic resources.

After creating their organization, the students told Médecins Sans Frontières to use its entire donation for HIV and AIDS relief in sub-Saharan Africa. There, the money will be spent on a range of services, from fighting hunger to relieving the common cold, which can wreck immune systems weakened by AIDS.

“There have been several positive advancements in the fight against HIV and AIDS and people are able to lead solid lives,” charity president and NYU sophomore Eric Cioe said.

Cioe and his partners created their organization one year ago, following the lead of a similar group founded by University of Pennsylvania junior Carlos Gómez. Gómez’s eventual success spurred Cioe’s group to sponsor its own discount cards, and this summer the group began recruiting members and vendors, securing donations and finally selling the card.

Cioe and the other group officers have set a goal of donating at least $15,000 to Médecins Sans Frontières by the end of the fall semester. In addition to selling the cards, they are also raising money by sponsoring a spoken-word tour, “Beyond Words, Beyond Borders Tour 2002.”

“It’s unfair how money decides everything,” said Mai Bui-Duy, another student and the group’s treasurer. “There are many effective drugs and treatments that are available now that cannot cure the virus and disease, but can relieve symptoms of the disease. Where someone lives and how much money they have could determine whether these drugs and treatments are available to them.”