On September 28-29, Nothing But Nets hosted its Champion Summit in Washington, DC, the largest supporter conference in the campaign’s history! The Summit convened 160 grassroots supporters from 30 states, along with several of our partners, for two days of inspiring speakers, valuable trainings, and meaningful actions in the fight against malaria.
On the first day of the Summit, our Champions heard from experts and participated in training sessions on a variety of topics to further develop their skills and knowledge to strengthen their efforts to fight malaria. Highlights of the day included guest speakers from the U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), our partners at Junior Chamber International, and former Congressman and Tanzanian Ambassador Mark Green.
Also during the opening day, Nothing But Nets launched the Champions Council, an elite group of our top supporters who are leading the fight against malaria in their communities. As part of this launch, our Champions Council members got together for a strategy session to lay out their plans to grow the movement to defeat malaria. It was truly an inspiring and exciting moment!
On Day 2 of the Champion Summit, our Champions headed to Capitol Hill, where they heard UN Foundation President and CEO Kathy Calvin discuss the importance of the Nothing But Nets campaign’s work to support the United Nations in the fight against malaria. Champions also heard from Congressman Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), who shared his personal experience with malaria and inspired the audience to take advocacy action. Over the course of the day on Capitol Hill, our Champions held more than 70 meetings with the offices of their members of Congress to advocate for support for the President’s Malaria Initiative, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and the work of the United Nations.
We are so inspired by the amazing work of these Nothing But Nets Champions, and we can’t wait to see what our Champions Council will accomplish next year! For more on the Champion Summit, check out the video recap and visit our Facebook page to see the Summit photo album.
For more information on how you can become a Champion and participate in the next Champion Summit, visit www.nothingbutnets.net/champions or contact info@nothingbutnets.net.