In a recent article for the Huffington Post, Dr. Eboo Patel, this year’s Baccalaureate Speaker, wrote that “At a time of a religious revival, a youth bulge and an increase in interaction between people from different backgrounds, religion can be a bomb, a bubble, a barrier or a bridge…The raw materials of [the last] approach are simple: this is how my religion inspires me to build understanding and cooperation with people who are different.” Whether this difference lies across lines of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, or religion, Eboo insists that there is a theology of the bridge built into faith traditions and their heroes: from Rev. Dr. King to Badshah Khan. How we are able to help heal the world’s brokenness, from extreme poverty to state-sanctioned violence to ecological disaster, will depend increasingly on this alternative narrative of faiths in action.

Within the international development discourse, religion is often seen as a retardant to growth and progress. We’ve all heard the tropes: the refusal of safe-sex education, unwitting legitimization of cultural imperialism, brutal suppression of women’s and queer rights. But this isn’t the only story; and most importantly, not the one we could be writing instead. The courageous example of Christian and Muslim Liberian women, standing together against the violence that ravaged that country in the early part of this decade, serves for me as a constant guide.

In the context of sub-Saharan Africa, churches and mosques are often the most robust and visible organizations in rural communities. Their proximate knowledge of local situations is invaluable, and their high standing provides a natural health education and healthcare distribution platform. Hence, empowering these local community leaders to work together in common action for the common good must be a strong component of any projects related to the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. Perhaps the clearest indication of this potential is in light of the sixth MDG: eradicating deaths due to malaria.

Malaria is one of the most egregious killers on the planet, because it is entirely preventable. The disease is tied very closely to the other MDGs because it is so prevalent. Sub-Saharan Africa hemorrhages an estimated $12 billion USD each year in GDP through this loss of productivity, further compounding problems of poverty. Many parents have to choose between treating the infected in their family or eating. Educating women about the disease and how to protect their families increases their standing and importance in the community. Malaria touches almost all of the other MDGs. Were it to be eliminated, the other goals would be that much easier to achieve.

Mosquitoes are equal-opportunity offenders. For them, the blood of a Christian is just as sweet as that of a Muslim or an atheist or a Sikh. The Bay Area Against Malaria campaign is a collaboration this year between interfaith and malaria activists across five Bay Area campuses, raising funds and awareness for Malaria No More. Our movement all about ordinary people, of all faiths and none, doing something extraordinary. Together, we can eradicate deaths from malaria.

Anand Venkatkrishnan ’10