"The purpose of the training workshop in this manual is to improve the skills of media professionals and communication officers in reporting gender-based violence in humanitarian crisis settings; to enhance the quality of reporting by instilling ethical principles; and to increase awareness among th
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e general population and decision makers of the importance of gender-based violence as a health and human rights problem, and its common occurrence." (Page 8)
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"The media can make a real difference in the way people think about and act on disasters. Reporters, commentators, editors, broadcasters, and all members of the media can do more than just inform and raise awareness about disasters. By exploring the root causes of disasters and their social dimensio
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ns, the media can help communities and countries understand more fully what it is that makes them vulnerable, and what they can do to increase their capacities to cope with disasters. The objective of this media kit is to give members of the media a basic knowledge of key disaster management principles and concepts in order to enable them to make an active and meaningful contribution to creating safer and more resilient communities. The media kit has been developed with reference to particular issues and challenges which media practitioners are likely to encounter in Lao PDR." (Page 4)
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"The Handbook of International Crisis Communication Research articulates a broader understanding of crisis communication, discussing the theoretical, methodological, and practical implications of domestic and transnational crises, featuring the work of global scholars from a range of sub-disciplines
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and related fields. It provides the first integrative international perspective on crisis communication; articulates a broader understanding of crisis communication, which includes work from scholars in journalism, public relations, audience research, psychology, political science, sociology, economics, anthropology, and international communication; explores the topic from cross-national and cross-cultural crisis communication approaches; includes research and scholars from countries around the world and representing all regions; discusses a broad range of crisis types, such as war, terrorism, natural disasters, pandemia, and organizational crises." (Publisher description)
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"This synthesis of evidence suggests that BBC Media Action interventions have an important role to play in assisting people affected by crisis, and is consistent with other literature that highlights the role of media in providing accurate and reliable information in crisis. It highlights that, as w
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ith other forms of humanitarian assistance, mass media cannot fully meet people’s needs, and it works best alongside other interventions and actors, particularly locally based media broadcasters and other actors who can provide follow-up on issues raised and address locally specific issues and concerns." (Conclusion, page 56)
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"This resource guide assesses the broad role of information and communication in disaster situations and complex emergencies. It highlights a number of distinct communication phases or cycles associated with emergency or crisis communication, as well as defining the broad range and diversity of init
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iatives associated with communication in such situations. The guide defines a number of frameworks for use in rapidly assessing a situation, the resultant information needs and the contextual constraints. It also defines a number of important principles associated with effective crisis communication and provides links to ‘best-practice’ resources that offer additional detail." (Conclusion, page 57)
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"Welcome to the Communication for Humanitarian Action Toolkit, CHAT. It has been designed with practitioners in mind and is a resource that you can work with and adapt as you strive towards your communication for humanitarian action goals. The toolkit provides guidance to humanitarian and developmen
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t organizations in the area of emergency communication strategy design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation. It addresses several important aspects of communication during emergencies. These include a focus on providing essential emergency warnings, as well as communication that promotes behaviour change, community mobilization and action. Well-planned communication can help to promote community resilience and reduce vulnerability to a wide range of disasters and emergency situations." (Publisher description)
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"Sudden-onset emergencies are typically chaotic, making effective communication between communities, humanitarian responders and governments, whether local or international, challenging. Building on experience from the response to Typhoon Bopha in Mindanao in 2012, the United Nations Office for the
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Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) supported the coordination of communication with disaster-affected communities following Typhoon Haiyan with the deployment of an interagency Communications with Communities (CwC) Coordinator and other CwC field staff. CwC cross-sectoral working groups were set up in the typhoon-affected area, convening local and international NGOs, UN agencies, the Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement, media development actors, local media, mobile operators and local government, with the aim of coordinating two-way communication across the humanitarian response. This article provides a summary of findings from the Communicating with Disaster Affected Communities (CDAC) Network Learning Review on the Typhoon Haiyan response." (Page 1)
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"As information among internally displaced people (IDPs) spreads mostly through word-of-mouth and social media, rumors and misinformation are rife. Citizens in eastern Ukraine have low trust in traditional media, and Ukrainian TV is largely not perceived as a credible source of information. IDPs do
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not seem to be fully aware of eligibility criteria and/or what aid they are able to access if eligible to do so. This increases expectations of displaced communities and feeds further frustration. The situation directly affects the capacity of local and international relief groups to effectively plan and deliver aid. Timely, accurate and neutral information about entitlements, rights, legal assistance, eligibility criteria and available aid are vital in enabling affected populations to make informed decisions and regain a degree of self-agency. As the conflict escalates and the economy worsens, host communities that have shown unprecedented solidarity and generosity are beginning to feel the pressure in their own communities. This is creating social tensions, stigmatization and discrimination against IDPs, who are struggling to integrate." (Page 6)
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"This literature review focuses on the value of investing in building the communication capacity of broadcasters in the ASEAN region, for the purpose of strengthening civic resilience and sustainability of socioeconomic development in the context of environmental disasters. Both are drivers for pove
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rty alleviation. It serves as an orienting piece to the ABC ID in-country program activities that have been conducted in the Philippines, Indonesia, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. It was used as a resource to brief the program team before they conducted their field trips to apprise them of the situation in each of the countries. The review adopts a regional perspective on disaster risk reduction and emergency broadcasting with examples of disaster communication in localised environments." (Page 2)
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"This report: 1. Defines “information ecosystems” and proposes an analytic framework of eight critical dimensions for understanding them; 2. Analyzes information ecosystems across a spectrum of change and their impact on resilience, referencing four case studies of Internews’ previous work [In
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stability and Underdevelopment in Fata, Pakistan; East Japan Earthquake 2011; Myanmar's Democratization and Opening; Three Environmental Disasters in Indonesia]; 3. Shares insights from the Jakarta Information Ecosystems pilot, which investigated the relevance of information ecosystems to communities living in chronically flood-prone environments; and 4. Reveals the utility of an information ecosystems approach and highlights preliminary conclusions on why information matters for resilience." (Page 2)
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"This two-day roundtable brought together representatives from key organizations and institutions in CAR as well as representatives from international organizations currently operating in CAR. The aim was to address the needs for media support and humanitarian information and communication and to en
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sure international coordination." (Page 4)
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"Terrestrial radio and television broadcasting is a critically important medium for information dissemination to the public in times of emergencies. The intrinsic one-to-many broadcast architecture and the geographic diversity of terrestrial broadcast transmission facilities provide high service rel
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iability during crises of all types. The professional compilation and analysis of information that is emblematic of broadcast journalism provides high quality information available when and where it is most needed. Fixed, mobile and portable terrestrial broadcast receivers are readily available, inexpensive and virtually ubiquitous in most societies." (Conclusions)
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"According to ITU statistics, around 60 percent of Pacific Islanders had access to a mobile in 2012, compared to just 10 percent in 2006. In many Pacific countries mobile phones are, therefore, emerging as a key element of the local communication systems, and are being be built into disaster managem
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ent and communication plans. For these plans to be effective, however, we argue that access to, and affordability of, technologies represent only one dimension of what needs to be considered in effective disaster communication plans. They also need to consider appropriate technologies, local communicative ecologies, systems for the ownership and maintenance of infrastructures, and local knowledge and belief systems. With a focus on mobile and other telecommunications technologies, this paper provides an overview of disaster communication systems and infrastructures, practices and challenges in the region." (Abstract)
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"The purpose of this handbook is to highlight achievements, as well as ongoing efforts and future plans, in improving information delivery to and communication with affected communities. This guide highlights the lack of critical information in emergency response and what needs to be done to ensure
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that affected populations, especially marginalized groups, can make informed decisions. While focusing on communications activities during the emergency and early recovery stages, it looks at ways to redress the information gap between the ever-growing number of aid providers and that of humanitarian assistance recipients. The authors argue that when crisis or disaster strikes, communities are not only in need of assistance – for example, in the form of shelter, food and water – but also of information that would enable them to make informed decisions that ultimately ensure their safety and survival. This guide draws upon lessons learned from a number of natural disasters, but is primarily based on the experience and work of the Humanitarian communications Unit of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Pakistan." (Foreword, page vii)
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"This practice brief outlines the essential ‘Communicating with Communities’ (CwC) elements’ required during the first six weeks of a humanitarian response. Many of the core elements are not ‘new’ to humanitarian response; however, while practitioners will be familiar with many of them, ev
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idence from recent crises indicates that CwC approaches are yet to be adopted as a predictable, consistent and resourced element of disaster resilience, response and recovery. The core elements aim to place CwC at the heart of a response to ensure that in a response, communities are better able to access life-saving information, voice their needs, ideas and feedback, and make informed decisions about their immediate recovery." (Page 1)
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"The review acknowledges that a stronger commitment by humanitarian agencies to address communication and information needs was seen after Typhoon Haiyan than in previous disasters. However, efforts are still required to ensure the consistency and coordination of ‘communication with communities’
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approaches and to make sure that information and communication needs of affected people are considered a priority." (CDAC website)
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