The Drum Beat 171 - Communication and Change News and Issues

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We would like to take this opportunity to welcome our newest Partner - OneWorld.

OneWorld is a community of over 1250 organisations working for social justice. OneWorld aims "to be the online media gateway that informs a global audience about human rights and sustainable development... to bring together a global community working for sustainable development... and to give a voice to those typically overlooked by mainstream media and policy-makers."

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PROGRAMMES

1. Jante Chai Janate Chai - Bangladesh - a radio magasine programme that aims to change the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour of adolescents with regard to the physical and emotional changes that they are experiencing. It focuses on nutrition and personal hygiene, sexual harassment, early marriage and pregnancy, contraceptives, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), AIDS, and health services and advice. It also seeks to make parents and guardians of adolescents more supportive and understanding so that adolescents can discuss reproductive health issues with them and seek their assistance in accessing clinic services. The 52-episode radio programme, each episode dealing with particular health messages, includes band music, a mini-drama, quizzes, letter sessions, and celebrity interviews. Contact Mohammad Shahjahan [email protected]

2. Health in Prisons (HIP) Project - Malawi - implemented by Banja La Mtsogolo (BLM), this project involves treating prisoners, who have sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and other ailments such as malaria and scabies, at no cost while providing information and education on the prevention of STIs and HIV/AIDS to inmates. The inmates are also informed of various family planning services available in BLM clinics so as to encourage them to access family planning services when out of prison. Performances by drama groups at the prisons disseminate messages on disease prevention and family planning services. Prisoners are given the opportunity to ask questions, and leaflets and posters with additional information remain on location. Contact Walker Jiyani [email protected]

3. Digital Empowerment Foundation (DEF) - South Asia - a programme to make information technology and the Internet available to those who do not know English, and who, for various reasons, are not able to utilise Information & Communication Technologies (ICTs). This programme involves an effort to develop corporate computing solutions, e-governance solutions, and communication solutions in local languages using a standardised font and technology. A larger aim is helping people economically through ICTs and connecting them with others around the world. The programme offers localised interface to people so that they may access the desktop, office suits, and other necessary applications in their own language, as well as an Internet browser in all the major Indian languages. The programme also offers news, information, knowledge, and wisdom in any Indian language by means of aggregation as well as content creation on the Internet without any bottlenecks like "asking for font downloads." Contact Osama Manzar [email protected]

4. Research Project on Women's Reproductive Health in Quito's Mena del Hierro Neighborhood - Ecuador - focused generally on the movement of rural people to urban sectors, where they often find themselves living in marginalised conditions, and more specifically on women and women's health issues. It included a survey to identify the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of this population using in-depth interviews and a participatory research process. Participants reported both that mass media vehicles and messages are insensitive to women's realities and that existing health communication programmes are inaccessible to women. Participants also called for greater recognition of diversity across cultural groups. Women deemed the health messages that are available to them impractical, arguing that they need messages that will help them improve their lives on a daily basis. Contact Ivonne Ceballos [email protected]

5. Regional HIV/AIDS Information Network (RHAIN) - East & Southern Africa - a technical resource network aimed at mobilising the strengths and expertise of organisations working in the area of HIV/AIDS information and media development in southern and eastern Africa. The objectives are to: foster greater collaboration and joint advocacy efforts on HIV/AIDS in the region; strengthen the flow of information on HIV/AIDS at regional and national level; and promote media development and training on HIV/AIDS in southern Africa. An electronic forum has been established to facilitate sharing of information on communication activities, and allow for the monitoring, implementation and evaluation of joint activities. The address for the forum is [email protected]. Contact Manju Chatani [email protected]

6. Colnodo - Colombia - establishes Neighborhood Information Units (NIUs), which are public internet access centers located in marginal areas of the city of Bogota. The centres offer access to new Information & Communication Technologies (ICTs) and to online systems and services that provide information about and garner access to the community and its institutions. NIU users are primarily young people between 7 and 20 years of age. Initially open only half-day on weekdays, the centres now offer extended schedules of more than 8 hours a day. While an hour of access can cost up to US$3 in downtown Bogota, rates at the NIUs do not exceed US$.75 per hour. Each NIU is located within a community base organisation (CBO), and is run entirely by that organisation. Contact Martha Giraldo [email protected]

7. From Dakar to Dhaka; Connecting Communities Radio Programme - Senegal & Bangladesh - a BBC World Service Trust and DfID radio project to address the issues of information communication technology (ICT) and poverty reduction in Senegal and Bangladesh. Through visits to grassroots projects in Senegal and Bangladesh, radio programmes will explore the uses of ICT in alleviating poverty. Another focus of the programmes will be the obstacles to development in this area, including political, economic, and technical barriers. The outcomes of the project will be 3 radio series (in French, Bengali, and English), a video, and a website. Contact Andrea Rose [email protected]

8. Training Workshops on Computer/Internet-Assisted Reporting - Nigeria - The Media Resource & Advocacy Centre (MRAC) conducted 2 in a series of training workshops for 34 journalists on computer/internet-assisted reporting of sexual and reproductive health/rights issues in April 2002. The training, which is part of the Continuous Education Series for journalists, was aimed at equipping journalists with the necessary skills for navigating the Internet to report issues that are often ignored by the media, especially those related to reproductive health, sexual rights and HIV/AIDS. The training also gave journalists the opportunity to learn to use computers to conduct data analysis that could further enhance their reports. Participants were drawn from print, electronic media, and international news agencies. Clement Akintimi Tel.: 234-1-774-8397

9. Disaster Management Information System - Global - a civil-society-based Disaster Management Information System (DMIS) to be accessible to all (disaster relief managers, volunteers, and victims) in times of emergency. The system is designed to increase preparedness for natural calamities, as well as to coordinate relief efforts in the event of a disaster. They are also working on a database-driven information system for Disaster Management Authorities (DMAs) in various states, as well as for NGOs and other organisations, that would include information submitted by relief workers and NGOs, such as ways to access volunteer services and other resources. Contact [email protected]

10. USAID, Behaviour Change & HIV/AIDS - recent USAID activities include - a one-day technical meeting on behavior change approaches to the primary prevention of sexual transmission of HIV, sometimes called the "ABCs" of AIDS prevention: Abstain (or delay of sexual debut), Being faithful to one partner or using Condoms (ABC). Approximately 130 people attended, including representatives of USAID's cooperating agencies, UN agencies, foundations and university researchers. A 2-day experts' meeting on the relationship between male circumcision and HIV transmission (as well as other health aspects, such as penile and cervical cancer). To receive updates on USAID and partner activities to prevent and mitigate HIV/AIDS worldwide, please sign up to receive the monthly USAID HIV/AIDS E-Newsletter. Contact Jill Leonard [email protected]

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PULSE Poll

The equal participation of women in the development of their societies is a basic human right that supercedes cultural and religious differences.

Do you agree? Are you unsure? Disagree?

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STRATEGIC THINKING<

11. The Media - A tool for change? by Taj James - "...For groups supporting youth empowerment, we must ask: How can we put these powerful tools to work to produce, analyze, and control information so that power ultimately resides in the hands of young people?..."

12. Expert Advocates ICT Research & Training for Media Practitioners by Emeka Aginam - "'Much will not be achieved in a society populated by mediocres, hustling journalists who do not know much about what they claim to be educating the public about,' [Dele Ajisomo, publisher PC World West Africa] stated. According to him, press men who claim to be ICT journalists need to undergo training, not just in ICT reporting, but also in trends and developments in the information and telecommunication world..."

13. NGOs, Funders, & Filmmakers: Jointly Crafting Tools for Social Action Agendas by Pat Aufderheide - funders, mediamakers and nonprofit organisations in the U.S. and internationally have increasingly formed teams to produce highly strategic, often interactive, but still richly storytelling media. Propelling this teamwork has been a combination of new technologies, changing funder strategies in which funders have often taken the initiative in designing projects, and the awareness of nonprofit organisations that media are central to any strategic objective...

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Looking to advertise your vacant posts?

The DB Classifieds - Vacancies epublication and The Communication Initiative web site. Submit your posts today! To advertise email Jennifer Savidge [email protected]

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MATERIALS

14. What Happened in Uganda? - USAID commissioned a summary document synthesizing presentations given at a meeting in February 2002 at USAID by researchers with long-term experience in HIV prevention in Africa. The report addresses declining HIV prevalence, behavior change, and the national response.

15. Risks & Rewards: Stories from the Philippine Migration Trail - Some 7 million people from the Philippines can be found in more than 100 countries across all continents. This collection of 36 news articles follows these Filipino workers across 13 countries in Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East. It explores the lives they build away from home, with a focus on reproductive health and sexuality.

16. How has the Gujarat Massacre Affected Minority Women? The Survivors Speak - This report by a 6-member fact-finding team records the testimonies of Gujarat's women and assesses the impact of the ongoing riots in Gujarat on minority women.

17. The Future of Higher Education: For All Worldwide, a Holistic View by Parker Rossman - in 3 volumes. Vol 1, "The Future of Higher Education & Virtual Space", explores institutional forms and structures of higher education with a focus on preservation and transmission of the knowledge and wisdom of the past. Vol 2, "Research on Global Crises, Still Primitive?" centers on the future of research in higher education. Vol 3, "Future Learning & Teaching", focuses on the individual who learns and teaches.

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