The Drum Beat 250 - Communication and Change News and Issues

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EXPERIENCES

1. Girls' Education: The Biggest Lesson Ever - Global
On April 9 2003, over 1 million children and adults from more than 100 countries gathered to break the world record for the largest simultaneous lesson. Held under the banner of "All for Girl's Education", the record attempt was organised by the Global Campaign for Education (GCE) and supported by UNESCO, which also participated. The purpose of the event was to raise awareness about the millions of girls who do not receive educations, and to advocate for education for all worldwide. The previous record for the largest lesson, according to the Guiness Book of Records, was held by the UK for a language class given in March 2002 in which 28,801 children took part. The importance and benefits of educating girls and women was the subject of the lesson that participants followed for the new record attempt.
Contact Alex Kent [email protected] OR [email protected]

2. Peace Action, Training and Research Institute of Romania (PATRIR) - Romania
Founded in March 2001, PATRIR links scholars, grassroots activists, and peace researchers throughout Romania, South-Eastern Europe, and internationally. Its aims include strengthening and empowering grassroots organisations and citizens' action groups, mobilising people for active peace work and peaceful conflict resolution, and addressing the structural causes of poverty, human rights violations, and economic and social injustice. PATRIR's approach includes action, research, training/education, and dissemination.
Contact Alex Moldovan [email protected]

3. Carrefour des Organisations des Producteurs Agricoles pour le Développement Local (COPADEL) - Benin
A coalition of farming organisations in 4 districts in Benin. The network of over 2500 members are working to ensure the survival, protection, and development of children in their respective localities. COPADEL uses advocacy as a strategy for overcoming poverty and supporting the participation of women in all aspects (economic, social, and cultural) of community life in the communities it serves. Some examples of its capacity-building programmes include: a project to strengthen the institutional capacity of organisations of agricultural producers; a workshop on learning trades for the girls in the town of Wawata Fanmè; a workshop on the processing of manioc into gari (cassava flour), which is typically the domain of small independent women producers; and a project to bring Internet service to Zinvié-Centre. COPADEL also holds meetings and workshops on issues such as children's rights, women's rights, local governance, and national legislation.
Contact Schombe Baudoin [email protected]

4. Living for Tomorrow - Estonia
From 1998 to 2000, Living for Tomorrow worked closely with young people at the AIDS Prevention Centre in Tallinn, Estonia to foster sexual health awareness and safer sexual behaviours among young people, with a focus on gender, youth perspectives, and active learning processes. The project has made available reports (in printed format and on the Internet) on the outcomes and processes of its work, and disseminates leaflets and videos produced from young participants' perspectives. Living for Tomorrow's central strategy was organising a core team of collaborating researchers, educators/facilitators, and young people. Throughout the duration of the project, developing collaborative links was a high priority - especially with Lithuania, Russia, England, and the Nordic countries, but also with other European countries. Joint articles, research exchanges, and the development of an advisory group were the bases for the project's international co-operation.
Contact Jill Lewis [email protected] or [email protected]; Sirle Blumberg [email protected]; Stephen Clift [email protected]

5. I am a Child but I have my Rights too! - West Africa
"I am a child but I have my rights too!" is a radio programme produced by children and aired across West Africa. Broadcast since 1998, the show informs parents, children, and authorities about their roles and responsibilities to respect children's rights. The radio campaign project is broadcast in Burkina Faso, Guinea, Togo, Mali, Senegal, Guinea Bissau, and Benin. Up to 10 radio stations in each country (including public, private, rural and community radio stations) air the programme, adapting the programme to that particular country's culture. 30 stories promote the right to go to school, to have access to water that is suitable for drinking, to grow up healthy, and to be protected against exploitation.
Contact Ms Aminatou SAR [email protected] or Mimi Brazeau [email protected]

6. Development Network of Indigenous Voluntary Associations (DENIVA) - Uganda
An indigenous, non-profit network of Ugandan non-governmental and community-based organisations. Founded in 1988 by representatives of 21 NGOs, DENIVA has since grown into a large national network that uses new technologies to facilitate vertical and horizontal communication between members. DENIVA's overall goal is to help build a society in which all citizens participate equally in national development efforts. The programme's purpose is to empower DENIVA's member organisations and other civil society organisations (CSOs) for democratic growth and sustainable development through networking, advocacy, and capacity building. DENIVA has also entered into a partnership with the Ford Foundation that is designed to strengthen local governance through CSOs. The project will work to enhance the understanding and capacity of CSOs in 4 selected districts. A key focus will be the building of relationships between CSOs and local government leaders, as well as the communication of these experiences for the purposes of education, advocacy, and lobbying on the part of other organisations pursuing similar work.
Contact [email protected]

7. Mediecenter Stockholm - Sweden
An education network that was launched by The Development Department, Education Administration in Stockholm. It works to provide audiovisual aids to teachers and students in an effort to advance student perception and use of media, to reinforce learning, and to encourage active pursuit of knowledge. Developments in the field of media are continuously monitored, with a particular focus on anything that might provide educational support for the schools. Mediecenter Stockholm provides students and teachers with access to approximately 7,000 educational videos and 5,000 radio shows for educational purposes. Mediecenter Stockholm engages in various partnerships. It works with organisations such as The European Association for Astronomy Education to create interest around studies in natural science through work on the internet and the giving and receiving of advice and ready-made classes.
Contact Björn Lingons [email protected]

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PULSE POLL

Communication for development practitioners should focus more on responding to contradictions between global development goals and resource allocation/policy realities.

[For reference, please see The Drum Beat 247]

Do you agree or disagree?

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EVALUATIONS

8. Mid-Term Evaluation: Sara: A Role Model for Girls as They Face HIV & AIDS in Africa - A Review of the Sara Communication Initiative
The 5-year Sara Communication Initiative (SCI)'s aim was to research, produce, and disseminate a regional communication package on the rights of the child that emphasised gender issues. The purpose of the comic book, animated film, and supporting printed materials that made up this package was to address existing disparities in the status and treatment of girls by providing an empowering role model for girls as they face HIV and AIDS in countries in sub-Saharan Africa. This study focuses on 4 issues:

• How have UNICEF policies influenced the implementation of SCI?
• How has the UNICEF country programme's acceptance of SCI influenced its implementation?
• How has UNICEF worked with inter-sectoral social partners to implement SCI?
• How have contextual factors (economic, social, political, cultural, religious) influenced the implementation process?

9. Gender Indicators
This article explores the use of gender-sensitive indicators in the context of information and communication technology (ICT) programmes, organisations, thinking, and the like. Gender-sensitive indicators measure the achievement of gender equality, helping reveal in what ways a project affects gender roles and addresses or disregards gender discrimination.

10. A balancing act: the contribution of the Newspaper in Education programme to The Hindu's social responsibility and business goals
by Mandira Moddie
The purpose of this research is to analyse the Newspaper in Education programme of The Hindu, one of India's leading national dailies, and to explore the ways in which the programme contributes to the organisation's larger goals. The paper details the research design and methodology, outlines the framework of the analysis, as well as its results, discusses these results reviewing key findings in the context of the research question as well as the theoretical framework, and concludes with key insights and theoretical, methodological and empirical implications of the research, including possibilities for further research.

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STRATEGIC THINKING

11. Information Technology and Democratic Values
by Göran Collsteand Jan Holmqvist
This paper addresses some possible impacts of information technology (IT) on democracy, as well as the shaping of IT by social practice. The authors begin by describing their point of departure: a wide conception of democracy that tries to guarantee citizen participation in the democratic process. Having established this framework, the authors explore, from a theoretical point of view, the relation between technology and values.

12. Ten Lessons for ICT and Education in the Developing World
by Robert J. Hawkins
"What defines a quality education in today's global information-based economy? Has education kept pace with a rapidly changing world? Are there good models for reform that we can follow?" This article addresses these questions. Hawkins distills lessons learned from World Links' efforts to incorporate the Internet into the educational system in developing countries.

13. Converting Policy Research into Policy Decisions: The Role of Communication and the Media
by Klaus von Grebmer
"Policy research is not an end in itself. It is financed and undertaken to contribute to the progress of mankind and this honorable goal can only be achieved if the results of the research are communicated to policymakers and to those who influence them, i.e. the media." With that commitment in mind, Klaus von Grebmer sets forth several strategies designed to enable policy researchers to more effectively communicate with policymakers and the media. His central suggestion is that policymakers must be privy to "the right information in the right form at the right time".

DISCUSSION FORUMS

14. South Asian Public Health Forum
An email discussion for public health professionals interested in South Asian public health issues.

15. The Responsibility of Media in Conflict
An online discussion board, or "e-conference", intending to focus on the responsibility of the media in conflict situations. Free registration is required.

16. MediaWise Forum
An online discussion board aiming to encourage debate and share concerns on journalistic issues.

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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.

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