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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SBCC Summit abstract submission deadline extended to December 6

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Yesterday’s abstract deadline for the International SBCC Summit resulted in high traffic to the submission website, causing some to be unable to log in and submit their abstracts. We apologise for any inconvenience and appreciate everyone's patience. Because of this, the deadline to submit abstracts in all categories has been extended to Wednesday, December 6, 11:59 PM EST.
 
Although the deadline is extended, we do encourage you to submit your abstract as soon as possible to make sure it uploads smoothly.

What this means:
If you have successfully submitted an abstract, you have until December 6 to edit or amend it.
If you have NOT submitted yet, you will have two more days to do so.
 
Helpful tips:
Avoid using Internet Explorer; there is a known issue when using this browser.
Firefox is the best browser to use when submitting.

More tips on how to submit an abstract available at this link.

All submissions must be in English, Spanish or French and will be acknowledged on receipt. For more details regarding each type of submission, further requirements and more information about the Summit and its themes, click here
 
Remember, if you register before December 15, you will receive a 10 percent discount!