The Communication Initiative
Development action with informed and engaged societies
The Communication Initiative

After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. 

Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future. 

On the transfer, co-founder Victoria Martin expressed her pleasure to see this work continue under Wits' leadership, knowing that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction. 

As Wits, we honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades and look forward building from that strong base. This includes co-founders Warren Feek (1953-2024) and Victoria Martin as well as La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA), which continues independently at lainiciativadecomunicacion.com with links to The CI Global site. We are also eager to forge new partnerships and entertain new ideas as we consider how best to contribute to social and behaviour change in our rapidly evolving environment.

If you are joining the International Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) Summit in Panama, please join Wits and CILA on Monday, 22 June, to share your thoughts and suggestion for the relaunch of the Communication Initiative. We will be in Pacifica 5 from 12-1:25 for the Refuel, Reflect, and Renew Lunch Series: The Communication Initiative: celebrating a driving force for Communication for Social Change and the way forward. We will reflect on the legacy of Warren Feek and family in creating the Communication Initiative, consider the contributions of CI over the years and then turn our attention towards the future in this dynamic session. 

If you are unable to join us in Panama, we still want to hear from you. Please contribute your thoughts by following this link: https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026 or reaching out to ci_surveys@commint.com. 

You can also follow the QR Code:

 https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026

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Cultural Exchange Project

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The Cultural Exchange Project was a global programme wherein children in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and the UK shared stories and linked lives in an effort to celebrate World Book Day on March 4 2004.
Communication Strategies
The project combined a global exchange focus with a fun reading promotion event. Children in 12 countries sent out postcards, featuring drawings, messages, and information about their local culture ranging from favourite football teams to foods and fashions. Their postcards were collected for an online exploration of global cultures at the Book Aid International website.

Ten events took place in libraries all across the UK; each of these was twinned with a community library in the developing world - locations ranged from Namibia and Nigeria to Mongolia and Palestine.

The programme also has an advocacy component in that it lobbies for policy makers to address the widespread need for relevant books and information. It is also an effort to influence key players in the UK and internationally to give recognition to the role that libraries have to play in development.
Development Issues
Children.
Key Points
Project organisers say the day gave school children a chance to find out more about how people live around the world. "World Book Day is a wonderful opportunity for children to think about books in a wider context; to talk about the huge range of cultures and people reflected in stories, and to learn about the wealth of history handed down through generations via traditional storytelling."
Partners

Book Aid International, Dorling Kindersley.

Sources

Book Aid International website