Nothing But Nets Blog

Nothing But Nets began our journey to Rwanda learning more about this breathtakingly beautiful little country—nicknamed “The Land of 1,000 Hills”—and the people who call it home. Our hosts with the United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR) greeted us and our partners with WWE and offered an overview of the country’s painful past.

Yesterday I did what I almost always do on Sundays–play with my two young sons, go for a long run, and generally just enjoy being at home with my family. I also spent a considerable amount of time packing for my first trip to Rwanda. I'm headed there today with the Nothing But Nets campaign and our friends at WWE to visit refugee camps with our partners at the UN Refugee Agency. We're going to distribute life-saving bed nets while we're there, to help ensure that all families fleeing violence and other hardships in the region and across the continent are protected from malaria. Even though we've made great progress against the disease, malaria is still a leading killer of refugees in Africa.

After a more than 20-hour journey, the Divas have arrived safely in Kigali, Rwanda, to begin their goodwill campaign to help fight malaria! Alicia Fox and Natalya will pass out mosquito nets to refugees in Rwanda as part of WWE's alliance with the United Nations Foundation's Nothing But Nets campaign to help raise awareness and funds to fight malaria in sub-Saharan Africa.

Last weekend, Nothing But Nets joined the North American Federation of Temple Youth at their convention in Los Angeles. In addition to stirring up some “buzz” about stopping malaria, the teens took on the challenge of bringing the message back to their home congregations! In partnership with the Union for Reform Judaism and the Religious Action Center, NFTY regions across the country will be reaching out to their members of Congress to encourage them to engage in the fight against malaria.

WWE Divas Alicia Fox and Natalya will visit refugee camps in Rwanda this week as part of their alliance with the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets campaign to help raise awareness and funds to fight malaria in sub-Saharan Africa. WWE’s Divas will help distribute life-saving bed nets to help protect refugee families, who are fleeing conflict in neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo, from malaria. They will also meet with officials from the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNCHR) to learn about the humanitarian situation there.

February is all about love. What better way to celebrate Valentine’s month than by sharing the love with your favorite causes?

Earlier this month, the United Nations Foundation launched #VDay10k in partnership with Charity Miles – a new smartphone app that enables you to raise money for your favorite organization every time you walk, run, or bike. You can help meet our February goal: $10,000.

Did you do anything fun President’s Day weekend? We did! The Nothing But Nets team traveled to Houston to take part in the NBA All-Star Jam Session and cheer on Champion Stephen Curry in the Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout. Although Curry did not win the three-point contest, he is winning another challenge: His Three for Three Challenge to fight malaria.

This President’s Day weekend, Nothing But Nets will travel to Houston, Texas for the NBA All-Star Jam Session to cheer on our Champion Stephen Curry as he competes in the Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout!

My alma mater, Loomis Chaffee School, has been a great supporter of Nothing But Nets. I have such strong ties to Loomis Chaffee’s campus in Connecticut—and it’s so rewarding to see what those connections can produce.

When I was little, every time my family shopped at IKEA, I would ask my parents for a canopy bed. I thought canopies where what covered princesses as they slept, a luxury that I deserved, too.

My ever-practical parents would explain the true purpose of a net hanging over one’s bed. Bed nets protect people from mosquitoes that transmit deadly malaria; bed nets save lives.

This February, I had the pleasure of attending Wiley College’s Ethical Student Leadership Conference in east Texas. While there, I educated the students about malaria and how they could get involved in the fight against this disease. As it turned out, they were already well on their way to sending hundreds of nets!

Malaria kills. Children. Girls.

As a Teen Advisor to Girl Up, a campaign of the United Nations Foundation, I know the value of a girl’s life. I’ve worked in my community to spread awareness about the value of girls to society as a whole and more importantly, girls’ human right to safety, sanitation, healthcare, education, and the opportunity to succeed.

But the opportunity to succeed comes with prerequisites that we often take for granted. If we want girls to succeed, they first need access to life.

Nothing But Nets wrapped up 2012 in Taipei, Taiwan at Junior Chamber International’s World Congress, celebrating one of the campaign’s most active and effective partnerships. 2012 was a banner year for JCI and their work with Nothing But Nets: the organization and its 200,000 members worldwide came together to raise more than $500,000 to send nets and save lives. That’s more than 50,000 nets that will keep children and families safe from malaria throughout Africa! What makes JCI unique beyond its impressive fundraising is the passion and fun they bring to their support of Nothing But Nets.

On a recent trip to Tanzania with the United Nations Foundation, I visited churches, clergy, communities and government uniting in the fight against malaria—and winning.

A new year always brings a sense of possibility. Against the backdrop of newness, many of us try to set goals for the coming year. While the chances of sticking to those goals are low for most of us, data shows that when goals are clear, measurable, realistic, and shared with others, they are far more likely to be achieved. This has been proven for individuals, families, organizations and even countries. But, what about setting goals for the world?

If you’re like me, you’ve put off shopping for the holidays until the very last minute. We’re here to help! With these gifts, you can let your loved ones know you care and save lives at the same time—each of the companies below will help send nets for every gift sold. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate the season of giving than by giving back!

I still remember the night I read the Sports Illustrated column by Rick Reilly that inspired the United Nations Foundation to launch the Nothing But Nets campaign. I gave immediately, and continued to give to Nothing But Nets over the years.

Our partners at the World Health Organization released the World Malaria Report 2012 yesterday. While there is some news to celebrate, the findings also present all of us with a serious challenge. 

Last Spring at The Langley School in McLean, VA, fourth graders were asked to propose a service project. My son Jackson Merrick, then age 9, had been a supporter of Nothing But Nets, which he’d learned about from posters at a community basketball game.

Jackson told his classmates the compelling story of how Nothing But Nets helps provide families across Africa with bed nets to protect them from malaria. That inspired fellow students Myles McPartland and Kiera Dent. By coincidence, the fourth grade was studying a unit on Africa and learning about various African cultures and crafts.
 

“So, now we can just walk into the office?”

That’s what Rogath Lewis Mollel of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT) said to me as we made our way into the Cannon House Office Building on Capitol Hill. I responded with a surprised “yes.” Rogath was amazed with the amount of access he and the average U.S. citizen have to our elected officials in Washington, DC. As an American it’s easy to take for granted; recently Rogath, along with nearly 20 representatives of the Lutheran Malaria Initiative from Africa and the United States, saw firsthand the power of advocacy.