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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Text4baby

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Launched in February 2010 by the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition (HMHB), Text4baby is a free mobile information service offering practical information for improved maternal and infant health in the United States (US). Women who sign up for the service by texting BABY (or BEBE for Spanish) to 511411 receive free short messaging service (SMS) text messages each week, timed to their due date or their baby's date of birth. One goal is to fill a void in the nation's public health system in communicating with low-income women and new mothers, who have limited access to obstetric and paediatric information and care.
Communication Strategies

This information and communication technology (ICT)-based educational programme uses mobile phones in an effort to provide reminders and vital information about maternal and child health, including immunisation, nutrition, seasonal flu, prenatal care, emotional well-being, drugs and alcohol, labour and delivery, stopping smoking, breastfeeding, mental health, birth defects prevention, oral health, car seat safety, exercise and fitness, developmental milestones, safe sleep, family violence, and more. Further information about the service - frequency of messages, etc. - is available on the Text4baby website.

In November 2010, Text4baby expanded the initiative in an effort to reach one million mothers. Partners are exploring the addition of new features, including increased interactivity such as quizzes to reinforce recipients' comprehension, as well as more opportunities to invite user feedback in order to best serve subscribers. The U.S. Government is also working to raise awareness of this free service by strengthening outreach efforts to users of Medicaid, WIC [Women, Infants, and Children], and federally supported health clinics and Healthy Start sites. It is also conducting 2 formal evaluations of Text4baby: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is leading a cross-department effort to understand the health impact of Text4baby, especially for underserved settings, and the Department of Defense Military Health System is conducting an evaluation to understand the value of Text4baby for military families.

Development Issues

Maternal and Child Health.

Partners

Text4baby is made possible through a public-private partnership that includes government, corporations, academic institutions, professional associations, tribal agencies, and non-profit organisations. Founding partners include the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition, Voxiva, CTIA - The Wireless Foundation, and Grey Healthcare Group (WPP company). Johnson & Johnson is the founding sponsor, and Premier sponsors include WellPoint, Pfizer, and CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield. US government partners include the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Defense Military Health System, Consumer Product Safety Commission, and the US Department of Agriculture. The mobile health platform is provided by Voxiva, and free messaging services are provided by participating wireless service providers. Implementation partners include BabyCenter, Danya International, Syniverse Technologies, Keynote Systems, and The George Washington University. MTV Networks is a media sponsor.

Sources

Global Health Weekly Digest, November 29 2010; and "Text4baby Announces Plans to Reach One Million Moms", November 9 2010; and Text4baby website, February 2 2011.

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