Why Bill Gates Partners With Rotary To Eradicate Polio (Video)

When I asked Bill Gates, 63, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, why polio, he began, “Polio is a terrible disease.” An hour later, speaking to a group of Rotarians in Spokane, Washington, he said, “You know, we're going to get to the end of this and Rotary will be the reason that will happen.”

Before continuing, I must note I am a Rotarian who has occasionally been paid to speak at Rotary events. Even for me—perhaps especially for me—the pairing of the Gates Foundation with Rotary seems unlikely, almost akin to the well-known viral story of the elephant who befriended a dog.

The Gates Foundation has nearly 40 times the assets of the Rotary Foundation’s $1.25 billion. While Rotary engages in a variety of global public health initiatives it does not have the expertise of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the World Health Organization or UNICEF—the three organizations that round out the five key members of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.

Read the full Forbes article and watch the interview here: http://bit.ly/devinandbill.