2015 Social Media Awards: Malaria Heroes - Winners

Sara Canavati is the winner of the Social Media Awards: Malaria Heroes, in the Regional Malaria Champion: Asia-Pacific category. A research scientist at the Mahidol-Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit (MORU) in Cambodia, she also passionately advocates for malaria elimination online. She actively contributes to several malaria-related social media groups including the World Federation of Parasitologists Facebook page, as well as maintaining active Facebook and Twitter accounts, sharing regional malaria news and resources with colleagues.

Matthew Todd is the winner of the Social Media Awards: Malaria Heroes, in the Innovator category. Dr. Todd has a long history of molecular research, leading his own lab at the University of Sydney. He also founded and leads the Open Source Malaria Consortium (OSM) to find cures for malaria. The OSM project uses a wiki to share and discuss promising chemical compounds, as well as sharing the latest innovations in the fight against malaria via social media.

Lazarus Eze is the winner of the Social Media Awards: Malaria Heroes, in the Young Leader category. Dr. Eze is a much-loved public health physician, policy advocate, and consultant on youth development issues. In 2013, he initiated the use of the hashtag #BeatMalaria to create awareness and share resources on malaria prevention and management. Through his work across all media types, he reaches thousands of people with messages about the health and socioeconomic impact of malaria and strategies for combatting the disease.

Jaime Chang is the winner of the Social Media Awards: Malaria Heroes, in the Regional Malaria Champion: Latin America category. Dr. Chang is the coordinator of the Amazon Malaria Initiative, an effort supporting national malaria control programs in eleven countries. AMI has a strong social media presence, on both Facebook and Twitter, including a Facebook discussion group, of which Dr. Chang is an active member.

Corine Karema is the winner of the Social Media Awards: Malaria Heroes, in the Regional Malaria Champion: Africa category. As the head of the National Malaria Control Program in Rwanda, Dr. Karema is at the forefront of research, advocacy and community outreach to fight malaria nationally and throughout the region. With a sizable social media presence, she shares the lessons and victories from Rwanda around the world.

Bart Knols is the winner of the Social Media Awards: Malaria Heroes, in the People’s Choice for Best Communications category. Bart Knols is the Chief Innovation Officer at In2Care BV and Chairman of the Advisory Bard at the Dutch Malaria Foundation. He is also the Founder of MalariaWorld, the largest scientific and social network for malaria professionals. With over 8700 subscribers on MalariaWorld and a robust social media presence, Bart Knols is a brilliant communicator and advocate for malaria.