For Immediate Release
Office of the First Lady
December 14, 2006

Participant Bios: The White House Summit on Malaria

      The White House Summit on Malaria

George W. Bush, President of the United States

Mrs. Laura Bush, First Lady of the United States

Isaiah Washington, Master of Ceremonies and Star of ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy

Isaiah Washington stars as Dr. Preston Burke on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy and has appeared in over thirty films. Having traced his maternal ancestry to the Mendé people of Sierra Leone, Mr. Washington visited the country in May and was inducted as “Chief Gondobay Manga.” He established The Gondobay Manga Foundation to help the country and its people. The foundation advocates cooperative planning, one village at a time, to achieve immediate improvements in the lives of the people. This singular approach tailors initiatives to the needs of the village, while drawing the attention of the international community to specific and distinct goals.

Dr. Condoleezza Rice, U.S. Secretary of State

Dr. Condoleezza Rice is Secretary of State of the United States. Prior to this appointment, she was Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. In June 1999, she completed a six-year tenure as Stanford University's Provost, the institution's chief budget and academic officer. Dr. Rice was a professor of political science at Stanford, a member of Stanford’s Center for International Security and Arms Control and a Senior Fellow of the Institute for International Studies, and has written numerous books and articles on Soviet and East European foreign and defense policy. Among many other philanthropic efforts, Dr. Rice was a founding board member of the Center for a New Generation, an educational support fund for schools in East Palo Alto and East Menlo Park, California and was Vice President of the Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula.

Yvonne Chaka Chaka, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Malaria

Yvonne Chaka Chaka is a South African singer, businesswoman and motivational speaker with a passion for supporting women in business and development. Yvonne was first appointed a UNICEF Regional Spokesperson on Malaria in 2005, following the death of her backing vocalist from malaria in 2004. In November 2006, she was formally designated a Regional Goodwill Ambassador with a mandate to speak on a wider range of issues affecting children, including malaria. In 2003, she was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the University of South Africa along with Nobel Laureate Bishop Desmond Tutu. Since her appointment with UNICEF, Yvonne has been a tireless campaigner for children, traveling to several countries in Africa and abroad and calling attention to the terrible impact of malaria on children.

Admiral R. Timothy Ziemer, United States Malaria Coordinator

Admiral R. Timothy Ziemer was appointed in June 2006 to lead the President’s Malaria Initiative. He previously served as Executive Director of World Relief, which provides disaster response, community development, child/maternal health, HIV/AIDS, agricultural assistance, and microcredit programs in over 30 countries. Prior to that he was Vice President of the Arlington Institute, a nonprofit research institute that specializes in strategic planning and seeks to influence change by applying emerging technology. Born in Iowa but raised in Asia, the son of missionary parents serving in Vietnam, Admiral Zeimer had an outstanding career in the US Navy. His last duty assignment was as Commander of the Navy's Mid-Atlantic Region, responsible for the 11 bases providing support to the world’s largest naval complex.

Mohamed Saleh Jiddawi, M.D, Zanzibar Principal Secretary, Ministry of Health and Social Welfare

Dr. Mohamed Jiddawi became Permanent Secretary in the Zanzibar Ministry of Health in April 2006. Prior to his appointment, he practiced general surgery and urology in Zanzibar. Dr. Jiddawi earned his M.D. at the Institute of Medicine in Cluj, Romania, in 1979, and his masters in General Surgery in Dar es Salaam in 1989. A native of Zanzibar, he did his urology training in Brighton, U.K.

Steven C. Phillips, M.D., Medical Director for Global Issues and Projects, Exxon Mobil Corporation

Dr. Steven C. Phillips is the Medical Director for Global Issues and Projects, Exxon Mobil Corporation, where his responsibilities include overseeing the Corporation's "outside-the-fenceline" community and public health programs throughout its global operations. In this capacity, he has worked closely with governments, NGO's, U.N. agencies, multilateral organizations, and the private sector in fostering public-private partnerships as a development platform to address urgent global health priorities. Prior to joining Exxon in 1981, Dr. Phillips served in the U.S. Public Health Service and was assigned to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta to conduct epidemic investigations. Dr. Phillips currently serves as a representative of the private sector on the Board of the Roll Back Malaria Partnership and is part of the private sector delegation to the Board of the Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Richard G. A. Feachem, Ph.D., Executive Director, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria

Dr. Richard Feachem has worked in international health and development for 30 years and has published extensively on public health and health policy. He was appointed in April 1999 to be the Founding Director of the Institute for Global Health at the University of California in San Francisco. From 1995 to 1999, Dr. Feachem held the positions of Director and Senior Advisor for Health, Nutrition and Population at the World Bank. Prior to this, he was Dean of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine for six years. In 2002, he was appointed Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. He is on an extended leave of absence from his duties at the University of California, while he serves at the Global Fund in Geneva.

Ann Veneman, Executive Director, UNICEF

Ann M. Veneman assumed the leadership of UNICEF in 2005, becoming the fifth Executive Director in its 60-year history. At UNICEF Ms. Veneman directs a global agency of nearly 10,000 staff and annual total resources of about $3 billion, funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of governments, businesses, foundations and individuals. Before UNICEF she served as Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture. Having earned a law degree from the University of California, much of her career has been focused on child nutrition, public health, international trade and development, and alleviating hunger, including major initiatives to help fight undernutrition around the world.

Dr. Paul Wolfowitz, President, The World Bank

Dr. Paul Wolfowitz became the tenth President of the World Bank Group in 2005. Prior to this appointment, he spent more than three decades as a public servant, ambassador and educator, including 24 years in government service under seven U.S. presidents. His practical experience in the developing world includes three years in Indonesia as U.S. Ambassador, and his Washington-based policy work on East Asian affairs. From 1994-2001, Dr. Wolfowitz served as Dean and Professor of International Relations at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies of The Johns Hopkins University. Earlier, he taught political science at Yale University. He has written widely on foreign policy, diplomacy and national security.

Margaret Chan, M.D., Director General-Elect, World Health Organization

Dr. Margaret Chan is Director-General Elect of the World Health Organization. Previously, Dr Chan was WHO Assistant Director-General for Communicable Diseases and Representative of the Director-General for Pandemic Influenza. Prior to joining WHO, she was Director of Health in Hong Kong, where she confronted the first human outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza in 1997 and successfully defeated Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in Hong Kong in 2003. She also launched new services to prevent disease and promote better health.

Eyitayo Lambo, Ph.D., Minister of Health, Nigeria

Dr. Eyitayo Lambo, Minister of Health of Nigeria, holds a master’s degree in economics and a doctorate in operations research applied to health systems. He taught at universities in Nigeria for many years and was a consultant to the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria, the Nigerian Industrial Development Bank and the African Development Bank. He was also external examiner to several universities, including the City University of London. Between 1990 and 1999, Dr. Lambo was the World Health Organization’s Regional Adviser in Africa for health sector reforms, health care financing and health in socioeconomic development. He has published over sixty papers, articles and books in the areas of quantitative economics, modeling, operations research applied to health, strategic management, and health economics.

Melinda French Gates, Co-Chair, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Melinda French Gates was a unit manager at Microsoft before her marriage to Bill Gates, the company’s founder and current Chairman. Ms. Gates holds an MBA from Duke University, was a member of Duke’s Board of Trustees from 1996-2003, and is currently on the board of Directors of The Washington Post. She and her husband have given the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation more than US $24 billion to help relieve worldwide suffering. They recently received Spain’s Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation in recognition of their world impact through philanthropy.

Ray Chambers, Chairman of the Board, Malaria No More

Raymond G. Chambers, a philanthropist and humanitarian who has directed most of his efforts toward at-risk youth, is the Founding Chairman of the Points of Light Foundation and co-founder, with General Colin Powell, of America's Promise - The Alliance for Youth. Mr. Chambers is also co-founder of the National Mentoring Partnership and Chairman of the Millennium Promise Alliance. In helping to lead the revitalization of the city of Newark, New Jersey, he was the Founding Chairman of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. He is former Chairman of Wesray Capital Corporation, which he co-founded with William Simon.

Roxanne Spillett, President, Boys & Girls Clubs of America

Roxanne Spillett heads Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA), the nation’s fastest-growing youth development organization with a primary focus on young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. BGCA now serves more than 4.6 million girls and boys through some 3,900 affiliates in the United States, and on military bases in Europe and Asia. Ms. Spillett’s particular emphasis is on serving children in nontraditional environments, including public housing and Native American lands. One of her most noteworthy achievements is the initiation of a unique partnership with the Department of Defense to charter Boys & Girls Clubs on more than 40 U.S. military bases worldwide.

Kathleen Behrens, Senior Vice President, Community and Player Programs, National Basketball Association

Kathleen Behrens is currently the National Basketball Association’s Senior Vice President of Community and Player Programs, where she is responsible for overseeing the NBA's programs that promote player social and community responsibility, growth and development.

Brian A. Gallagher, President and Chief Executive Officer, United Way of America

Brian Gallagher, a career veteran of the United Way system, became President and Chief Executive Officer of United Way of America in 2002. He has led the transformation of the organization to its current focus on community impact – improving lives by mobilizing the caring power of communities. Today, United Way serves communities through 1,300 local affiliates in the United States, and in 45 countries around the globe.

Angelina Wapakabulo, Executive Director, United Way of Uganda Executive Committee

Mrs. Angelina Wapakabulo, co-founder and Vice Chair of United Way Uganda, is one of Uganda’s most celebrated community activists, leaders, and social workers. She has dedicated her life to fighting HIV/AIDS and caring for orphans and vulnerable children in her country. Ms. Wapakabulo is Program Coordinator for the “Market Vendors AIDS Project,” a one-stop location for vendors and customers to shop and check their HIV status.

Bonnie McElveen-Hunter, Chairman, American Red Cross

Bonnie McElveen-Hunter, Chairman of the American Red Cross, was formerly CEO and owner of Pace Communications, Inc., the largest private custom publishing company in the US. As U.S. Ambassador to Finland, she led several successful initiatives to help Finnish and Russian charities assist children at risk for drugs, crime, HIV/AIDS and trafficking. Known as a generous philanthropist and extraordinary fundraiser, she has served as a member of the International Board of Directors of Habitat for Humanity.

Shimelis Adugna, President, Ethiopian Red Cross Society

Shimelis Adugna has been president of the Ethiopian Red Cross Society since April 2000 and currently serves as the Vice President of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies for Africa. He also serves as national coordinator for Jobs for Africa, an employment generation and poverty reduction program of the International Labor Organization and United Nations Development Program. In the past, Adugna served as minister of labour and social affairs; ambassador to the Republic of India; and vice-minister of the Interior in charge of correctional institutions. Mr. Adugna has worked as an independent consultant and government advisor on issues of famine, demobilized soldiers, and orphans.

Robert Radtke, D.Phil., President, Episcopal Relief and Development

Dr. Robert Radtke is the President of Episcopal Relief and Development. He was previously Senior Vice President for Programs at the Asia Society and Vice President of the Business Council for the United Nations. He earned his bachelor’s degree in East Asian languages and cultures from Columbia University and holds a doctorate in modern history from University of Oxford. Dr. Radtke is a member of the Association of American Rhodes Scholars and the Council on Foreign Relations.

Richard D. “Rick” Warren, D.Min., Senior Pastor, Saddleback Church

Pastor Richard D. "Rick" Warren is the founding and senior pastor of Saddleback Church in California and the author of many Christian books, including The Purpose Driven Life. As part of his quest to attack what he calls the five “Global Goliaths” – spiritual emptiness, egocentric leadership, extreme poverty, pandemic disease, and illiteracy/poor education -- he leads the Purpose Driven Network of churches, a global coalition of congregations in 162 countries. He earned a bachelor of arts degree from California Baptist College and a doctor of ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary.

Rev. Straton Gataha, Senior Pastor, The Living Church, Rwanda

Reverend Straton Gataha is the senior pastor at The Living Church of Jesus Christ in Kigali, Rwanda. He was born into a Roman Catholic family in Rwanda. During his childhood, he and his parents went into exile in Congo. Rev. Gataha moved back to Rwanda after the 1994 genocide, to bring hope to the people there. He has a degree in sociology and a master’s degree in divinity.

Rita Githiaka, Student, Mount Kenya Academy, Nyeri, Kenya

Rita Githiaka is 16 years old and is from Nairobi, Kenya. She is a 10th grade boarding student at Mount Kenya Academy in Nyeri, Kenya.

Margaret Spellings, U.S. Secretary of Education

Margaret Spellings is the U.S. Secretary of Education. Prior to her appointment, she served as Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, where she helped create the No Child Left Behind Act and crafted policies on education, immigration, health care, labor, transportation, justice, housing, and other elements of the President's domestic agenda. Previously, Sec. Spellings worked for six years as Senior Advisor to Governor George W. Bush with responsibility for developing and implementing the Governor's education reforms and policies. From the White House and the Statehouse to the school board and college campus, Spellings has been involved with education policy at every level.

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