Washington, DC (May 15, 2025) – Malaria No More recently released a new podcast series, The Best Worst Thing. Bill Gates has long called malaria the worst thing on the planet. But fighting it is arguably one of the best humanitarian investments in the world today. That’s why we call it “The Best Worst Thing.”  

Hosted by Malaria No More CEO, Martin Edlund, this four-part series explores the ongoing story of the global fight to eradicate humanity’s oldest, deadliest disease. Along the way we meet some of the key figures and architects of this effort and explore the challenges and breakthroughs in this monumental fight.  

Global Health Moonshot 

The first episode, “Global Health Moonshot,” features a discussion with two pioneers at the heart of the global health revolution: John Bridgeland (“Bridge”), former Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council under President Bush, and Rear Admiral Tim Ziemer, the first U.S. Global Malaria Coordinator. Together, they share how a unique convergence of global crises, political leadership, and ambitious vision laid the groundwork for the modern malaria campaign, driving the largest expansion of global health programming in history. 

Branding the Bed Net 

The second episode, “Branding the Bed Net,” features a discussion with President Jakaya Kikwete, Tanzania’s Head of State from 2005 to 2015 during the critical period of scale up of mosquito nets, and Ray Chambers, an international financier turned UN Special Envoy for Malaria and co-founder of Malaria No More. Together, they explore how insecticide-treated bed nets helped cut malaria deaths in half in just a few years, uncovering the insight, inspiration, and challenges from the people who helped make it possible.  

Crisis Point 

The third episode, “Crisis Point,” features a discussion with a true living legend: the first woman elected to lead an African nation, former President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, who found herself dealing with multiple health crises when Liberia experienced an Ebola outbreak in 2014. Together, they discuss how global efforts to end malaria can get derailed by a range of challenges: financial, political and epidemiological. 

Outsmarting Malaria  

The fourth episode, “Outsmarting Malaria,” features a discussion with Philip Welkhoff, who has led the Gates Foundation’s Malaria Program since 2018, to delve into the cutting-edge technologies that are moving from the lab to the field and could finally make malaria eradication a reality. Together, they discuss how the modern malaria fight was sparked not just by health experts, but by entrepreneurs like Bill Gates, who has invested billions of dollars to develop new tools and strategies to eliminate the disease.  

Produced by Earshot Strategies, listeners can find The Best Worst Thing on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. 

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