Questioning the Gates Foundation’s Antimalaria Efforts; Plus More: Wednesday’s Roundup
By Maria Di Mento
Senior Editor
March 3, 2010 | Read Time: 2 minutes
- The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s strategy to combat malaria is “baffling,” writes Henry I. Miller, a doctor and molecular biologist. In an opinion article on Forbes magazine’s Web site, he says the foundation should support the use of the chemical DDT to control mosquitoes that spread the disease. While DDT is toxic in large doses, if used sparingly, it can be an effective malaria-prevention tool, he argues.
- Supporting the education and social development of women and girls has paid off in Liberia, writes Jane Wales, chief executive of the Global Philanthropy Forum. On a Duke University blog, Ms. Wales is chronicling a trip through the West African nation by a group of donors. The visit was organized by the country’s Philanthropy Secretariat, a government office that guides charitable giving in the country. Read The Chronicle’s article about the office.
- In a blog post entitled, “Is Michael Edwards Wearing Any Clothes?” Matthew Bishop and Michael Green, co-authors of the book Philanthrocapitalism: How The Rich Can Save the World, criticize the author and former Ford Foundation employee’s arguments about the limitations of private donors with a background in business to solve poverty, inequality, and corruption. The writers say that so-called “philanthrocapitalists” are working on tough social issues and that Mr. Edwards “fails to acknowledge flaws in the government and NGO-led aid model that he champions.”
- Grant makers and charities need to “embrace a cultural ethic of information sharing,” writes Sean Stannard-Stockton, an adviser to donors and a Chronicle contributor, on his blog Tactical Philanthropy. The post expands on a column Mr. Stannard-Stockton wrote for The Chronicle.
- A recent National Public Radio story about the 100th anniversary of the Boys Scouts of America failed to acknowledge the controversy about the scouts’ ban against gay members, says NPR’s ombudsman, Alicia Shepard. The omission in the story, which was broadcast on Weekend Edition Saturday, led to some angry responses from listeners, says Ms. Shepard on her blog.
