Development action with informed and engaged societies
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.
 
Co-founder Victoria Martin is pleased to see this work continue under Wits' leadership. Victoria knows that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction.
 
We honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades. Meanwhile, La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA) continues independently at cila.comminitcila.com and is linked with The CI Global site.
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The Drum Beat 560 - CI Associates

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560
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The Communication Initiative (The CI) is honoured to support your work, and we thank you for subscribing to The Drum Beat and being part of this community of practice of people committed to effectively addressing the full range of local, national, regional, and global development issues.

 

The CI is positioned as a support process to your work. It is a social enterprise funded by agreements with partner organisations - see the list of 28 CI Partners. They share the load of financially supporting The CI.

 

There are also currently 49 CI Associates that support The CI with their voluntary contribution to the work we do in support of you, The CI Network. They provide support at various levels, and they do so simply because they recognise the value of The CI's activities related to their work. We'd like to encourage your programme, project, office, or organisation to give strong consideration to joining them and becoming a CI Associate.

 

Over 5,000 organisations - from major funders to small local organisations in economically impoverished locales - make use of The CI process each year - from major funders to small local organisations in economically impoverished locales. Staff and others from those agencies: submit knowledge for sharing with The CI network; access knowledge in support of their work; identify and make contact with people and organisations they identify as being able to support their work; and express, share, and debate their views and opinions on a range of development challenges. That use is growing significantly. In essence, The CI has become a global "public good". Perhaps you have recently made use of this community of practice yourself.

 

Our present situation involves a very small number of agencies providing the financial support necessary for a process that is utilised by thousands of organisations. It would be great to share that load in response to the growing demand. We are not proposing Associates contributions at the high revenue levels provided by the Partners (though please do also email wfeek@comminit.com if your organisation is interested in becoming a Partner); the levels are comparatively small. We are also not asking for a gift or donation. What we are asking for is a small voluntary contribution to this social enterprise to support its value to making progress with your important work.

 

We want to avoid charging for access or restricting some parts of the portal site to those who have paid. In many ways, we would rather close our process than go the route of restricting it. But keeping our site open depends increasingly on finding new revenue to meet growing demand and shrinking resources. That requires a more diversified revenue base - diversification that more closely matches access and added value.

 

I am aware that, given the current economic climate, many of you will be in the same situation as we are. But I very much hope that, in recognition of our added value to your work, if you are not already a Partner or Associate, you will give this full consideration from your publications, research, subscriptions, meetings, or other relevant budget lines. (And please do email Warren at wfeek@comminit.com if you want data and other insights into how your agency is accessing The CI process.)

 

Suggested Annual Contribution Levels:

 

USD 5,000 per office - For Country, Regional, and HQ offices of major international development organisations

USD 2,500 per office - For Country, Regional, and HQ offices for medium-sized international non-governmental organisations (NGOs)

USD 2,000 per department - University Departments - OECD Countries

USD 750 per department - University Departments - All other Countries

USD 100 - Small, local NGOs/community-based organisations (CBOs)

USD 100 to 200 - Individual

 

OR...click here to enter your own Associates payment level.

 

Thank you for considering this. The more we can share the financial load of The CI/Drum Beat process across a larger number of organisations and offices using this process, the greater our chance of maintaining and growing - in all sorts of exciting ways - this open-to-all, 24-hour-per-day, comprehensive sharing and engagement process.

 

Thanks, and much support for your vitally important work.

 


 

 

49 CURRENT CI ASSOCIATES

 

 

Advocacy Communications International, Inc. - United States/International  

Africa Free Media Trust - Kenya 

Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania - United States

Asian Institute of Public Health (AIPH) - India/Asia  

Bright Media - South Africa

Building Capacities for Better Health in Africa (BCH AFRICA) Cameroon 
 

Center for International Media Assistance - US/International

Centre for AIDS Development, Research and Evaluation (CADRE) - South Africa/Southern Africa  

CharityVillage.com - Canada 
 

Coady International Institute - Canada/International 

Commonwealth of Learning - Canada/International 

Communication and Development Studies, Ohio University - United States

Communication and Information Sector of UNESCO (UNESCO-CI) - France/International  

Connecting Cultures - Canada 

CrozzCom - Children's Participation in Action - Spain 

Dr Veronica Baxter - Applied Theatre/Drama Practitioner - International 

Early Childhood Development Virtual University, University of Victoria - Canada 
 

Enablement - The Netherlands/International  

Family Health International, secretariat of the Interagency Youth Working Group - United States/International  

fesmedia Africa - Namibia/Southern Africa  

Headlines Theatre - Canada

Health Communication Resources Inc. - Australia/South Pacific/South East and East Asia

Human Resources Consulting LLC - United States

ID8 Global Sharing - International  

Institute for Philanthropy - United Kingdom/ United States/International 
 

Institute of Development Studies - United Kingdom/International 

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) - Canada/International

Joanne Edgar - Communication Consultant - International 

Lubuto Library Project - Africa/United States 

Media for Development Ltd - International/United Kingdom 

Naashon Zalk Media - South Africa/International

Nupef - Brazil 

Off Ramp Films - Argentina/International 

Performing Life, Inc. - Bolivia/United States

Public Conversations Project - United States/International 

Search for Common Ground - International

Shirley Ann Sullivan Educational Foundation - United States/Angola, Brazil, Liberia  

StepFilms and Communications - International/United States

Strategies for Hope Trust - United Kingdom/Africa/International

UNDP Iraq Media Project - Republic of Iraq 

UNICEF Office - Sao Tome and Principe 

University of Guelph, School of Environmental Design and Rural Development - International/Canada 
 

Winthrop Morgan and Associates (winthropmorgan) - United States/International

Women's Arts Institute Africa (wAi Africa) - Ghana 

World Association for Christian Communication (WACC) - UK/Canada/International 
 

World Health Communication Associates (WHCA) - UK/International 

World Vision International - Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Central Asia Regional Office (MEERO)  

WorldReach Communications - United States/International 
 

Ørecomm Consortium for Communication and Glocal Change - Sweden/Denmark/International 

 

 

Click here for the full list of CI Associates.

 

 

 


 

 

Other ways to help sustain and grow The Communication Initiative process:

 

 

1. Become a Communication Initiative PARTNER (if your organisation is not already one). 
 

 

2. Advertise your VACANT JOB POSTS through The Communication Initiative Classifieds. 
 

 

3. Advertise your FEE BASED TRAINING EVENTS and CONFERENCES through The Communication Initiative Classifieds.

 

4. Advertise your FOR SALE PUBLICATIONS through The Communication Initiative Classifieds.

 

5. Have The Communication Initiative build your own, branded SOCIAL NETWORKING space using core CI functionality. Example: ICT for Education.

 

6. If you are a CONSULTANCY ORGANISATION or INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT share information on your services and skills.

 

7. Implement a NEWS AGGREGATION process specific to your organisation and its priority issues (scrapes over 15,000 news sites globally). Examples at Malaria and World Bank.

 

8. Click on a Google ad - sorry - some are not the best but not much we can do - many are appropriate - every little click helps!

 

 


 

 

Become a CI Associate - fill in the online form OR contact Warren Feek at wfeek@comminit.com to indicate your interest and intended contribution.

 

 


 

 

The Editor of The Drum Beat is Kier Olsen DeVries.

 

Please send material for The Drum Beat to The CI's Editorial Director - Deborah Heimann dheimann@comminit.com

 

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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