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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Take 5

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Take 5 is a South African travelling youth television series that aims to engage, stimulate, inspire, challenge, inform, and educate youth about their lifestyles, while addressing pressing issues facing their country and its future. The programme, which is an initiative of South African Broadcasting Corporation(SABC) Education and the Department of Education's Culture of Learning, travels around the country taking youth aged 13 to 19 on a picturesque but real journey of South Africa.
Communication Strategies

The series aims to give youth a chance to showcase their own ideas and values, telling their own stories in a style that is completely authentic in that it reflects their style, language, experiences, and existence. "The presenters Sydney Phalali, Nosipho Gumede, Kia Johnson and Aaron Moloisi are slick, vibey, young, and energetic and have streetwise personalities that reflect young South Africans." Organisers claim that "Take 5 creates excitement and has impact on viewers with hard-hitting facts in a platform for a truly interactive experience."

The show takes youth on a journey that aims to showcase and understand different languages, thereby inspiring enthusiasm for nation-building and cultural respect. Its central strategy involves creating dialogue between young people about pressing issues they face and exposing the realities of life in South Africa. The programme recordings take place in universities, schools, community centres, and other venues in different towns and cities throughout South Africa. Each town visited reveals different cultures, life skills, success stories, and entrepreneurial developments.

Development Issues

Youth.

Key Points

The series aims to ensure that the voices of South Africa's youth are heard - and that their issues are ddressed. Take 5 objectives include:

  • empowering the leaders of tomorrow with economic, social, and emotional (life) skills
  • instilling a sense of pride in being South African with a truly South African identity
  • promoting learning as a way of life
  • introducing individual rights and responsibilities while exploring the dynamics of South Africa's socio-economic reality
  • showcasing a positive lifestyle
  • encouraging a sense of involvement in social, cultural, and political activities with regard to nation-building
  • encouraging youth to reflect on, and reach, their full potential as social beings in South Africa.
Partners

SABC Education, Department of Education's Culture of Learning.

Sources

Take 5 website.