Novartis' Chairman of the Board Dr. Joerg Reinhardt and Time Warner Inc.'s Gary Ginsberg were also honored for their contributions to the fight against malaria
In an inspiring awards dinner Monday night, Malaria No More presented Former United States Secretary of State and Former Senator from New York Hillary Rodham Clinton with the Global Leadership Award. Secretary Clinton was honored for her remarkable commitment and contributions toward Malaria No More's mission of ending deaths from the disease, one of the top killers of children worldwide. The evening also honored Gary Ginsberg, Executive VP of Corporate Marketing & Communications at Time Warner Inc. for his partnership and support for Malaria No More, and Novartis Chairman of the Board, Dr. Joerg Reinhardt, for Novartis' long-standing commitment to eliminating malaria.
While accepting the Media Leader award on stage, Gary Ginsberg recalled the moment co-founder Peter Chernin first committed to the cause, when he hosted a health summit attended by Dr. Jeffrey Sachs. "Jeff spoke poignantly about the human and economic costs of the disease," Ginsberg said, "and I remember so distinctly Peter walking back into his kitchen afterwards and saying to me with real conviction that … this is a cause where I can really make a difference; this is a disease we really can beat." Ginsberg joked with the audience, "The only other time I think I've ever seen him that enthusiastic is when we got the opening weekend numbers for Avatar."
Malaria No More was founded by Peter Chernin and Ray Chambers at the White House Summit on Malaria in 2006. A founding member, and now CEO of the organization, Martin Edlund spoke last night about the evening being a celebration of progress, as malaria mortality has decreased in Africa by 33% in the last decade. "But with a name like Malaria No More we can't be satisfied with that number," Edlund said after being introduced by actor and comedian Jason Jones on stage. "Let's talk about the future. How do we get that death toll to zero? How do we ensure that no child dies from a mosquito bite and that we ultimately succeed in eradicating this disease from the face of the planet?" Edlund went on to talk about Malaria No More's newly launched campaign, Power of One, a test and treatment campaign which harnesses mobile technology as a tool to help end deaths from the preventable and treatable disease.
Secretary Clinton took the stage to a standing ovation, and immediately made a point to honor Peter Chernin and Ray Chambers for their work in the fight to end deaths from the disease, and commended the work Malaria No More has accomplished over the past seven years. She also highlighted Novartis and the central role of malaria treatment. "The distribution of life-saving drugs has been a total life-saving, game-changing event for so many families and their children," Secretary Clinton noted. "A treatment costs only one dollar to buy and deliver to a child, as Malaria No More's Power of One campaign has shown... According to a recent study, every dollar spent on malaria control produces $40 in additional productivity."
As Secretary of State, Clinton dramatically expanded the U.S. Government commitment to malaria control efforts in Africa. Under her leadership, the State Department and USAID committed billions of dollars to intensify malaria control efforts and save hundreds of thousands of lives. Secretary Clinton also launched a new office of Global Health Diplomacy, designed to marshal the full resources of America's diplomats to combat malaria and other diseases. Coupled with these efforts, Secretary Clinton has emphasized the critical importance of women and girls in global health, advocating for the improvement of and investment in health systems serving these vulnerable populations. "Women and girls do bear the burden," said Secretary Clinton. "Pregnant women in particular are at high risk because of decreased immunity, and malaria in pregnancy can cause anemia – a condition responsible for 10,000 maternal deaths annually, still-birth, premature-birth, and low-birth weight."
Malaria No More board member Christopher Combe announced a $100,000 donation to the Power of One campaign at the event, in honor of a young girl from New York who contracted malaria and passed away while traveling to Africa this past summer. This donation brings the number of tests and treatments raised by the campaign to one million, which includes a match donation from Novartis.
Novartis was recognized for its leadership in the malaria fight and for distributing 600 million of its Coartem malaria treatments to patients in need without profit. Accepting the Corporate Citizen award on behalf of Novartis, Chairman Dr. Joerg Reinhardt said, "This cross-industry effort is absolutely essential. Because, although malaria has been eliminated in many countries, we are all aware that more than 200 million people are affected by the disease every year and that every day more than 2,000 children in Africa die because of malaria. For this reason Novartis is intensifying its research and is continuously looking for innovative ways to improve access to healthcare around the world."
Speakers also included Grey's Anatomy star T.R. Knight, who introduced singer Ingrid Michaelson. The singer was joined by the Brooklyn Youth Chorus to perform Blood Brothers, and again later for a solo performance of Be OK.
Hillary Rodham Clinton, Peter & Megan Chernin, Ray & Patricia Chambers, Joerg Reinhardt, Robert L. Johnson, Jason Jones, T.R. Knight, Martin Edlund, Governor of Puerto Rico Alejandro Garcia Padilla, Jessica Stam, Dhani Jones, Rachel Crow, Arthur Darvill, and Martha MacCallum were amongst the guests in attendance.
The event raised over $1.3 million for Malaria No More.
Breakthrough discovery could lead to novel malaria vaccines and therapies