United to Beat Malaria, previously known as Nothing But Nets until 2022, is a global, grassroots campaign of the

United Nations Foundation The United Nations Foundation is a charitable organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., that supports the United Nations and its activities. It was established in 1998 with a $1billion gift to the United Nations by philanthropist Ted Turn ...

to raise awareness and funding to fight

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

. The campaign aims to prevent malaria infections and deaths by providing malaria education, insecticide-treated bed nets, anti-malarial drugs, diagnostics, and other interventions to vulnerable and remote communities in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean. The organization's fundraising campaigns have seen wide popularity and success in the United States, especially among youth, with athletes, sports leagues, religious organizations and universities participating in large-scale campaigns.

History

The organization started in 2006 after sportswriter Rick Reilly saw a documentary on malaria while visiting Venice. In April of 2006, Reilly wrote a column entitled "Nothing But Nets" in ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

'', where he challenged his readers to donate at least $10 for the purchase of anti-malaria bed nets. Reilly also searched for an organization to help him distribute the nets, and contacted the

. Reilly convinced the foundation to start a new organization named "Nothing But Nets" to appeal to sports fans. Within days of launching, the organization raised US$1.6 million and gained sponsorship by

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

and the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

. In 2012,

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...

Stephen Curry Wardell Stephen Curry II ( ; born March 14, 1988) is an American professional basketball player and point guard for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "Chef Curry", he is widely regarded as the ...

partnered with the campaign, gaining significant publicity with a "3 for 3" pledge, in which he promised to donate 3 bed nets for every 3 pointer he scored. Curry continued working with the campaign until 2017. In 2018, Curry also released a limited edition shoe in partnership with sportswear company

Under Armour Under Armour, Inc. is an American sportswear company that manufactures footwear and clothing, apparel headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. History 20th century Under Armour was founded on September 25, 1996, by Kevin Plank, a ...

, with profits from the shoe going toward the organization. As the organization continued to grow, its efforts expanded beyond bed net distribution to encompass other efforts to fight malaria, and in 2022, the organization changed its name to "United to Beat Malaria."

Activities

United to Beat Malaria's initial focus was solely on fundraising and distributing anti-malaria bed nets, but as the campaign continued, its activities expanded to include other activities, including: * malaria education among the general public and populations vulnerable to malaria. * advocacy for anti-malaria action. * preventative medications for pregnant women. * diagnostic testing. * providing indoor residual spraying (IRS) to protect homes from mosquitoes. * providing post-exposure medication. * training and equipping community health workers. As of 2023, United to Beat Malaria had distributed aid to more than 40 million people in 61 countries. In 2024, the organization helped protect over 1.67 million people.

Partnerships

United to Beat Malaria has partnered with a wide range of groups, both for fundraising and outreach and for delivering assistance to communities affected by malaria. For funding campaigns, partners have included organizations such as the

’s NBA Cares, Major League Soccer WORKS, the people of the

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was ...

, ''Sports Illustrated,''

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation The Gates Foundation is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was launched in 2000 and is reported to be List of wealthiest charitable foundations, the third largest char ...

Boy Scouts of America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with over 1 million youth, including nearly 200,000 female participants. Founded as the Boy Sco ...

and EBC Financial Group. Celebrity partners that have assisted with fundraising include Rick Reilly, Stephen Curry, singer and actress

Mandy Moore Amanda Leigh "Mandy" Moore (born April 10, 1984) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She rose to fame with her 1999 debut single "Candy (Mandy Moore song), Candy", which peaked at number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot ...

, WNBA champion

Ruth Riley Ruth Ellen Riley Hunter (born August 28, 1979) is a retired American professional basketball player (a center), playing most recently for the Atlanta Dream in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Her Notre Dame team won the NCAA ...

, and broadcaster Charlie Webster. To deliver assistance to malaria-affected populations, the organization has partnered with corporations, including

SC Johnson S. C. Johnson & Son, Inc. (commonly referred to as S. C. Johnson) is an American multinational corporation, multinational corporation, privately held manufacturer of household cleaning supplies and other consumer chemicals based in Racine, ...

and

Sumitomo Chemical is a major Japanese chemical company. The company is listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the on the Nikkei 225 stock index. It's a member of the Sumitomo group and was founded in 1913 as a fertilize ...

to provide malaria prevention tools. The organization also works with

UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...

, the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...

UNHCR The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and Humanitarian protection, protect refugees, Internally displaced person, forcibly displaced communities, and Statelessness, s ...

, and The Global Fund, among others, to deliver anti-malaria assistance.

Events

United to Beat Malaria hosts an annual leadership summit in Washington, D.C. The purpose of the summit is to help participants develop leadership skills in fields of advocacy, policy, global health, and civics relating to the campaigns against malaria. At the summit, advocates from across the US called "champions" meet with members of Congress to discuss malaria advocacy and education.

References

External links