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This post was originally published by UNICEF.

When a doctor tells you that you shouldn’t get too attached to your baby because he’s nothing more than a badly cooked potato, many people would crumble. But not the Perez family from Guatemala City. They’ve taken every ounce of negativity that that doctor uttered during Danilo’s diagnosis of Congenital Zika Syndrome, and turned it into a loving, caring, stimulating home where parents Sandra and Deyvi live with their four children Danilo, Dorien, Javi and Dennis.

Tegucigalpa, Honduras: Lastenia Doris Borjas started working with the Zika AIRS Project (ZAP) in Honduras in 2017 as a Vector Control Technician and since has been promoted to Vector Control Supervisor. Funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), ZAP helps countries to tackle Zika and other vector-borne diseases through vector control management and awareness raising. A graduate from the National Autonomous University of Honduras (UNAH) with a Bachelor's in Journalism, Borjas recently talked about her experience with Zika and her role on the project.

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The Zika Communication Network will be publishing a series of success stories from the Zika AIRS Project (ZAP). This is the fifth and final in the series.

The United States Agency for International Development’s Zika AIRS Project (ZAP) is creating new ways to fight against the Zika virus. In Guatemala, ZAP conducts targeted indoor residual spraying (IRS) in homes to kill the mosquitoes that spread this dangerous disease. Until recently, communities were unfamiliar with IRS…

This piece was originally published by the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs.

At last, a mosquito to ❤️.

Starting this week, the mosquito – the world’s deadliest animal – joins the ranks of the tears of joy emoji ?, the kissing face emoji ? and the smiling poop emoji ? as one of 70 new emoji available on your iOS smartphone. It’s already available on Android. (Just download the latest operating system, which comes complete with a “bug” you’ll actually want).

At the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, we’re going to use the mosquito emoji…

The Zika Communication Network will be publishing a series of success stories from the Zika AIRS Project (ZAP). This is the fourth in the series.

The Dominican Republic experiences a significant burden of vector-borne diseases, such as the Zika virus, dengue, and chikungunya. In 2017, there were only 10 entomologists in the country trained to study mosquito behavior and resistance trends. The Zika AIRS Project (ZAP), funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), is…

Use repellent. Empty and scrub clean containers filled with standing water. Securely cover containers that hold water. These are some of the behaviors we encourage people in communities with mosquitos to undertake—but do at-risk populations do them? And if not, why not?

The 20th of August was World Mosquito Day, so UNICEF joined forces with K4Health to run a series of activities to make sure the dangers of the mosquito remain in the public eye. As well as gearing up for the launch of the mosquito emoji, we wanted to use the opportunity to find out more about people’s habits and…

The Zika Communication Network will be publishing a series of success stories from the Zika AIRS Project (ZAP). This is the third in the series.

Public health officials have used maps to track pest and disease outbreaks for more than 150 years. Knowing when and where pests and diseases are concentrated allows for targeted interventions to reduce illnesses and the further spread of infection. The Zika AIRS Project (ZAP), funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID…

The Zika Communication Network will be publishing a series of success stories from the Zika AIRS Project (ZAP). This is the second in the series.

In 2016, the Zika virus broke out across Latin America and the Caribbean. Spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the Zika virus can result in serious illnesses, such as microcephaly and Guillain-Barré syndrome. In Haiti, the Ministry of Public Health and Population reported 10 cases of microcephaly in the country’s Northern Department in 2016. In response to the public health…

The Zika Communication Network will be publishing a series of success stories from the Zika AIRS Project (ZAP). This is the first in the series.

On the tropical island of Jamaica, mosquitoes are more than a nuisance. They carry diseases that can affect the health and economic well-being of the entire population. In October 2017, the USAID-funded Zika AIRS Project (ZAP) launched its Jamaica program in partnership with the Ministry of Health and the University of the West Indies to monitor and reduce mosquito populations across…

Join the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and USAID for Stories From the Frontline: Fighting Zika. Hear scientists and public health workers share their experiences unraveling and stopping the 2015 Zika pandemic. You’ll hear from those on the frontline of virus response and prevention and have a chance to talk with them about the current status of Zika preparedness. Their stories of innovative strategies, cross-border collaborations, and cutting edge research—from tracing the virus to fighting mosquitoes and searching for a treatment—will reveal the importance of working…