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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EVIH-T - Haiti

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Launched in November 2013 and ongoing through 2017, this social and behaviour change communication (SBCC) campaign was carried out as part of the National AIDS Control Program’s (NACP) efforts in Haiti to create a collective, national response to the AIDS pandemic. The campaign’s goals were threefold: encourage Haitians to participate in the fight against HIV and AIDS, promote behaviours that reduce the risk of HIV transmission, and strengthen support for people living with HIV. The Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs (JHU-CCP) worked with national and international non-governmental organisations in four departments to carry out the campaign.

 

The campaign, "Eviter le VIH et sa transmission (Avoid HIV and Its Transmission)", in Haiti used the acronym EVIH-T - "éviter" (pronounced "ayveetay") means "avoid" in French and Creole. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded project was a partnership of JHU-CCP with Jhpiego and Save the Children, involving the Foundation for Reproductive Health and Family Life Education (FOSREF), the Haitian Institute for Community Health (INHSAC), and Promoters of the Zero AIDS Objective (POZ) as local, NGO partners.

Communication Strategies

The project involved: strengthening the capacity of Government of Haiti partners at the central and departmental levels; developing of NGO leadership; developing relationships with community and individuals; and offering HIV services, with the objectives of changing social norms and creating an enabling environment for the adoption of preventive behaviours, as well as increased demand for services and reduced stigma for those living with HIV.

 

EVIH-T supported World AIDS Day planning to promote the campaign and introduced the communication components of the campaign: banners in the streets, posters at health institutions and community organisations, SMS (text messaging) and robocalls, and radio spots airing on national radio. These media shared the same message: Sida! Mwen pap pran. Mwen pap bay. (AIDS! I’m not catching it. I’m not passing it on.) The radio spots were designed to promote personal responsibility, for example: “My life is my own. I have to protect it. "[...] I’m not taking any risks so the AIDS virus won’t get inside..." or "That’s why I’m controlling my sexual activity. I’m not hooking up with a bunch of partners right and left." The spots also addressed stigma and support issues for people living with HIV, e.g.: "I’ve been living with the AIDS virus now for three years. When I found out, I thought my life was over. But, thanks to the support of friends, family and coworkers, and also thanks to the medications I always take every day, I’m beginning to love life again. [...] I’m not giving my wife AIDS or anyone else. With all my strength, with all my conviction, I say: AIDS! I’m not passing it on!"

 

In August of 2014, a sport-involved campaign was added using the slogan "Sport for Life" as messaging on T-shirts and television and radio spots. (See the video below.)

Development Issues

HIV/AIDS, Health

Partners

The Foundation for Reproductive Health and Family Life Education (FOSREF), the Haitian Institute for Community Health (INHSAC) and Promoters of the Zero AIDS Objective (POZ), USAID, JHU-CCP, Jhpiego, Save the Children.

Sources

JHU-CCP website and USAID website, September 1 2015. Image credit: Johns Hopkins University Center for Global Health