PRESS RELEASE –
DECEMBER 4, 2005
Malaria fighters congregate
in Atlanta: motivation and passion escalate to
fight
the disease
VideoWebcast
December 6, 2005 at Emory University
in Atlanta will mark an historic meeting, open to the
public at large (see www.malaria.org, the
Malaria Foundation International website, to register
in advance). Malaria fighters along with many new supporters will gather
from 2:30 pm to
7:30 pm to launch
Atlanta's first annual "Hedge Funds vs. Malaria" business
leadership
conference, in the
Tull Auditorium of Emory's School of Law. Atlanta is waking up to the
reality
that malaria kills thousands of children each and every day. An
astounding number of
children
die from malaria, a completely preventable and treatable disease. As many as 75
million have
died in the past 25 years. This is incredulous given today's high
tech
communications and CNN and
other news agencies operating globally throughout this period.
A
new initiative is gaining momentum to curb the spread of this disease. While malaria is a
devastating
global disease, most Americans are unaware of the cause, the methods
of control,
the treatments, or
the magnitude of the disease. Unchecked, malaria spreads rapidly and
indiscriminately through communities. Carried by mosquitoes, malaria infects
thousands of
vulnerable children
while they sleep. However, malaria can be prevented through
the use of
insecticide sprays and bednets. Antimalarial drugs exist to treat those who fall ill,
and these
need to be made available
and used with proper instruction. Malaria can kill within a few days
of
the onset of symptoms, which include intense chills, fever, headache
and nausea. Awareness
of these issues is critical if
the fight against malaria is to succeed.
Malaria
used to be rampant in the United States, especially in the Southern
states, but it was
eliminated
when proper measures were taken to prevent and treat the disease. Atlanta's
Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) was started in the 1930s, originally
as the
Malaria Field Station,
with the help of philanthropist and friend of Emory University,
Coca
Cola Executive, Mr. Robert
W. Woodruff. Meanwhile, while the United States has
remained
essentially free of the
disease for decades, with only occasional cases reported, millions
of people
continue to die in over
90 countries around the world unnecessarily from malaria, especially
throughout Africa. Families and communities are suffering large losses daily,
by the thousands.
The world is slowly waking up to the reality
of this persistent horror, akin to a holocaust.
Hedge Fund leaders have been
developing this conference in partnership with the Malaria
Foundation International (MFI), a 501(c)(3)
non-profit developing strong new roots in Atlanta.
The program with its
highly prominent speakers profiled can be found at the MFI's home
page
(www.malaria.org). The meeting aims to raise awareness to unprecedented levels. Speakers
will
address the realities of malaria today, what is being done, and
what more can be done, and
bring
business leadership and marketing wisdom to bare. The meeting involves real life heroes,
who
will engage an expanding network of volunteers and professional
supporters, with the
common dedication
and team spirit required to build collaborations to effectively
fight this
disease, using multi-pronged
evidence-based approaches, with rigorous monitoring. A new
momentum is building,
with champions being identified, committed to take a firm stand
against
this disease for the long
haul, village by village, in support of establishing "Malaria
Free
Zones". Similar conferences will follow in other cities, hosted at
other universities. Emory
University is the first to step
up to the plate.
Malaria
is deadly, but also fascinating given its medical and scientific
complexities. Individuals
are being sought from various
disciplines to bring new perspectives to this major global health
challenge. The conference will have something of interest for everyone:
medicine, science,
health, and
investing, marketing, economics, finance, sports, culture, the arts,
and so on.
Malaria
researchers and public health specialists from Emory University
have led the way in
preparing for
Emory to host the "Hedge Funds vs. Malaria" conference.
Leaders from the
Halle Institute
of Global Learning and the Office of International Affairs, the
Goizueta
Business School and many
others have provided strong back-up support. "We are developing a
team",
says Dr. Mary Galinski, a member of the Emory Vaccine Center and
Infectious Disease
Faculty and
Founder of the MFI. "We see malaria as a solvable problem, which must be
approached
from many angles, with new insights from creative individuals",
she added. This
event
will lead to a vibrant Pathfinders Program involving people from
across campus, and
beyond.
Malaria researchers at the Emory
Vaccine Center noted, "As we see it, we need a new network
of individuals, companies and foundations
to come on board. The
parasite that causes malaria
is
complex, but this disease can be beaten. The time is perfect for others to join
us in this fight".
Science
has advanced in modern directions and several current solutions
can and must be
applied today. Meanwhile, the genome sequences of several species of the
malaria causing
Plasmodium parasites
are now known, and this genetic information is providing important
momentum for expediting essential
research to develop malaria vaccines and new drugs that
are
hoped to be cost effective and withstand the parasite's clever immune
evasion strategies and
the development
of resistance.
The
Hedge Funds vs. Malaria conference will highlight several projects,
like Dunk Malaria,
which can engage
people of all ages in every community throughout Atlanta. "We are making
it "hip",
"fun", and intellectually very rewarding to fight malaria",
says Dr. Galinski. The day
after
the conference, several speakers including adventurer David Robertson
from the United
Kingdom, retired
NBA basketball player Steffond Johnson from Texas, corporate executive
Titus Korir from Kenya, and renowned
malaria leader Professor Wen Kilama from Tanzania,
will
meet with Emory students and build a strategic plan for developing
community awareness,
education
and malaria control projects.
For more information
please contact:
Dr.
Mary R. Galinski, Founder and President, MFI
Head, Malaria Research and Education Programs,
Emory University
Email: mary.galinski@emory.edu
Cell #: 770-891-1604
Dr. Cindy Korir,
Project Coordinator and African Liaison, MFI
Scientist, Malaria Research and Education
Programs, Emory University
Email: ckorir@emory.edu
Mr. Lance Laifer,
Co-founder of Hedge Funds vs. Malaria
Email: vs.malaria@gmail.com
