The Communication Initiative - The Fundamentals

THE COMMUNICATION INITIATIVE - THE FUNDAMENTALS

1. STRATEGIC PRINCIPLES

The following strategic principles drive The Communication Initiative process

 South-to-South and South sharing, support and organisation

Through The CI processes people engaged in communication and media for development work in non-OECD countries are supported to identify, contact, engage, support and learn from their peers in other communities and countries.

 South-to-North sharing, support and organisation

That process of peer identification, contact, engagement, support and learning also takes place on an equitable basis between people and organisations in OECD and non-OECD countries.

 A Partnership base to pursue organisational and common interests

The Communication Initiative is a partnership effort in which organisations jointly create a common effort that supports both the individual requirements and interests of individual partner organisations and the common interests and requirements shared across the partnership group and the broader communication and media for development community

 Networks and Partnerships move issues

The CI is premised on a strategic premise that networks and partnerships are essential for moving an agenda forward and talking positive action on any issue.

 A Common platform – internal and external communication – strengthens a field of work

An essential strategic principle for The CI is the creation of a flexible platform that both [a] brings together the range of interests, styles and experiences in the communication and media for development field and [b] provides a visible face and connection point into the media and communication field for other development disciplines, policy makers and funders.

2. VISION

A local, national and international development world in which rapid progress is made on the priority issues in each context in ways that include:

 a predominant voice for the people most affected by those issues;

 support for the organisation of the people most affected to analyse and pursue their own goals and objectives;

 wide and deep public debate and private dialogue on how best to address those priority issues;

 local, national and international generation of relevant knowledge;

 the sharing and debate of that knowledge; and,

 public policies and investment that support these crucial communication and media processes.

3. MISSION

Convening the communication and media for development community for more effective local, national and international development action

4. GOALS

Drawing from the Vision and Mission statements we have the following Goals as the most important components requiring implementation and achievement in order to work effectively towards that Mission Statement

A. Knowledge: To increase the communication and media for development knowledge base from which development actors can draw when making their strategic and programming decisions

B. Networking: To increase the ability of development actors to engage and network with colleagues in other fields, communities and countries and organisations with an emphasis on those within the communication and media for development community

C. Review: To increase the levels of peer critique and commentary on the strategies and programmes of those involved in development action with a priority emphasis on the communication and media for development perspective within those critiques and commentaries

D. Debate: To increase the levels of debate about core strategic issues in development action with an emphasis on supporting a higher profile for the communication and media for development community within those debate

E. Partnerships: To increase the strength of partnerships between organisations in the communication and media for development community and between that community and other development disciplines and fields

F. Organisation: To increase the extent to which the communication and media for development community is organised to play a wider, deeper and more effective role in making progress on the priority development issues in local, national and international contexts.

5. CHANGE PRINCIPLES

If people and organisations active in international development [with a particular focus on communication and media interventions] have…:

 increased access to real-time information [when they need it]

 increased levels of horizontal connections [ links to peers outside their in-organisation connection]

 increased levels of peer review and commentary [particularly through relationships with external people and organizations]

 increased numbers of working partnerships [with organisations that can add value through a partnership relationship]

 increased debate and engagement on the strategic issues related to their work [such as the best overall resource investments]

 increased capacity to collectively organise in pursuit of commonly shared goals

…then the work of those organisations and the people within them will be both more effective and at broader scale.

6. MAIN OVERALL ACTIVITIES

The main implementation activities will be:

 Electronic magazines

 Knowledge sharing and dialogue web platform

 Network

 Development communication news process

 Interactive processes – eg on-line discussion forums, surveys and polls

 Specific work tasks in support of the Partners

 Communities of Practice – eg Red Salud

These main activities will all continue though in ways which are commensurate with the core strategic elements outlined below for this time period.

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