Comments on The CI Received in February 2025
Below please find some comments sent from The Communication Initiative (The CI) network in response to a note to Drum Beat subscribers on February 13 2025. Among other things, this note announced that The CI will be closing on March 15 2025 as a result of policy changes in the United States (US) administration that removed The CI's only revenue stream at the time, the US Agency for International Development (USAID). Many thanks to all who wrote to us.
***
It's deeply disappointing to see both Warren's departure and this sudden funding closure. The Communication Initiative has been invaluable, contributing significantly to program communication, keeping individuals informed, and providing a vital platform for sharing thoughts and ideas.
Rina Dey, Communication Specialist, India
***
From its foundation, an organisation, such as CI, dedicated to promoting the principles and practices of communication in international development within and between countries and cultures, constituted a fundamental building block in the strategic process of human development. CI filled a space in the global development agenda that had been chronically missing. It seems obvious now, perhaps, but it did not seem obvious to policy-makers and funders at the time.
I have been a critic of 'communication' where it has been poorly done or its impact poorly evidenced. But I never had any doubt about the critical necessity of the communication premise, or of the role CI played, or the extraordinary human value CI helped to shape through thousands of colleagues worldwide who have worked - and continue to work - to strengthen communication, to realise its extraordinary potential.
Like many others, I cannot fathom the inexpressibly crass, inhumane and already lethal effects of the current US administration’s wrecking ball policies and their impact on the continuing work of CI. The force of their collective economic, social and cultural illiteracy puts at risk decades of progress and individual lives.
A point of light, though, is the resilience of the global communication community that CI helped to found and nurture. That this community - as strong communities do - will, one way and another, sustain and continue to grow the vital space for people to communicate with each other – the indispensable medium of good societal growth - that CI started.
Sebastian Taylor, author of Health in a Post-COVID World: Lessons from the Crisis of Western Liberalism
***
Hi everyone
I'm so sorry to learn you guys are closing. I have known CI for many many years, as far back as late 90s I think, when I was working jn Brussels on HIV issues. I was also really sad to learn today of Warren's passing. I didn't know until I looked him up as a result of your post....Since 2002 I have been living in Johannesburg and have followed CI through the years. I fully empathise with how you might be feeling now...I too am experiencing the fall out of the shrinking of aid funds in my consultancy work. I wish the team all the best and so sorry to learn about Warren. But I think he did leave a legacy, he was a pioneer in the early days of HIV and Comms. Maybe new bright things are around the corner for us all. A LUTA CONTINUA
Warm wishes,
Lucy
South Africa
***
We greatly appreciate The Communication Initiative's interest in sharing resources from and for the faith community to promote global health from an evidence-based perspective. Over the years we have been able to share resources on immunization and family planning developed by faith actors with a wider audience thanks to this partnership. We are hopeful that - in time - we can once again collaborate for improved health for all.
Kathy
Kathy Erb | Communications Director
Christian Connections for International Health (USA) | www.ccih.org
***
To the CI Team:
Thank you for exceptional service, support and encouragement over the years. May you beat again.
Charles Fletcher
Managing Editor
Caledonia Media
Scotland
***
Dear CI Team:
For several decades you were one of the lighthouses that kept the communication for development practice on course.
Thank-you for your dedication and for your shining lights.
In solidarity,
Ricardo Ramirez
Guelph, Ontario
***
My Views on the Final Drum Beat
The dismantling of USAID has had a devastating impact on The Communication Initiative (CI), an essential platform for knowledge exchange, policy advocacy, and collaboration within the development sector. The cessation of USAID funding has forced CI to cease operations, leaving a significant gap in the global development landscape. CI has been instrumental in connecting stakeholders, sharing best practices, and amplifying marginalized voices. Its closure at a time when spaces for knowledge sharing and dialogue are urgently needed is deeply concerning. The loss of CI not only hampers the ability of development professionals to coordinate efforts but also threatens the continuation of evidence-based practices and inclusive policy-making.
Despite the challenges, the current situation presents an opportunity for the development community to innovate and adapt. The closure of CI and the dismantling of USAID support should serve as a wake-up call to explore alternative funding mechanisms and build more resilient models for knowledge sharing and advocacy. Strengthening local capacities, investing in community-led solutions, and fostering regional and South-South cooperation may provide sustainable pathways forward. The final Drum Beat offers a space to voice concerns, share experiences, and propose solutions, ensuring that the legacy of CI continues to inspire future efforts. Through collaboration and innovation, the development community can work towards creating a more resilient and independent sector, driven by a committed global community.
Sincerely,
Lakew Abebe Gebretsadik (Ph.D., Associate Professor)
Jimma University
Ethiopia
***
I am saddened by your news of the impact of the USAID dismantling.
The Communication Initiative has been a trusted resource and safe place to share ideas and spark dialogue for our work for the past 20 years. I appreciate the opportunity to be a part of this community and to share ideas and experiences in digital health that have been important to me for my entire career, from my early work on Mobile Phones for Mother and Child Care to our recent health.enabled work with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance to support evidence-based digital approaches for immunization programs. The Drum Beat newsletter has been a welcome and insightful part of my in-box for years and Kier Olsen DeVries has facilitated the posting of our resources for widespread disemmination.
We are especially grateful to the Communication Initiative for helping us share resources from our partnership with Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance over the past 5 years, highlighting and spreading the word about the publications, guidance and documentation of country experiences in implementing digital health information technologies for immunisation programs, with a focus on gender, equity and evidence-based decision-making. These publications all have as their central purpose to "leave no child behind with immunization" and seek to document the ways that digital tools and technologies can be used to improve coverage and equity for immunisation programs around the world.
I wish you all the best in this transition and look forward to learning more about your plans to preserve the rich repository of information you have captured and the community that has been built around it.
Warm regards,
Patty
Patricia N. Mechael, PhD MHS
Chief Executive Officer
mobile: +1 (973) 222-8252
email: patty@healthenabled.org
www.HealthEnabled.org
***
I stumbled across Drumbeat perhaps 10 years ago, when I was thinking of moving from journalism into international development work. The Communication Initiative helped me learn about this field and the role of journalism within it, and helped me identify organisations I might work with. My journey into media development would have been slower and less focused without this valuable service. It will be greatly missed.
Corinne Podger
Media Development Consultant
***
Dear CI Team,
It is indeed a set of deep emotions - mainly sadness and anger - that affect me when thinking about the end of this era at the CI.
The Communication Initiative has been a resource for me since 2001, when, as a grad student in IDS [international development studies] at Ohio, I started exploring the site's resources to learn more about my chosen field. I used the CI for many years to get a better picture of what is happening in SBCC [social and behavior change communication], C4D [communication for development], and now SBC.
I worked with members of the CI team when we offered the UNICEF/Ohio University course on C4D, using the platform as a discussion and resource board for course participants.
As a professor of communication I have used to the CI extensively for case studies that provide useful, real-world examples for my students. Together with Rafael Obregon, Warren and members of the CI started the Global Alliance for Social and Behavior Change, an organization that serves our discipline and of which I am a member.
At the 2022 Global Summit on SBCC, one of the pieces of swag that UNICEF gave to folks was the SBC Direct Impact deck of cards, which the CI produced. I wish I had five of those decks; I use them in class, to talk about the impact SBC can have, to find journal articles on a particular area of work, and the two I have sit in a prime location on my desk. I haven't used them for a game of pinochle but maybe that day is coming.
Even with all of this history and the many interactions that I've had with the CI over the years, I know that I have only scratched the surface of what the platform - and the team - have to offer. I will always be grateful for your work and efforts to support our discipline in so many different ways.
Sincerely, sadly, and hoping for better outcomes in the future,
Andrew
--
Andrew Carlson, Ph.D.
USA
***
Dear Drumbeat CI:
I have always been glad to collaborate with you. Thank you for publishing summaries of our work - copying my co-authors here.
What this moment means to me?
Shutting down USAID is incredibly moronic and is only done for Trump to score political points. I fear for our country of the USA - it is on the path to fascism, Nazi-ism and an authoritarian dictatorship for the oligarchs. That is my personal opinion - I have not consulted any of my co-authors, who can have their own say on what this moment means for them. At the same time, I want to be hopeful we will win in the courts and that in 2026 the Democrats will win the House of Representatives,putting up some guardrails vs. Trump, Vance, Musk, RFK and the incredibly incompetent people running our country now - so you - CI - may be back before you know it! I hope so!
Decades ago, I worked on human rights in Chile and other places in Latin America - torture, disappearances, and other horrors (films: Argentina, 1985; Missing; I'm Still Here) and what I learned is what Martin Luther King taught us: “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” Pinochet died under house arrest, the murderers of chileans Orlando Letelier and Victor Jara were tried and convicted - Lula is now President of Brazil, not the dictators.
Best, Jill
Jill Gay
President
J Gay Associates LLC
***
I am saddened by your choice of subject line "Final Drum Beat". Is it really the final Drum Beat? In the era of crowd funding, several digital funding initiatives and plethora of willing funders globally, Drum Beat should not go down without putting up a "fight". Drum Beat is an entity that must overcome this temporary setback". Note that tough times don't last but tough people/entities do. Long live comminit and long live Drum Beat.
Joseph Wilson
Nigeria
***
This is Luis Xavier from Bolivia.
Well, my personal experience with CI has been quite special: I graduated from Law School (with Honors), back in 2021. That was the time when I first came to learn about yourselves. It always felt different, but different in a great sense, to receive your messages, learn about the job you do, and the last part of the year, when I began to finally design and follow a clear career and life path, you began to send me special invitations which were somehow 'magically' aligned to what I was pursuing. And you kept on, even in those times I could not attend but felt really happy to get those mails.
Anyway, what can I say? It has been a great and very fruitful experience for me, despite never having been able to cross paths in-person. I hope time will provide the opportunity to do so.
And hopefully you will continue to have impactful and positive experiences on everyone else's lives. Best of luck for what is to come, eventually, all things will fall into the right place.
Sincerely,
Luis Xavier
***
A long time ago in a country far, far away (from where I now live in remote northern New Mexico) a small group of UNICEF Communication Officers -- they weren’t called Specialists then -- formed a special bond in the Eastern and Southern Africa Region. Among them was Warren Feek, who would go on to establish the Communication Initiative and its Drum Beat newsletter. Drumbeat has been an important forum for social and behaviour change theorists and practitioners. Even now, 13 years into retirement, I took occasional pleasure in reading the Drum Beat. As we experience social and political turmoil in the US and elsewhere, I wish everyone associated with Drum Beat the best of luck.
With thanks,
Paula Claycomb
USA
***
Back in 1994, when I did my oral examination for my MA, which took place a few weeks after the EE Conference that Ohio University had hosted and which Warren had attended, my adviser, Josep Rota, one of the committee members, asked me whether a website focused on learning and debate about comm and development would make sense. I responded that if it brought into that space the voices of organizations from the South then it would. Little did I know that Warren had discussed that idea with Joe. Thirty years later, not only did that idea become a reality, but it was also pioneering, and has made great contributions to the field. Again, hopefully there will be ways to leverage the CI platform in the long run.
Rafael Obregon
UNICEF Nicaragua
***