Communication for Development and Social Change

1. Communication for Development and Social Change Thomas Tufte, Prof. Roskilde University Presentation given at: Ørecomm Seminar, Malmø University January 21, 2012

2. Todays presentation… Defining the field of ComDev… A brief look back at a couple of founding fathers… Some of the main schools of thought in ComDev Current challenges

3. I have a Dream… Martin Luther King Capitol Hill, 1963

4. The RomeConsensus (2006) Communication is essential to human, social and economic development. Communication for development is a social process based on dialogue that uses a broad range of tools and methods. It seeks change at different levels including listening, building trust, sharing knowledge and skills, building policies, debating and learning for sustained and meaningful change. At the heart of Communication for Development is participation and ownership by those most affected by poverty and other development issues.

5. Communication for Social ChangeDefinition CFSC is a process of public and private dialogue through which people themselves define who they are, what they need and how to get what they need in order to improve their own lives. It utilizes dialogue that leads to collective problem identification, decision making and community-based implementation of solutions to development issues (Ref: www.communicationforsocialchange)

6. Development Issues (1) where media and comm play a role • Health Issues (HIV/AIDS prevention, lifestylechanges, diabetes, nutrition) • GoodGovernance (transparency in decision-making and in internal and externalcommunication) • Sustainabledevelopmentand ClimateChange • PopularEducation (social movements in Latin America, ieindegenousgroups)

7. Development Issues (2) where media and comm play a role • Human Rights Violations (campaigns, ie Amnesty International) • Conflict Resolution (theatre and sport in Burundi) • Trade (EU Sugar Policy: Oxfam Campaign) • Cultural Heritage (reclaiming urban sites)

8. Key players… • Governments • UN/International governmental agencies • INGOs/NGOs • Social Movements/TANs • North/South • Local/National/Intern’l/Transnational

9. Communicating for what? • Development Support Communication (UN/FAO) • DevelopmentCommunication (Los Banos/Quebral) • BehaviourChangeCommunication (Health) • Information, Education and Communication • ParticipatoryCommunication • Alternative Comm (Latin American Scholars) • Communication for Development • Communication for Empowerment (UNDP) • Communication for Social Change (RF) • Comm for Social and StructurlChange (Servaes) • Comm for Social and SustainableChange • Social and BehaviourChangeComm (Wits) • C4D (UNICEF)

10. Communication for Development …founding fathers • Everett Rogers – Diffusion of Innovations (1962) • Paulo Freire – Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1967)

11. Everett Rogers… • Rural sociologist…mid-west in the 1950ies • Technology focus…how to spread new technologies, innovations, fast… • Agricultural development…later health • The importance of understanding social systems

12. Everett Rogers… • Categorizing people is 5 groups, from early adopters to laggards… • Developed a model which became instrumental for A LOT of development work (1960ies hype…500 family planning diffusion studies in India alone!) • 1970ies critique of top-down, linearity, non-participatory…

13. Rogers self-critique (1976) • Self-development…(’implies a completely different role for communication than in the usual top-down development approach) • Popular participation in self-development • Integration of traditional with modern systems

14. Video on Rogers…….

15. Paulo Freire… • Philosophy of Education and Social Change • Dialogue and Liberating Education • Long-term Power Struggle • Conscientizacao

16. Key concepts… • Action-Reflection-Action • Activism • Verbalism • Naming the world:’Human existence cannot be silent, not can it be nourished by false world but only by true words with which men and women transform the world. To exist, humanly, is the name the world, to change it’ • a strategy of alfabetization, and a political project

17. Freire’s pedagogy… • Principles of dialogue • - a profound love for the world and for people • Humility • Faith in mankind • Hope • True dialogue cannot existe unless the dialoguers engage in critical thinking

18. Banking and liberating pedagogy… • Without dialogue there is no communication, and without communication there is no education • Video on Freire………

19. Summaries of diffusion and participatory approaches • Diffusion model • Definition of communication: information transfer - vertical • Definition of development communication: information dissemination via mass media • Problem: lack of information • Solution: information transfer: Knowledge  Attitudes  Practice • Goal: outcome oriented: behavior change • Frameworks:Types of interventions • Modernization Social marketing • Diffusion of innovations Entertainment-education

20. Summaries of diffusion and participatory approaches • Participatory model • Definition of communication: information exchange/dialogue - horizontal • Definition of development communication: grassroots participation via group interaction • Problem: structural inequalities/local knowledge ignored • Solution: information exchange/ participation • Goal: process-oriented: empowerment, equity, community • Frameworks:Types of interventions • Social change/praxis (Freire) Empowerment education • Social mobilization/activism Participatory Action Research (PAR) • Rapid Participatory Appraisal (RPA) • Community Involvement in Health

21. Key concepts emerging in ComDev… • Dialogue • Voice…. (citizen media) • Representation • Mobilization • Public sphere (s) • Active audience reception.

22. Conceptual challenges… Vertical and horizontal communication (Beltrán) Questions of scale – large or small scale Mass media & community media, folk media and oramedia Intervention or facilitation Outcome-based or process-oriented

23. 3 CurrentChallenges Media development: Social media Activism outside of established organisations Globalization, mediatization and interdependent world development

24. Back to Martin Luther King…