The Drum Beat 364 - Communication and Change News and Issues
***
1.Sustainable Bufferzone Management - Nicaragua
This information and communication technology (ICT)-based project was carried out in an effort to support sustainable agriculture and the forestry production system by reaching out to farmers in rural Nicaragua. This initiative drew largely on the use of technology to protect the Indio-Maíz tropical rainforest reserve and its biodiversity (at the same time alleviating poverty) by raising awareness and stimulating action through participatory media activities involving peasant farmers. A number of tools - from modern satellite technology and Geographical Information System (GIS) to simple radio broadcasts - have been used as part of this project. A key strategy has been capacity building through use of the "training of trainers" concept in connection with farming, management and marketing. A survey has shown that many of the farmers in the Municipality of El Castillo have listened to the local radio broadcasts several times and that several farmers have participated in workshops. By promotion and implementation of sustainable agro-forestry and forestry techniques among farmers, the income for many families has increased and their living conditions have improved.
Contact Mr. Sune Holt [email protected] or Zayda Calero [email protected]
2.For Women By Women (FWBW) - Turkey
This initiative aims to bring amateur and professional female photographers together to help create change in the current status of women in Turkey and stop violence against people, especially towards women. The women's photographs are exhibited during various events in Turkey and globally - as well as online. The artists' goal is to create awareness about the issue of violence against women and to foster positive change in the lives of women at risk. The initiative also aims to help provide funding for women's organisations and shelters by offering the photographs for purchase online.
Contact Bikem Ekberzade [email protected] or [email protected]
3.Responsibility and Equity for Sexual Transgressions Offering a Restorative Experience (RESTORE) - United States
Operating in Pima County, Arizona in the United States, this programme aims to provide an alternative to conventional justice for both survivors of sexual assault and the persons who commit such crimes. RESTORE works to facilitate a survivor-focused, community-driven resolution of selected sex crimes that creates and carries out a plan for accountability, healing and public safety. RESTORE uses community conferencing to bring together survivors of sexual offenses and those responsible for committing those offenses, along with their families and supporters. Survivors voice the harm done by the responsible person (offender) and devise a plan for repairing that harm. The aim of the programme is to validate and treat survivors with respect, while giving them a safe process for justice and empowering them to shape a resolution.
Contact [email protected]
4.Art Against AIDS / Art Anti AIDS - Ukraine
Established in 1997 by the SALUS Foundation, and with yearly events since then, this programme was based on the forming of competitions to solicit art focused on issues related to HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and the stigma associated with these diseases. The art produced within these competitions was then used to produce printed materials to be displayed in public areas and social establishments. Some of the printed materials that have resulted from this project are posters, beer pads (to protect bar-tops from moisture stains), and yearly calendars.
Contact Olexandra Sluzhinska [email protected]
5.Kalinago Kids - Dominica
Developed by the Regional Radio Project (RRP), this is a participatory children's radio programme focusing on child and family issues in the Carib Territory of Dominica. In 2004, a local facilitator was selected and a series of focus groups were held with children and with men and women from the community in order to gather information about community members' concerns regarding family relations and child development, as well as details about the radio programmes familiar to them. RRP then held a local consultation where they presented the findings from the focus groups, added other issues as deemed necessary, and then prioritised core themes. A volunteer team then began shaping the radio programmes; the first was a live panel discussion held at the Carib Council office. The discussion was streamed live online, on DBS Radio; it was also videotaped, and has been shown on local television a few times since. The focus on children's participation as a project commitment emerged due to the expressed desires of children themselves. RRP hopes that, in time, the children will be able to fully produce the programmes themselves for broadcast on both DBS and their own local community radio station.
Contact Colleen Wint-Smith [email protected] OR [email protected]
6.Sawt el-Amel: The Laborer's Voice - Israel
Sawt et-Amel was founded by workers and unemployed Palestinians from Nazareth and its surrounding villages in 1999 in order to support unemployed and economically poor Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel to achieve socio-economic justice and work against discrimination in the labour market and welfare system. The organisation works towards legal and political change through collective and individual legal action, advocacy and public awareness campaigns. In all spheres of their work, Sawt el-Amel uses the following strategies, depending on the priorities and objectives of the activities: application of gender perspective; information in 3 languages (Arabic, Hebrew, and English); a combination of advocacy, awareness-raising, education and empowerment; and networking with local and international partners. Sawt el-Amel produces a number of publications and uses ICTs as an advocacy tool as well as a means of disseminating information.
Contact [email protected] or [email protected]
7.Anti-Child-Prostitution Campaign - Taiwan
The Taiwanese non-governmental organisation (NGO) Garden of Hope (GOH) developed a campaign to challenge child prostitution and the abuse of girls' and women's rights by inviting scholars, legislators, the church, the media, professionals, other NGOs, and members of the public to participate in communication-focused activities such as awareness-raising events, protest events, media events, and lobbying. This action campaign focused on engaging a wide variety of stakeholders in becoming alert to, and challenging, child prostitution in Taiwan; the ultimate aim was to eliminate the practice through the drafting and passage of a law banning it. GOH's participatory strategy worked on 3 levels: 1) Building awareness and generating action at the grassroots level - through speeches and flyers at public events and street theatre performances; 2) Building support for legal changes - by drafting a law and advocating support through various media channels; and 3) Gaining support for the GOH - through partnerships. The law has since been passed.
Contact Ms. Hui-jung Chi [email protected]
8.My Hero - Global
This is an interactive web project that encourages use of the internet as a positive and rewarding educational experience. It uses new ICTs, in combination with traditional and non-traditional information sources, to stimulate thinking and exchange about how and why certain individuals overcome difficult obstacles to reach their goals and contribute to the common good. In this project, technology is used as a tool for connecting geographically diverse individuals who are committed to increasing their computer literacy, learning about those in other cultures, and providing "an alternative to the persistently negative images of human activity projected by mainstream media." The searchable, interactive My Hero website is available in English and Spanish, is free, and is open for use in homes, schools, communities, and libraries around the world.
Contact [email protected]
***
Please read the DRAFT Communication and Media for Development Manifesto
Participate in the consultation:
- Complete the Pulse Poll:
Do you agree or disagree?
"The Communication and Media for Development Manifesto helps to make arguments that will strengthen my work." - Contribute to the Online Dialogue
- Complete a Brief Questionnaire:
Click here for the survey. - Complete a Page Review Form:
After you have read this piece please review and comment on its value to your work by completing the simple rating and comment form online - click here to access it.
Thank you!
***
9.Involving Husbands in Safe Motherhood: Effects of the SUAMI SIAGA Campaign in Indonesia
by Corinne L. Shefner-Rogers and Suruchi Sood
This article evaluates the impacts of a multimedia safe motherhood campaign on male partners' involvement in pregnancy, birth preparedness and potential maternal emergency, and the value added to the campaign messages by interpersonal communication involving male partners. Two hypotheses were tested: 1) Husbands who have been directly exposed to the campaign are more likely to report acquiring new knowledge about maternal mortality prevention, especially if they have talked to someone about the campaign; and 2) husbands who have been directly exposed to the campaign are more likely to report that they have taken action toward becoming an alert husband, especially if they have talked to someone about the campaign. The findings suggest that when husbands were exposed to multi-media campaign messages, men's knowledge increased and men's action toward becoming an alert husband increased, and that the odds of knowledge acquisition and taking action were even higher for men who engaged in interpersonal communication about the campaign messages.
10.Perceived Sufficiency and Usefulness of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) Materials and Methods Related to HIV/AIDS Among High School Youth in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
by Amsale Cherie, Getenet Mitkie, Shabbir Ismail and Yemane Berhane
This study was conducted to assess the perceived sufficiency and usefulness of HIV/AIDS IEC messages and materials as well as to identify preferences for IEC sources and methods. Over three quarters of the respondents believed in the usefulness of IEC. IEC materials were perceived to be useful in increasing knowledge about HIV/AIDS by 51%, to influence attitude by 40% and to acquire safer sexual practices by 42% of the respondents. Even though no single information source was highly preferred, radio and television ranked top. Life skills training was the most desired intervention by the students.
11.Make Poverty History Campaign: 2005 Campaign Evaluation
by Andy Martin, Carolyn Culey and Suzy Evans
Undertaken by an alliance of over 400 United Kingdom (UK)-based NGOs, charities, trade unions, campaigning groups, faith communities, and celebrities, the aim of the Make Poverty History campaign was to involve UK citizens in the effort to take the lead in pressuring world leaders to live up to their promise to halve world poverty by 2015, as part of Millennium Goal #1. "...[P]ublic mobilisation was felt to be the greatest achievement of the campaign. Make Poverty History not only managed to make almost everyone in the country aware of the campaign, it inspired a significant proportion to participate - many for the first time. Church and faith groups provided an important bridge between traditional activists and first-time campaigners... In terms of policy change, it was felt that the campaign could point to real achievements on aid and debt. On trade, there was felt to have been little practical success, although the very fact that trade and development were linked together was felt to be an important step in building an international consensus.... Many of the things that made a difference were popular, mass-market campaigning approaches. Where these things were less in evidence, external interviews suggested that there was less of an impact."
12.Indians 'world's biggest readers'
This article describes NOP World Survey findings indicating that Indians read more than citizens of any of the other 29 countries surveyed. Indians over age 13 were found to read an average of 10.7 hours a week, compared to a global average of 6.5 hours and a low for the survey of only 3.1 hours a week in South Korea. The author also suggests that Indians' high reading rate may have helped push down their television viewing hours, which were reported at only 13.3 hours per week, compared to the Argentinean high of 22.4 hours.
13.Power to the Edges: Trends and Opportunities in Online Civic Engagement
by Jillaine Smith, Martin Kearns and Allison Fine
This paper explores trends and strategies related to the current and future state of online activism, fundraising, and democracy. It draws on a review of recent articles, studies, and online discussions, as well as in-depth interviews with 19 leaders in the fields of online technologies, nonprofit capacity building, citizen engagement, and social networks. Authors assert that "traditional ways of engaging civically are coming to an end." They point to the December 2004 tsunami as "one of the earliest successful uses of the entire continuum of Internet and other communications tools to respond, to help, to grieve". They also note that: "New models of civic engagement require a different set of benchmarks, skills and training. In fact, the changes have very little to do with technology or the Internet and everything to do with building entirely new organizational cultures." The report concludes with a series of findings and recommendations of the ways that organisations, individuals, and philanthropic groups can help build such cultures.
14.Women and ICT in Colombia: An Issue Still Not Completely Incorporated in Feminist Agendas
by Graciela Selaimen
In this interview with GenderIT, Olga Paz of Colnodo, a Colombian member of the Association for Progressive Communication (APC), explains that in her country there is still no clear gender perspective on national ICT policies. Further, there is still a ways to go in achieving an understanding of the role of ICT as a political and strategic issue that can be productive for social organisations and women's groups, in particular. Paz here shares her impressions on the challenges involved in integrating gender and ICTs.
15.Western Media Coverage of Humanitarian Disasters
This article looks at research examining western media coverage of 6 humanitarian disasters: the earthquake in Pakistani Kashmir (October 8 2005), Hurricane Stanley (October 1 2005), Hurricane Katrina (August 23 2005), the Indian Ocean earthquake/Tsunami (December 26 2004), the earthquake in Bam, Iran (December 26 2003), and the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, Sudan (since February 2003). The purpose was to ascertain what factors drive western media interest by investigating the relationship between media coverage and national interest to gain a sense of the cultural and economic tenor of relationships between the disaster region and those nations writing about it.
LINKS: MEDIA
16. RadioActive
This is an NGO working alongside local organisations in communities worldwide to set up independent, low-power FM stations.
17.Action Coalition for Media Education (ACME)
This is a network linking media educators, health advocates, media reformers, independent media makers and community organisers across the United States and Canada.
18.Media&Democracy Group (M&D Group)
This is a non-profit organisation that works with local partners to train journalists in emerging democracies and post-conflict states worldwide in an effort to help them create professional, responsible and fair media.
19.ObsMedia
This group works to monitor alerts on freedom of expression affecting media, and particularly community media, worldwide.
20.Media Sustainability Index 2004
The Index is a tool for media professionals, public officials, scholars, and others concerned about media and its role in democratic and economic reform which provides an analysis of media development in 20 Eastern European and Central Asian countries.
***
The Drum Beat seeks to cover the full range of communication for development activities. Inclusion of an item does not imply endorsement or support by The Partners.
Please send material for The Drum Beat to the Editor - Deborah Heimann [email protected]
To reproduce any portion of The Drum Beat, see our policy.
To subscribe, click here.