The Drum Beat 356 - Communication and Change News and Issues
***
EXPERIENCES
1. Communication for Social Change Practitioner Network - Global
Initiated by the Communication for Social Change (CFSC) Consortium, the Practitioner Network aims to address obstacles to more effective implementation of CFSC programming, particularly increasing the capacity and expertise to implement CFSC programmes on the ground. The network is designed to be a semi-formal grouping of individuals committed to and expert in CFSC who can offer advice and support to organisations seeking to transform principle and theory into practice. During their first face-to-face meeting in September 2005, the Practitioner Network agreed to four main activities: 1) develop a strategy to provide mutual training and technical support to those in the network in order to attain a common level of CFSC proficiency; 2) identify and develop training and technical needs and materials for development agencies interested in using CFSC principles; 3) make the expertise and knowledge of this network available to international agencies planning to develop CFSC strategies; and 4) explore an accreditation standard for CFSC practitioners.
Contact [email protected]
2. Young in Prison Project - South Africa
This is a media training initiative operating inside the youth section of Cape Town's Pollsmoor Prison, South Africa. The project works with 12 incarcerated males from the ages of 16 to 18, who meet weekly to co-produce radio stories about various aspects of prison life. Using radio production and training as both a means of building communication skills and as a forum for group dialogue, the Young in Prison Radio Project aims to provide a space for the young inmates to collectively dialogue about issues that are important to their personal development and rehabilitation, and to share their experiences with the outside world. To foster young prisoners' engagement in the issues and to structure dialogue, each weekly training session is organised around a theme devised by the participants in the project. Previous themes have included sexuality, HIV/AIDS, gang involvement, warden/prisoner relations, drug use, family life, conflict resolution, and post-release solutions.
Contact [email protected] OR [email protected]
3. Summer Postcard Action - Global
In the summer of 2004, Amnesty International USA launched an advocacy campaign in an effort to involve members of the public, worldwide, in communicating with prisoners of conscience or those who defend human rights. This yearly campaign uses communication - messages sent by members of the public on a simple paper postcard - as an effort to spur on the efforts of those activists who are at risk or are suffering due to their courage in speaking out about human rights abuses - or to victims of various forms of discrimination. The campaign website - available in English and Spanish - includes narrative, photographs, and mailing addresses for each of the human rights defenders around the world who are being reached by this campaign. The campaign continues in 2006 with additional featured cases.
Contact [email protected]
4. Be Good, Do Good - Hungary
Since 1996, Hungary's Nonprofit Információs és Oktató Központ (NIOK) - Nonprofit Information and Training Centre Foundation - has drawn on communication as a strategy for mobilising and assisting taxpayers in supporting the work of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in that country. Using information and communication technologies (ICTs) such as the internet and telephone, as well as mass media, to raise awareness about - and stimulate financial donations to - local organisations, NIOK hopes that at least one sixth of taxpayers will use NIOK's services each year to donate 1% of their taxes for "a good cause". With the slogan "Be good, do good - Give a share to the nonprofit sector - 1%", organisers sought to draw citizens' attention to the fact that although 1% might seem a small or even negligible amount to them, it is not so for nonprofits. Several thousand copies of a booklet about 1% donating were printed and are being distributed to employers, employees, organisations, etc. who seek information about the process of donating. Radio and television media support the campaign by broadcasting information and responding to questions about 1% donating.
Contact Balázs Gerencsér [email protected]
5. SILVERDOCS - Global
This is a 6-day international film festival created through an alliance between the American Film Institute (AFI) and the Discovery Channel with an aim of bringing together diverse and informed audiences to explore the art and craft of film documentary and to examine the content revealed by nonfiction films. Each screening is followed by a discussion. Held annually since 2003 in June in Washington, DC (USA), the festival runs concurrently with the SILVERDOCS International Documentary Conference. The SILVERDOCS website includes photo galleries of past festivals, as well as lists of films organised by title, director, day and time of screening, and country.
Contact [email protected]
6. Ambassadors of Europe - Romania
In August 2004, the Center for Partnership and Equality (CPE), a Romanian non-profit organisation committed to mainstreaming the principle of equal opportunities for women and men into public policies and associated practices, launched the Ambassadors of Europe civic education project. Young people were recruited and trained to act as Ambassadors of Europe. With the support of coordinating teachers, they developed information and education activities to increase knowledge and encourage discussion around the roles and status of women and men, in both Romania and the European Union (EU). The project was developed to help prepare teenagers to facilitate adapting to the Romanian integration into the EU and to increase gender awareness and reduce discrimination based on gender.
Contact Diana Calenic [email protected]
7. Mad Mundo - Global
Produced by Article Z, an electronic media agency, Mad Mundo uses journalism and storytelling techniques to explore the impact of globalisation on individual lives. Investigations by journalists into personal stories help to introduce wider issues of globalisation, and are combined with interactive online discussions. The strategy of Mad Mundo is to use personal, locally-driven stories and individuals' questions about the factors around them - international, political, trade and economic globalisation - that are having an effect on their lives, to lead to a greater investigation of those issues. The idea behind the strategy was to create programmes in which the journalists are not only providers of information, but also provide a forum for citizens to interact with the world around them, defending their own rights. The programmes will be broadcast on television, and each of the programmes are archived and may be viewed from the Mad Mundo website. The website also offers a forum for each programme that allows viewers to discuss and offer feedback on the segments.
Contact Karina Brun [email protected] OR Patrice Barrat [email protected]
***
TAKE OUR POLL!
Overall the world communicates better now than it did 20 years ago. [If you agree, please elaborate. If you disagree, please indicate why.]
Do you agree or disagree?
***
THINKING
8. How Civil Society Organisations Use Evidence to Influence Policy Processes: A Literature Review
by Amy Pollard and Julius Court
This paper is based on an annotated bibliography of over 100 documents on how civil society organisations use evidence to influence policy. It summarises key debates, findings and conclusions from the literature, and points both to gaps and to new directions for future work.
9. The Way Condom-Use Promoting Messages are Framed Influences Their Effectiveness
by Eileen P. Duggan
This article reports on the results of a study conducted by Dee Lisa Cothran at Washington University in St. Louis. This study analysed how the way that "messages promoting condom-use are framed influences the effectiveness of the messages." The study pointed out that condom use is not only a personal health decision, but an interpersonal behaviour. The results, according to this article, indicated that loss-framed messages such as those "regarding one's heightened risk of contracting an STD [sexually transmitted disease] when one's partner does not wear condoms" were more effective when the messages were "relationship-relevant."
10. Dangerous Mix: Religion & Development Aid
by Eman Ahmed
In this article, the author argues that combining proselytising with humanitarian aid has led to several negative consequences. As a result of these impacts, she believes that the public needs to consider the question "Should faith-based organizations be allowed to proselytise while providing development and humanitarian aid?" These negative impacts are felt not only in the sphere of international opinion, according to the author, but also in the local communities in which these groups work. In both India and Sri Lanka there have been moves to ban conversions, and in many countries the resentment has led to a backlash against local Christians. The overall mission of religious charities, themselves, may, according to Eman Ahmed, be affected. She questions the success of conversions that take place in a context where aid is tied to religion. Missionary charities have provided millions of dollars and much valuable work, she argues, but the trend of combining this aid with proselytising has done "a disservice to the admirable humanitarian efforts of those who believe in following Christ's example as a healer and feeder without it being contingent on Jesus' message of salvation."
***
The World Congress
on Communication for Development (WCCD)
Co-organised by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), The World Bank and The Communication Initiative, the WCCD will take place in Rome, Italy on October 25-27 2006.
Click here for details.
***
MATERIALS
11. Role Playing in Online Education: A Teaching Tool to Enhance Student Engagement and Sustained Learning
by Tisha Bender
This article advocates for online role playing as an educational tool that engages and promotes sustained learning. The author suggests that role playing connects students to the course material - and to each other - more intimately and successfully than a traditional lecture can. She provides technical tips for establishing an online "theatre", describes three role-playing assignment models, and evaluates those models according to Bloom's taxonomy.
12. Challenges and Lessons Learned in HIV/AIDS/STI Prevention for Men Who Have Sex with Men (MSM) in Latin America and the Spanish-speaking Caribbean
This 71-page Spanish-language manual seeks to contribute best practices, lessons learned, and case studies. It pays specific attention to regional cooperation, communication, capacity building, advocacy, and financing of MSM HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention programmes.
13. Small Arms and Light Weapons Awareness Support Pack
This support pack was developed to address low levels of knowledge, skills and resources available to undertake small arms and light weapons (SALW) awareness. The package includes an operational handbook with a set of logically structured guidelines for those conducting SALW awareness programmes, illustrated with examples from the field. The CD-ROM contains supporting materials and publications.
LINKS: NGOs
14. MindZone
This interactive website aims to make the global public aware of what resources are available to help teenagers who are experiencing mental health problems.
15. Health & Development Networks (HDN)
This is an organisation that works to improve communication, expand discourses, and promote self-representation in the HIV/AIDS and related health fields internationally.
16. WOMANKIND Worldwide
This UK-based organisation is devoted to supporting women in sharing practical ideas for improving their own lives and lifting their families and communities out of poverty through collaborative and rights- and advocacy-based initiatives in developing countries around the world.
17. International Development & Environment Article Service (IDEAS)
This initiative of CUSO is a non-profit Canadian international development organisation offering a national story service on international development, the environment, and the Canadians volunteering overseas to help so-called developing country communities.
***
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.