Press Releases

Rachel Henderson

May 25, 2017

Next week, the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets campaign will bring together more than 125 youth and advocates from 26 states for its annual Champion Summit, a three-day event to train and mobilize the next generation of grassroots leaders in the fight against malaria. United States National Security Advisor, Ambassador Susan Rice, along with soccer star Abby Wambach, will speak to the Nothing But Nets Champions, inspiring them to use their voices in their communities and help ignite progress against this deadly disease.

Rachel Henderson

Today, at the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets Champion Summit, President Obama’s National Security Advisor, Ambassador Susan Rice, announced the Administration’s plans to leverage increased malaria funding by expanding the President’s Malaria Initiative’s (PMI) work in six countries. The announcement came in front of more than 125 youth and advocates from 26 states who have convened in Washington, D.C. to learn the necessary skills to become the next generation of grassroots leaders in the fight to defeat malaria.

Rachel Henderson,  Cory Dignazio

Today, JCI, announced that it will help the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets campaign provide 30,000 life-saving bed nets for refugees in Africa, protecting families from malaria. JCI will activate its more than 200,000 members across the country and around the world to raise the funds, create awareness, and advocate this year, the second and final year of The Million Nets Pledge. If the funds are raised, it will unlock a match from Nothing But Nets partner Sumitomo Chemical Company, doubling the amount of nets to 60,000 to help protect more refugees from malaria.

“Every two minutes, a child dies from malaria,” said Paschal Dike, 2016 JCI President. “We are committed to working with Nothing But Nets to lead the generation that defeats malaria once and for all.”

This monumental commitment comes as leaders recently returned from Cameroon with Nothing But Nets where they learned about the impact of malaria first hand and met with partners working in the region. Nothing But Nets works closely with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) to provide bed nets and other malaria interventions for refugees and people displaced by conflict. In addition, the campaign advocates for strong leadership and funding for The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which provides over half of all international funding to fight malaria.

Recently, The Global Fund facilitated a national campaign to distribute 15.8 million nets, working to achieve universal coverage in Cameroon. Nets from this distribution have been circulated to almost every region of the country.

“Malaria is a leading cause of death in Cameroon,” said Arrey Obenson, JCI Secretary General. “I grew up here – it’s a devastating disease. We can help Nothing But Nets save thousands of lives right now.”

For the past seven years, JCI has been an instrumental partner to Nothing But Nets, helping to raise close to $3.5 million to protect refugees and families from malaria in sub-Saharan Africa. Over the course of its partnership, the world has made tremendous strides to defeat malaria – reducing child deaths in sub-Saharan Africa by 71% since 2000. The UN estimates that more than 6.2 million lives have been saved since 2000, and the targets for Millennium Development Goal 6 have been met or surpassed. The UN and global leaders now seek to reduce cases and deaths from malaria worldwide by 90% and to eliminate malaria in at least 35 countries by 2030.

“JCI is one of our most passionate and dedicated partners and I’m thrilled by this renewed commitment to help us protect those most vulnerable from malaria,” said Chris Helfrich, Director of Nothing But Nets. “Our partners help us make the biggest impact – only together can we truly defeat this disease for good.”

Today, there are tens of millions of refugees and families displaced by violence around the world – and 60 percent of them live in areas where malaria is transmitted. Malaria is a major threat to refugees – it is a leading cause of illness and death in many African countries, including those where Nothing But Nets and its UN partners work. Last year, Nothing But Nets launched The Million Nets Pledge, a commitment to protect refugee families from malaria with one million bednets by 2016. This ambitious two-year goal aims to raise $10 million to protect vulnerable people fleeing violence, particularly in Central Africa. At a special United Nations event in September, Sumitomo Chemical Co. issued a matching grant challenge to Nothing But Nets supporters and partners who donate to The Million Nets Pledge.

The Nothing But Nets campaign boasts hundreds of thousands of supporters – from students to athletes to entertainers – who all help to protect families on another continent from the threat of malaria. Anyone can join The Million Nets Pledge and help to send one million nets to protect refugee families from malaria. JCI members can go to www.NothingButNets.net/JCI to donate and help save lives.

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Rachel Henderson

Leaders of Malaria No More and the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets campaign, Martin Edlund and Chris Helfrich, provided the following statement today about a new public awareness challenge called “Call Your Shot”:

Rachel Henderson

Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg joined the Call Your Shot campaign to beat malaria yesterday, posting a 360-degree video of her making a basketball shot. Sandberg called out tennis star Serena Williams, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation CEO Sue Desmond-Hellmann and Hewlett Packard CEO Meg Whitman.

Rachel Henderson

The United Nations Foundation announced today the appointment of Margaret Reilly McDonnell as Director of its Nothing But Nets campaign — a global campaign to save lives by preventing malaria. McDonnell has served as Deputy Director for four years, alongside former Director Chris Helfrich.

Rachel Henderson

Today, Dawes announced it has released an exclusive track for fans who donate to the United Nations Foundations’ Nothing But Nets campaign, to help save lives from malaria. Fans who donate at NothingButNets.net/Dawes will receive a free download of Dawes covering The Waterboys’ “Fisherman’s Blues.” The promotion will run for 60 days.

Casey Moynagh,  Courtney Geesey-Dorr,  Rachel Henderson,  Ryland Devero

TechCrunch announced today that two-time NBA MVP and Golden State Warriors point guard, Stephen Curry, will be speaking onstage for the first time ever at TechCrunch Disrupt San Francisco on Tuesday, September 13th at 5:30pm PT, where he’ll talk about his roles as a tech startup investor, philanthropist and athlete.

Rachel Henderson,  Karen Richardson

Global smart-mapping leader Esri has partnered with the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets campaign in the fight against malaria.

Rachel Henderson,  Casey Moynagh

Today, Golden State Warriors point guard and two-time NBA MVP, Stephen Curry, took the stage at TechCrunch Disrupt San Francisco for the first time to talk about his passion projects including his work fighting malaria with the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets campaign and his involvement with tech startup Slyce.