Nothing But Nets Blog

Join singer/actress Mandy Moore, experts from Nothing But Nets and PSI, and our moderator, Social Media Envoy Derrick Ashong on Facebook tomorrow! 

Log in, head to the Nothing But Nets fan page, and start watching at 2pm ET. Ask Mandy all your questions about malaria and learn why we're working with her to send life-saving bed nets to every family that needs one in the Central African Republic (CAR).

Then, send "Moore" nets to save more lives in CAR - together, we can save a continent!

It's only July and we've accomplished so much already in 2010. World Cup ends in just a few days, so we wanted to share some highlights from our United Against Malaria partnership, the Buzz Tour, and of course, the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

• More than 27,000 supporters signed soccer balls, petitions and messages to show they are United Against Malaria, and are committed to end malaria deaths by 2015.

This past Sunday was World Refugee Day, and in honor of that, we wanted to say thank you one more time for all of your support in helping us to achieve our goal of sending one million nets to refugees in Africa by the end of 2009.

We???re proud to honor our commitment to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), because at the end of the day the UN Foundation and Nothing But Nets are here to help the UN to solve global problems. We are committed to helping the UN end malaria deaths by 2015.

As the song in this video says, "The Time is Now." The time is now to make a difference. The time is now to say thank you. Thank you again from the UN Foundation, Nothing But Nets, and thank you from the refugees who received your nets and messages of hope. 

The Nothing But Nets NET-work is hundreds of thousands of people strong—people who all joined for different reasons. Whatever the reason, we're glad to have you as part of our team—united against malaria.

It doesn't matter whether you joined us three years ago or yesterday, in Chicago, or in Pittsburgh—we're all here for the same reason—to end malaria deaths by 2015.

We thought it would be fun to share why some our supporters around the world send nets and save lives. What's your reason?

• @corgtag04 on Twitter: I send nets because no one should have to get sick when two lunches out could save their life!
• Julie Baccelli on Facebook: Because for such a simple contribution you can make a positive impact for such a preventable situation.
• @kristiwooten on Twitter: Answer is easy -- knowing that kids can get 500+ infectious bites in a year. 

This weekend, thousands of people around the world are showing their commitment to ending malaria deaths by 2015 by Sleeping Out, sending nets, throwing fundraisers, and spreading the buzz about malaria prevention. Sunday, April 25, is World Malaria Day—and just in time for this annual day of recognition for the cause, the World Bank has made an astounding commitment of their own: they are pledging $200 million to provide people in sub Saharan Africa with bed nets.

This announcement comes just days after a progress report from Roll Back Malaria stated that we are making an impact with net distributions, but that there is still a long road ahead. The report claims that 350 million nets are needed for universal coverage. WHO's pledge is in part due to a call for action from the United Nations Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Malaria, Ray Chambers. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has pushed for a global goal of ending malaria deaths by 2015, with a supplemental goal of providing people at risk of malaria with malaria control interventions by the end of this year. 

In two short weeks, World Malaria Day, April 25, 2010, will be here, and thousands of people around the country and the world are gearing up to show their commitment to ending malaria deaths by 2015. People are signing up to Sleep Out, hanging out with Mozzie the Mosquito and our team on the Buzz Tour stops, and spreading the word about malaria prevention.

We’re calling on YOU to show the world that you are committed to sending nets and saving lives in Africa. To do this, we need world leaders to continue supporting malaria prevention and treatment, and it’s time to make your voice heard, and for them to take action.

World Malaria Day, April 25, is just two short months away! This is a day when everyone around the world shows their commitment to eradicating malaria, and this year is no different.

We have a goal to end malaria deaths by 2015. To achieve this goal, we need to show world leaders that there is a large group of Americans committed to stopping malaria in Africa. We think world leaders will pay attention if we come together for one night to show the strength of our community.

That's why we need you, your friends, family, and neighbors to Sleep Out to End Malaria on the eve of World Malaria Day—April 24, 2010. Let's show families in Africa and world leaders that they're not alone in the fight against malaria. You've already been sending nets and saving lives; now it's time to join the movement and unite with thousands of others to Sleep Out to End Malaria, on April 24, 2010, World Malaria Day Eve.

Last night, celebrity Ashton Kutcher, the #1 followed person on Twitter, won an award for "Favorite Web Celeb" at the People's Choice Awards. Ashton live streamed the event - and he even brought his camera up on stage to accept his award. Then came our favorite moment: he thanked Ray Chambers, UN Special Envoy for Malaria, and our partner, Malaria No More.

Ashton said the true reward was that 90,000 people in Senegal are sleeping under bed nets, as a result of his globally-followed race against CNN to reach a million followers on Twitter last April. Remember when he vowed to play ding-dong ditch (and then did!) on UN Foundation founder and Chairman Ted Turner if he beat CNN?

We applaud Ashton for spreading the word about malaria prevention, sending nets and saving lives, and supporting our partners on a national stage. Great job, Ashton!

Happy Holidays from the entire Nothing But Nets team. For all of you who are spending time with your family and friends, we hope you're relaxing and having fun!

During this time of year when the spirit of giving is all around us, we encourage you to give the gift of life today, and send a net to a refugee in Africa.

As many of us are excitedly trying on our new sweaters and scarves, sitting down to family dinners, or hoping for snow, refugees in Africa are waking up to another day in a camp, hoping they weren't bitten by a mosquito carrying malaria overnight. We think they should be waking up under a life-saving bed net instead, and starting the day with hope that their lives will someday soon return to normal. Wouldn't that be a great gift to wake up to?

Send a net and save a life today.

The holiday shopping season has just begun, and to spread the holiday (and malaria) buzz this year, we're offering you 50% off your order at the Nothing But Nets Store from today through Monday. That's four days for you to buy Buzzkill t-shirts, wristbands and hats at half off!

Use the coupon code below and enter it into the promotion code box when viewing your cart at the store. (See the screenshot at the bottom of this post to show you where that is.)

Our favorite phrase, "Send a net. Save a life," has been chosen as one of 13 top nonprofit taglines in the 2009 Getting Attention Nonprofit Tagline Awards! 1,702 taglines were submitted, 60 finalists selected—and the UN Foundation's Nothing But Nets campaign won our category, International, Foreign Affairs and National Security.

More than 4,800 people voted in the contest, including some of you! Thank you for continuing to help us to spread the buzz about malaria prevention. 

We're proud to be awarded top honors among other winners like the Houston Food Bank ("Filling Pantries. Filling Lives.") and Earthjustice ("Because the earth needs a good lawyer"). We're also excited to share this honor with one of our founding partners, the people of The United Methodist Church (UMC), whose tagline "Open Hearts. Open Minds. Open Doors" won its category in Religion and Spiritual Development! Congratulations to UMC on this achievement, and congratulations to all of the winners in this year's contest. 

Still haven't made plans yet for tonight? Well we've got just the thing to make you laugh, where you can see how Hollywood is spreading the buzz about malaria: At 8/7c ABC's Ugly Betty premieres, featuring the UN Foundation's Nothing But Nets!

Betty starts off season four in her new job at MODE magazine as an assistant features editor—and for her first fashion shoot she takes on the ugly disease of malaria, and comes up with a creative use for bed nets!

We'll be live tweeting the show using the hashtag #UglyBettynets—join us online!

You can also check out this video for an inside look at how the premiere came together behind the scenes while filming at the United Nations, featuring Ugly Betty cast member Daniel Eric Gold.

After the show, post your watch party pics on Facebook or email them to info@nothingbutnets.net. Then do your part to bite back and send a net and save a life!

This morning started off with a bang for Nothing But Nets as we got wind of two awesome shoutouts for the campaign—what a way to start the weekend!

Just in time for tonight's 2-hour premiere of ABC's Ugly Betty, the sitcom's lead actress America Ferrera (who plays title character Betty Suarez), stopped by Good Morning America for a preview of the show. Not only did America talk about Betty's personal fashion evolutio—she also gave background on the premise of tonight's show—the fashion shoot at the UN featuring Nothing But Nets! Check out the clip to get a sneak peek of what you're in for tonight, then visit our Ugly Betty page for more information on the show! 

For the next three days from Oct. 16-17, millions of people will make their voices heard in the fight against poverty through Stand Up and Take Action, a symbolic global event. People from around the world will be asking that our nations' leaders put an end to poverty and help to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Stand Up started four years ago, and last year, 116 million people "stood up" against poverty. This year, Stand Up's organizers from The Millennium Campaign are attempting to break a Guinness World Record for the most number of people around the world participating in this event through video, live parties and gatherings, and more.

The work we do through our programs at the UN Foundation helps to achieve progress toward the eight MDGs, and Nothing But Nets specifically works to achieve Goal #4: Reduce child mortality. With that in mind, we're asking you to Stand Up and Take Action from Oct. 16-18, but with a twist:

Every donation made to Nothing But Nets this weekend will count as one person Standing Up and Taking Action against poverty. Will you send a net and save a life this weekend?

We might be a little biased, but there is one TV sitcom premiere coming up that you don't want to miss—because we're going to be on it! On Friday, Oct. 16 at 8/7c, ABC's Ugly Betty will feature the UN Foundation's Nothing But Nets!

The comedy's 2-hour premiere has title character Betty Suarez arranging her first fashion shoot as assistant features editor at MODE magazine, and she helps to spread the buzz on Nothing But Nets with the United Nations as a backdrop! The show marks the first time a sitcom has ever been filmed at the UN.

For his seventh birthday this summer, Nothing But Nets supporter Amon celebrated with 12 of his closest friends by hosting a NET-Raiser party. In lieu of birthday presents, the birthday boy asked each of his guests to donate $10 to send a life-saving bed net.

Amon's mom, Svea, said the party was a great success and the kids loved learning about malaria and how easy it was to help save children from the disease. Svea says, "I am very proud of my son to give up gifts for himself and help such a worthy cause! We raised money for 14 bed nets, and next year we plan to do the same thing!"

Thanks to Amon, his family, and his friends for celebrating a birthday for a great cause like Nothing But Nets. We're so glad you've joined the effort to send nets and save lives!

You hear it from us all the time: Send a net. Save a life. Six simple words that can make such a difference in someone's life. And now, our easy-to-remember tagline is being recognized as one of 60 finalists out of 1,700 submissions in an annual Non-profit tagline awards contest.

Will you vote for ours? The survey takes just a few minutes to complete. Nothing But Nets™ tagline is in the 9th category, International, Foreign Affairs, National Security.

As more organizations are jumping into the global health arena, and especially as malaria becomes a hot topic, we want to make sure our message is easy, clear, actionable and recognizable. Your vote would confirm this—please vote for "Send a net. Save a life," today!

You only get to vote once—so make yours count, and ask your NET-works to vote, too!

Last night, retired Major League Soccer (MLS) player and Nothing But Nets Champion Diego Gutierrez was given the highest honor in sports philanthropy as he was enshrined in the World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame. Diego was a midfielder for 13 years, playing for the Kansas City Wizards, the U.S. National Team, and recently, the Chicago Fire.

But off the field, Diego became one of our campaign's first Most Valuable Players, and has remained one of the most dedicated—helping to bring MLS to us, and Nothing But Nets to his NET-works in Chicago. He and his wife Ginna have contributed much of their time, funds and support to malaria prevention, including raising more than $48,000 through their NET-Raiser Team, "Diego." In 2008, Diego was a recipient of the MLS Commissioner's Award from Don Garber for his work on and off the field. 

Jessica Simpson is in Uganda filming a new reality show, but she doesn't the understand the realities facing people in a malaria-endemic country. In a blog post from celebrity gossip site Jezebel, the blogger posts a picture of the singer pouting behind a bed net, capped off by Twitter complaints about having to sleep under one. Jessica should know like all of you do that a child in Africa dies of malaria every 30 seconds.

Obviously, Jessica isn’t a fan of nets – but we challenge you, who are fans, to donate $10 and send a net and save a life right now.

Show Jessica Simpson just how important bed nets are – send a net and save a life today.