The Drum Beat 617 - Communication and Change News and Issues

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617

The Drum Beat - 617 - Communication and Change News and Issues

THIS ISSUE INCLUDES:
EVALUATIONS:	Transparency in Schools, AIDS Stigma, Gender Equity Tool
EXPERIENCES:	LGBT Advocacy, Play for Water, India Speaks Out
ADVERTISE YOUR PUBLICATIONS:	Through The CI
MATERIALS:	Broadband Portal, M&E Guide, Climate Capacity Handbook

From The Communication Initiative Network - where communication and media are central to social and economic development.

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EVALUATIONS
1. Good Practice in Strengthening Transparency, Participation, Accountability and Integrity by Marie Chene
This resource shares examples of development projects working to strengthen 4 principles of anti-corruption named in the report's title. For example, cameras were used) to monitor teachers' school attendance in rural, remote locations in Rajasthan, India. The experiment showed that the absence rate fell by half in the schools that were given a camera. [Transparency International, Mar. 2011].

2. HIV Interventions to Reduce HIV/AIDS Stigma: A Systematic Review by Sohini Sengupta, Bahby Banks, Dan Jonas, Margaret Shandor Miles, and Giselle Corbie Smith
"Of the 19 studies reviewed in this research, 14 demonstrated effectiveness in reducing HIV/AIDS stigma." The research "revisits the question on the availability of effective interventions to reduce HIV/AIDS stigma given that HIV/AIDS stigma results in negative health outcomes in both industrialized and developing contexts." [Aug. 2011]

3. Gender and Health Data and Statistics: An Annotated Resource Guide by Shelah S. Bloom and Elly Arnoff
One of the 103 tools featured in the resource "focuses on practical options, providing critical questions for policy-makers to consider in identifying gaps and opportunities as health sector strategies are reviewed or reformed. This tool is intended to generate a national multi-stakeholder process and a cross-disciplinary dialogue to address human rights and gender equality in health sector activities." [MEASURE Evaluation, May 2012]

4. Report Shows Internews Radio Stations in Southern Sudan Most Trusted by Communities
"The report finds that [three] Internews stations [in Southern Sudan] are valued by their communities as important sources of news, information, culture and entertainment. Particularly in accessing information on the Comprehensive Peace Agreement [CPA], radio was the most popular source, with an average of 81% of respondents across all three stations tuning in for information on the CPA."[May 2011]

5. Patrika - Media Action Group (MAG) Campaign by Shipra Mathur
This evaluation of campaign in Rajasthan, India, to enrol children in schools, through Hindi language daily newspaper Rajasthan Patrika: raised awareness among private schools of their role; raised awareness among qualifying children's parents of the right to education; created a helpline to manage telephone calls on the issue; presented at a national-level convention through the invitation of a consortium on Right to Education by civil society; and took action at the state level to cancel the registrations of schools that are not in compliance. [PATRIKA-Media Action Group (MAG campaign), Jul. 2011]

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EXPERIENCES
6. It Gets Better
This advocacy project revolves around the use of video, the internet, and social networking to spark communication on the part of anyone seeking to stand up for the rights of - and stand by - lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth. Created to show LGBT youth in the United States the levels of happiness, potential, and positivity their lives can reach if they can just get through their teen years, this worldwide movement has to date inspired more than 50,000 user-created videos viewed more than 50 million times.

7. Watercasting
This multi-year global project uses activities such as simulation games, which use narrative, play, and decision-making to drive critical thinking about water futures and health-conscious behaviours among researchers, civil society, and decision-makers. [Funded by the Wellcome Trust's International Engagement programme and supported through the combined efforts of the Center for Experimental Media Arts at the Srishti School of Art, Design and Technology and the Center for Study of Science, Technology, and Policy (CSTEP)]

8. Abriendo Oportunidades
This leadership and empowerment programme revolves around community-based girls' clubs, which are meant to be safe spaces in rural communities where girls come together to gain life, entrepreneurship, and leadership skills, as well as to build their social networks. It works with 7 Mayan ethnic groups in more than 40 rural communities in 6 geographic regions of Guatemala. [Population Council]

9. Speak Out India
This half-hour weekly 13-episode television programme presented 6-7 community-specific news stories from all over India covering subjects such as conflict and corruption. Through these stories, local people shared with NewsX's viewers their own perspectives about various policies and their implementation, as well as the real status of development in their communities in April/May 2011. [Video Volunteers]

10. The Strengthening the Social Acceptance of Family Planning in the Philippines Project (TSAP-FP)
Through the individual yet integrated efforts of 3 strategies - behaviour change communication, advocacy and social mobilisation, and health provider interventions - TSAP-FP worked to contribute to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Philippines' strategic objective of achieving desired family size and improved health sustainability. [Academy for Educational Development (AED) - now FHI360]

11. Ka Bobebe Theatre Production
This theatre production used the football (soccer) ethos to educate and raise awareness about HIV/AIDS among young people in Lesotho. In addition to the theatre production, the tour included HIV/AIDS awareness raising activities comprising a football tournament. Players represented various factors that contribute to or prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS, including unprotected sex, alcohol, peer pressure, condoms, protected sex, and abstinence. Goals scored represented the choices that people can make. [Youth Development through Football, Kick4Life, and Drama For Life.]

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MATERIALS
12. Critically Absent: Women in Internet Governance: A Policy Advocacy Toolkit by Anja Kovacs, Avri Doria, Bruno Zilli, Margarita Salas, and the Women's Legal Bureau
This resource encourages women and their organisations to engage in political discussions regarding internet development with a vision of inclusion, fairness, and respect for women's rights. The authors' visions are that the toolkit be used to raise awareness and encourage participation. [From the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) Women's Networking Support Program (WNSP), Apr. 2012]

13. India Polio Communication Update, March 2012
An excerpt: "Tapping the strength of electronic media - particularly radio - in mobilizing listeners, UNICEF on behalf of the Government of India and partners organized a series of workshops for Radio Jockeys and Presenters of FM and Primary Channels. These workshops trained 114 radio jockeys from 14 private and 2 primary channels in weaving messages on polio and associated health issues into the programmes of commercial radio channels." [United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF]

14. Global Broadband and Innovations (GBI) Portal
The GBI website is a multimedia resource portal and social network for development professionals interested in incorporating information and communication technologies (ICTs) into their work. [United States Agency for International Development (USAID)]

15. A Guide to Monitoring and Evaluating Policy Influence by Harry Jones
This paper gives an overview of approaches to monitoring and evaluating (M&E) policy influence. For example, with regard to public campaigns and advocacy, the document emphasises the importance of monitoring the audience of campaigns to ascertain outcomes such as: awareness of an issue or campaign, perception of saliency or importance of an issue, attitudes, norms and standards of behaviour, and actual behaviour. Suggested monitoring methods include surveys, focus group discussions, and direct responses. [Overseas Development Institute (ODI) Background Notes paper from the Research and Policy in Development (RAPID) Programme; United Kingdom (UK) Department for International Development (DFID), Feb. 2011]

16. Climate Vulnerability and Capacity Analysis Handbook by Angie Dazé, Kaia Ambrose, and Charles Ehrhart
The Climate Vulnerability and Capacity Analysis (CVCA) methodology is intended to help local people carry out an analysis that will increase their understanding of the implications of climate change on their lives and livelihoods. It provides a framework for dialogue within communities, as well as between communities and other stakeholders. This resource outlines the analysis methodology. [CARE, May 2009]

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This issue of The Drum Beat was written by Kier Olsen DeVries.

The Editor of The Drum Beat is Kier Olsen DeVries.
Please send additional project, evaluation, strategic thinking, and materials information on communication for development at any time. Send to [email protected] 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. To reproduce any portion of The Drum Beat, click here for our policy. To subscribe, click here.

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