Nothing But Nets Blog

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.

NBA player Stephen Curry is the kind of Nothing But Nets Champion who inspires us all to do more. The Golden State Warrior has supported the campaign since his days at Davidson College. Steph is so dedicated to protecting families from malaria that he has pledged to send three life-saving bed nets for every three-point shot he makes during the ’12-’13 season. That’s 47 three-pointers so far this season, which equals 141 bed nets to keep families in Africa safe. Track the progress of Steph’s Three for Three Challenge all season long sinking threes and sending nets!

Tomorrow, December 1, is World AIDS Day 2012, a day for all of us to consider the toll this disease has taken worldwide and celebrate the progress made against HIV/AIDS. The United Nations Foundation’s partners at The Global Fund are leaders in the fight against AIDS, providing more than 4 million people critical antiretroviral treatments. The Global Fund’s public-private partnership helps finance $22.9 billion worth of projects in 151 countries to stop AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria.

My past collided with my present a few weeks ago when I returned to my high school, Loomis Chaffee, in a small Connecticut town. The school's boys soccer team, which I played on years ago, was supporting Nothing But Nets during one of their biggest games of the year.
 

As a basketball player, I love making assists on the court. Through my Foundation, I work hard to make them off the court as well. This year, I'd appreciate your help in kicking off a holiday season of assists today, the first-ever #GivingTuesday.

You know Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Now, more than 1,000 partners like Nothing But Nets are coming together today for the first-time ever #GivingTuesday to show people can give as good as they get. I am proud to be a part of it. I hope you will join me.

Before you gather with those dear to you to celebrate Thanksgiving, I want to tell you how much I appreciate your partnership with Nothing But Nets.

Because you cared enough to act, a family will sleep peacefully under a bed net tonight—safe from the deadly mosquitoes that carry malaria.

This year, on Tuesday, November 27, Nothing But Nets will be part of a call to action and national movement that will change the calendar and help make history. We are celebrating a new day dedicated to giving—when charities, families, businesses, community centers, students, retailers and more will all come together to create #GivingTuesday—a new movement to celebrate giving and encourage more, better and smarter giving during the Holiday Season that we are proud to be part of!

Talk about using science for good! Our friends at Mosquito Magnet, which makes mosquito traps, launched a Facebook initiative to benefit Nothing but Nets. The company has pledged to donate more than 140 life-saving bed nets and hopes to give at least 200 nets by the end of the year. For every 60 new fans on Mosquito Magnet’s  Facebook page, the company will donate another bed net to protect a family in Africa from malaria!

Thirsty?  Check out our page on Hope-2o!

Nothing But Nets recently joined forces with a great organization: Hope-2o.  The goals of Hope-2o are to get water bottles in the hands of folks who want them, reduce waste from plastic bottles, and to help support great causes.  And that is where we come in.  With the help of Hope-2o, we have our own customized water bottles available on their webpage. 

Happy Halloween! Have we got a spooky story for you. When 12-year-old Courtney Bell first learned about Nothing But Nets in 2008, she couldn’t believe what she saw: kids around the world could get sick—or even die—from a simple mosquito bite.

“We really wanted to do something to help out,” she said, “One net makes a difference in someone’s life.”

We are down to the final days of this election and these last two debates count. According to our national poll of likely voters released today, 3 out of 4 Americans say foreign policy impacts their vote. Yet nearly half say the presidential candidates are not discussing international issues enough.

Let’s raise our voices and encourage the candidates to address these concerns on debate night!

Houston Dynamo forward Macoumba “Mac” Kandji, 27, is excited to be part of Nothing But Nets night at this Saturday’s Major League Soccer game between the Dynamo and the Philadelphia Union. The United Nations Foundation’sNothing But Nets campaign has joined forces with athletes from the very beginning, partnering with MLS W.O.R.K.S. to reach new audiences in the fight against malaria.

Nothing But Nets is taking the campaign to the Manhattan streets this November. For the first time ever, Nothing But Nets will have a team running the ING New York City Marathon to spread the buzz about malaria and raise money to send nets and save lives! Heading up the team is Chris Helfrich, the director of Nothing But Nets. According to Chris, “This race offers me a unique chance to combine two of my passions: running and helping families in need.”

The stars of WWE have formed an alliance with Nothing But Nets to TAKE DOWN malaria! On Saturday, Sept. 22 at the Social Good Summit, WWE Executive Stephanie McMahon and WWE Divas Layla and Alicia Fox urged WWE fans everywhere to spread the buzz in the fight against malaria. Malaria kills. Nets save lives. Join the WWE Alliance Against Malaria!

Join the Epic Showdown Against Malaria!! Watch this video and share it with your friends.

Technology and social media have dramatically changed the world. People in every part of the globe can interact with each other like never before. But digital technologies do more than connect us — they also empower us. They amplify our voice, put information at our fingertips, open new doors, enable new solutions, and provide a platform to organize.

Ahoy! Nothing But Nets set sail in the waters off Croatia this Labor Day weekend with our fantastic partners Junior Chamber International (JCI) for the annual JCI Regatta. The four-day event brought together 13 boats manned by sailors from 14 countries.

A United Nations Foundation delegation recently visited communities across Tanzania, from the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro to the shores of Zanzibar, on an observation trip to see how faith communities and governments can work together to treat malaria and stop its spread.