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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Great Communities for People and Nature

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Implemented by the non-governmental organisation (NGO) Biodiversity Project in the summer of 2003 (through 2004), this research and public outreach initiative centred around the use of information and communication technology (ICT) to get the word out about innovative community-based solutions to the biodiversity crisis in the United States. Core goals of the project were to: raise public awareness about the connections between habitat protection and community quality of life; encourage individuals to support actions, policies, and initiatives that will institutionalise biodiversity protection at the local level; and promote innovative and responsible approaches to local biodiversity protection.
Communication Strategies

In order to collect stories that could serve as models for how individuals can make a meaningful difference for biodiversity in their communities, the Biodiversity Project solicited nominations via the internet and through its network of smart growth and local conservation allies. The goal was to identify stories that the Biodiversity Project could pitch to national and regional lifestyle media to raise the profile of the good things people are doing to protect nature at the community level. These stories might include projects, programmes, events, local policy initiatives, and the like. Organisers sought information about communities of varying sizes throughout the United States, with a special focus on those that do not yet have a reputation for sustainability but are making important strides in their efforts to protect local biodiversity. Within 2 months, a collection of 40 examples of community leadership in biodiversity had been gathered.

This collection is being shared through the Great Communities message kit (information available here). The Biodiversity Project created this media-friendly kit with the intention of promoting story development on Great Communities for People and Nature in a range of media outlets. (Click here to read about the project.) The kit includes tools such as an overview of biodiversity indicators, fact sheets, communication tools, story ideas, images, and contacts. To purchase the Great Communities Message Kit, please contact the Biodiversity Project by phone at 773 496 4020 or by email at project@biodiverse.org

Development Issues

Biodiversity.

Sources

Biodiversity Project website.