Media Spotlight

Highcroft, de Ferran face off at Mosport [Globe and Mail]
In Canada’s largest daily newspaper, David Brabham discusses the Miles To End Malaria program with Malaria No More and how Highcroft’s great performance so far this year on the track has been racking up funds for mosquito nets as well. It’s a great thing to think that you are out there doing your thing and helping a really worthy cause,” Brabham said. The total from the first seven races is $43,601.04.

Campaign to kick out malaria by 2010 launched [Daily Monitor (Uganda)]
The United Against Malaria campaign was launched last week in Kampala, Uganda by Health Minister Stephen Malinga. Ugandan youth groups and Fufa (the Federation of Uganda Football Associations) will hold matches around the country between October and November to show solidarity with the campaign.

Must-Reads

UN’s anti-malaria envoy confident of reaching protection milestone in Africa [UN News Centre]
Special Envoy for Malaria Ray Chambers is confident the world can achieve Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s goal of providing Africa with universal coverage by 2010. Bed nets are now available to an estimated 52 per cent of the endemic population across sub-Saharan Africa, offering protection to about 360 million people.

An Environmentally Friendly Mosquito Repellent [New York Times]
Researches at the University of California, Riverside are investigating an economical and environmentally benign insect repellent that works on mosquitoes, which would be beneficial to the regions of the world where malaria is common, like Africa, and where researchers and health workers argue about whether and how they can use DDT to combat the disease.

WHO rejects homeopathy for serious diseases [BBC]
While homeopathy is becoming more common across the globe, WHO officials have warned that the method is not an effective treatment for life-threatening illnesses like malaria.

Our deadline for full coverage in Africa by 2010 is rapidly approaching, and we remain confident we’ll meet our goal. Special Envoy for Malaria Ray Chambers recently briefed Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the progress being made in Tanzania and Uganda: 52% of the people living in sub-Saharan Africa are covered, offering protection to about 360 million people.

Mr. Chambers: With only 16 months remaining until December 31, 2010, we remain confident that universal coverage is within our grasp. While challenges remain to be overcome, the unprecedented assemblage of dedicated leadership, proven interventions, available resources, and collective will position us to achieve the ultimate goal of a world without malaria deaths.

And since we’re aiming for 100% coverage in 490 days and an end to malaria deaths by 2015, we need your help in achieving these malaria milestones. Join our “net-work” here.

Today, the New York Times Dot Earth blog posted an article, An Environmentally Friendly Mosquito Repellent, about the effects of DDT on our environment and high hopes for a new study investigating a “green” alternative. The Malaria Policy Center blog covered the scientific study, and we’ve provided an excerpt from the post here:

Researchers at the University of California, Riverside are working to create repellents for insects, like malarial mosquitoes, with more natural and safe chemicals. The Nature journal reveals study findings up to this point and, with a grant from the Gates Foundation, researchers will continue to refine the process and eventually finalize a usable repellent to change the way we keep pesky bugs from biting us. The science has to do with the smells we emit, mostly with carbon dioxide, that entice mosquitoes.

Other experts in the field of mosquito olfaction also recognize the potential. “This work clearly speaks to the idea that you can target these olfactory-driven sensors that lead to olfactory-driven behaviors, and perhaps misdirect insects away from crops and people—critical issues in terms of global health and agriculture,” says Laurence Zwiebel, a professor of biology and pharmacology at Vanderbilt University who was not involved in the research. “I believe that we can find natural inhibitors of odorant receptors that mosquitoes use to do the things that we don’t like that they do.”

Waiting with bated breath for the rest of the story? Visit the MPC blog for details.

Are you looking for a new internship to match your new back-to-school look? Do you want to change the world but don’t know where to start? You’ve come to the right place!

We can’t promise we’ll make you run for coffee or take out the trash, but we can promise you a good time with a bunch of malaria geeks and an enriching and exciting experience at Malaria No More! We’re looking for interns in our Communications, Development and Programs departments.

See a complete list of internship opportunities here and feel free to leave comments if you have questions.

This weekend, the New York Times dedicated its magazine to women’s issues, with special features centered around an excerpt from “Half the Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity for Women Worldwide,” a book by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, who recently won the 2009 Literary Peace Prize. The magazine discusses the different ways to empower women worldwide, and we completely agree, for we also believe women hold the keys to child health and malaria prevention for the entire family.

In the article, “A Woman’s Crusade,” an excerpt from the book:
Surprisingly frequently, we’ve come across a mother mourning a child who has just died of malaria for want of a $5 mosquito bed net; the mother says that the family couldn’t afford a bed net and she means it, but then we find the father at a nearby bar. He goes three evenings a week to the bar, spending $5 each week.

In the article, “A New Gender Agenda,” an interview with Hillary Clinton:
But women die every minute from poor maternal health care. You know, H.I.V./AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria — those are all, unfortunately, equal-opportunity killers. Maternal health is a woman’s issue; it’s a family issue; it’s a child issue.

For more information about what Malaria No More is doing for maternal health, visit our Malaria Policy Center.

Erica has pre-ordered “Half the Sky” and looks forward to beginning the book on September 8^th.

Media Spotlight

Reform the right should embrace [Washington Times]
Op-Ed by Mark Green, Director of Malaria No More Policy Center
Mark urges political leaders to act swiftly and put partisan politics aside in order to enact reforms that will make foreign-aid programs more efficient, more effective and therefore more capable of supporting and advancing national interests around the globe. Despite some initial positive steps by the Obama administration and Congress, congressional conservatives are missing from the discussion. Mark urges conservatives to get more engaged and embrace the opportunity the debate presents.

On The Ground in Uganda & Tanzania [ONE.org]
Dr. Margaret Chan, Director-General of the World Health Organization, Mr. Ray Chambers, the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Malaria, and Dr. Tachi Yamada, President of the Global Health Program at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, are in Tanzania and Uganda for a visit highlighting the progress that is being made in malaria control and to further understand the remaining challenges in areas with high levels of malaria. ONE.org is hosting a blog about the trip.

Road America: Patron Highcroft ALMS Race Recap [PaddockTalk]
Patrón Highcroft Racing bounced back into victory lane with a stunning American Le Mans Series win at Road America. The win also pushed the team’s fundraising efforts with partner Malaria No More to $43,306.98.

Must-Reads

A New Gender Agenda [New York Times]
Hours before her trip to the Congo, Hillary Clinton discusses global women’s issues, including malaria as a maternal health issue, and the Obama administration’s foreign policy.

Tanzania to get $111 mln for malaria fight [Reuters]
The Global Fund for Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria will give Tanzania $111 million for treated bed nets to fight malaria, which will be instrumental in Tanzania’s push for universal coverage by 2010. The U.N. Special Envoy for Malaria Ray Chambers is quoted in the article.

Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes May Soon Face Tougher New Repellants [Bloomberg.com]
Scientists produced 23 new compounds after teaching a computer to recognize which chemicals would do the best job of warding off mosquitoes, which transmit malaria, dengue fever, West Nile virus and yellow fever.

Gates Foundation Program Officer and MNM Board Member Gabrielle Fitzgerald is blogging for the ONE Campaign during her trip to Tanzania with the WHO’s Dr. Margaret Chan, the UN Special Envoy for Malaria Mr. Ray Chambers, and the Gates Foundation’s Dr. Tachi Yamada.

See below for an excerpt from her most recent post, Day Four: Bulimba, Uganda – Yes, we will help!

After leaving the village, we headed to Balibaseka Secondary School, where Uganda’s Vice President, Gilbert Bukenya, hosted a ceremony to welcome the delegation, honor the volunteer drug distributors and educate the community about malaria.

After schoolchildren recited a poem reminding their listeners of the symptoms of malaria, Dr. Margaret Chan, Director General of the World Health Organization, asked all the young people in the audience to help in the fight against malaria. They all shouted back in unison, “Yes, we will help!”

Read the full post here.

Gates Foundation Program Officer and MNM Board Member Gabrielle Fitzgerald is blogging for the ONE Campaign during her trip to Tanzania with the WHO’s Dr. Margaret Chan, the UN Special Envoy for Malaria Mr. Ray Chambers, and the Gates Foundation’s Dr. Tachi Yamada.

See below for an excerpt from Day Three: Zanzibar, Mnazi Mmoja Hospital:

This visit capped a day where the delegation learned more about Zanzibar’s incredible progress in the fight against malaria. Over the past decade, Zanzibar’s malaria prevalence has dropped to less than 1 percent, virtually eliminating hospital admissions and death due to malaria. 
Despite the good news, Zanzibar’s history provides a cautionary tale in the fight against malaria. This is the third time in 40 years Zanzibar has come close to eliminating this disease. In the past, the government gave up the fight too soon, and malaria came surging back. This time will be different, vow officials at every level of the government.

Read the full blog post here.

Today is World Mosquito Day. A day to remember the millions that have died from malaria and other diseases transmitted by mosquitoes. But most importantly it’s a reminder that the fight is still on – malaria is still around – and we need to do something about it NOW.

World Mosquito Day originated in 1897 by Dr. Ronald Ross of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, according to the American Mosquito Control Association, a nonprofit based in New Jersey. Ross is credited with the discovery of the transmission of malaria by mosquitoes, and was honored with a Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1902.

Learn more about World Mosquito Day from The Scientific American podcast.

Erica wants today to be the last ever World Mosquito Day. Join her in packing your lunch tomorrow and donating the $10 to buy someone in Africa a bed net to make them safe from malaria for the next 5 years.

Malaria No More Policy Center Director, Mark Green, is making waves in Washington with his Op-Ed piece in today’s Washington Times. Read an excerpt from the article and the Malaria Policy Center blog:

Despite some initial positive steps by the Obama administration and Congress, a critical constituency is missing from the discussion: congressional conservatives. As a proud fiscal hawk and a true believer in the power of U.S. foreign assistance to lift lives and enhance alliances, I urge conservatives to get more engaged and embrace the opportunity this debate presents.

Saving lives in Africa is not a political platform and we recognize that our partners in the fight against malaria are not Democrats or Republicans, instead they are people of good will wanting to see an end to preventable deaths. Everyone should be at the table to reform the way policy is driven and everyone should be at the table when we end the scourge of malaria.