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Given his family history, it probably shouldn’t be surprising that 46-year-old John Bridgeland has ended up dedicating his professional life to helping others. The former assistant to President Bush believes that compassion and the ethic of service were inbred in him, coming first from his paternal grandmother, who baked goods during the Depression and delivered them on her bike to those who had nothing to eat. Bridgeland’s father continued the legacy of giving back—working concurrently as the mayor of Indian Hill, Ohio, population 5,000; as the president of the school board; and as a lawyer.
Initially, Bridgeland, too, was on the corporate attorney track. After graduating with honors in government from Harvard University, he studied at the Universite Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium as a Rotary International Fellow and received his JD at the University of Virginia School of Law. Then, a pro bono case he took while working at a New York law firm made an indelible impact. The client, a refugee from Ghana, was seeking political asylum. Returning home would mean torture and death. Bridgeland recalls, “I literally had his life in my hands. Three days before he was due to be deported, I won the case. It was the middle of winter; this man owned nothing but freedom. I had to give him a warm coat.”
Years later, the two remain in touch. Bridgeland says, “He has a business in Florida and mails me oranges and grapefruits.”
Then Bridgeland had a choice: a top-money track in a major law firm or public service. He took a job as chief of staff and counsel to U.S. Rep. Rob Portman of Ohio. “It was a 50 percent pay cut but a 1,000 percent increase in happiness,” he says. That led to a subsequent stint in the White House, where highlights included creating America’s Fund for Afghan Children and, in 2002, serving as the first director of the USA Freedom Corps, where Bridgeland worked with nonprofit organizations and coordinated more than $1 billion in domestic and international service initiatives.
These experiences proved invaluable when he was tapped to be the CEO of Malaria No More, a nonprofit group launched in December to mobilize individuals and institutions to rid the world of a disease that infects 300 million globally. The organization received some high-profile support through the first Malaria Awareness Day in the U.S. (April 25) and American Idol’s “Idol Gives Back” shows (April 24 and 25). Hemispheres talked to Bridgeland in McLean, Virginia, where he lives with his wife and three children.
Q: A recent Gallup Poll ranking what people believe to be the most serious diseases around the world put malaria low on the list. Why don’t people realize how devastating malaria is?
A: Malaria is the disease of sad contradictions—it is fully preventable and treatable yet it is infecting and killing millions of people. In the U.S. it was eradicated in the early ’60s. The developed world hasn’t had to live with it in terms of seeing the effects of death. But each year in sub-Saharan Africa it needlessly kills more than 1 million people, mostly children.
Q: With so many worthy causes competing for public attention, how can malaria garner the resources it needs?
A: In what other effort can you save at least two lives for $10? Mosquitoes bite primarily from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. Purchasing an insecticide-treated bed net on our Web site protects a family from getting malaria. Anyone from a child to a CEO can easily donate. I do it twice a month. It shows the profoundness of what a little amount of money can do.
Q: The founding partners of Malaria No More include the American Red Cross and United Way. How do you work with these organizations to amplify the strengths of large and small organizations?
A: We’ve tapped into the best-known and most far-reaching networks. For instance, every community has a United Way. We partner with the American Red Cross’ 800 U.S. chapters to raise awareness and funds. Red Cross Uganda and Rwanda provide trained volunteers who teach the villagers how to use the nets. We have Malaria No More Netherlands and a partner in Canada called spreadthenet.org. Our goal is to develop a grassroots network throughout the developed world.
Q: Eight years ago, Roll Back Malaria, a coalition of UN agencies and national governments, could not accomplish its goal of halving the number of malaria deaths by 2010. Why will Malaria No More achieve different results?
A: Now there is better coordination between public and private sectors. And malaria action plans have formed that were initially designed by the African governments themselves.
To see the result of a comprehensive effort, look no further than the spice islands of Zanzibar. It’s only in the past few years that the U.S. began a massive bed net– distribution effort to cover every pregnant woman and every child under 5, the most susceptible populations. This was followed by indoor spraying of homes and breeding grounds to kill mosquitoes. Malaria cases plummeted nearly 90 percent.
Q: Your first campaign is to purchase and deliver long-lasting insecticide-treated bed nets and provide appropriate education for use. How long will this operation take, and what does it involve?
A: In the 15 minutes we’ve been chatting, 30 children have died in Africa from malaria. Our goal is to supply a bed net to every child and pregnant woman in Africa who needs one. This will be combined with well-trained volunteers and good monitoring and evaluation of our efforts. Our goal: Put malaria out of business as quickly as possible.
Q: What might be a follow-up initiative by your group?
A: Other important elements include widespread distribution of artemisinin-based combination therapies, the most effective antimalarial drugs. We also must work at lowering the costs of these drugs as the disease hits those who are least positioned to afford interventions.
Q: Malaria No More is sponsoring an international youth summit later this year. What are some of the most creative ways you’ve seen students raise money and educate the public about malaria?
A: In one month, my daughter Fallon’s middle school saved 1,000 people—an entire village. They organized bake sales, book drives, sold Christmas cards, and raised $5,000. I’ve seen college students hang bed nets all over campus so people can touch them. More than 40 universities created the Veto the ’Squito SWAT TEAMs (Students Working As Teammates To Engage Against Malaria), which have enlisted 1 million student leaders to the cause. In partnership with Scholastic, we’ve prepared malaria lesson plans for teachers, which will be distributed to literally every elementary and middle school—public, private, and parochial—in the country.
Q: The White House said its malaria summit, held in December ’06 and aimed at rallying private-sector support, was “more than a photo op.” Will there be accountability to track some of the projects launched and money pledged that day?
A: The summit followed the White House’s $1.2 billion malaria initiative, which, over five years, is targeting the 15 countries hardest hit by the disease. The president’s malaria initiative has already rolled out seven of the 15 malaria action plans and is working with partners like Malaria No More.
For example, we’re working with Saddleback Church [pastored by best-selling author Rick Warren] on the ground in Rwanda to muster at least 100,000 volunteers over the next three years. It’s a test case for faith-based partnerships. Villagers respect churches and respond to knocks on the door by volunteers hoping to demonstrate how to put up bed nets. Churches are also great at mobilizing volunteers to remote places that no other institution can reach, and they are excellent record-keepers, noting birth and death rates—a great tool for tracking child mortality.
Q: In November you were in Rwanda to view firsthand the results of malaria-control efforts. What was the report card?
A: In a public health facility in Mukarange, a village where antimalaria efforts are not in place, I saw young women holding comatose children about to die from malaria. In Rukara, just 10 miles down the road, I didn’t see a single malaria patient. Community health workers are regularly educating villagers on basic sanitation, how to use the bed nets, and what to do if a child has a fever.
On that visit I saw both the tragedy of our failure to mobilize and the results of a comprehensive treatment approach.
Q: You’ve said that Malaria No More has the potential to become the 21st century’s March of Dimes. Can you explain what you mean?
A: Franklin Roosevelt founded the March of Dimes to help cure polio, enlisting citizens to each contribute 10 cents to make a difference in the lives of millions. Americans responded, vaccines were eventually developed, and the March of Dimes began advocating for different causes. I believe malaria is the galvanizing issue of the 21st century.
This can be the pathway to renewing our confidence as a country to tackle all sorts of challenges, whether fighting other diseases or ending poverty by helping people find the means to ensure their own sustainability.
Q: Where do you see the effort in five years?
A: In Rwanda I expected to be the giver. Instead I was the receiver. I saw women cheerily carrying vats of fresh water 10 miles a day. Children in these clinics hugged my leg, took a pen out of my pocket and laughed at it …. They took joy in such simplicity, even when some were dying. Rather than being pitiable, these people have much to teach us about kindness and the ability to transcend suffering. If, in five years, we have succeeded in saving the 1 million children a year currently dying from malaria, think of the potential we can unleash on the world.
Sherry Amatenstein is a New York–based author and journalist who gets the most joy from writing about people who are making a difference.
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