The Communication Initiative
Development action with informed and engaged societies
The Communication Initiative

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. 

On the transfer, co-founder Victoria Martin expressed her pleasure to see this work continue under Wits' leadership, knowing that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction. 

As Wits, we honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades and look forward building from that strong base. This includes co-founders Warren Feek (1953-2024) and Victoria Martin as well as La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA), which continues independently at lainiciativadecomunicacion.com with links to The CI Global site. We are also eager to forge new partnerships and entertain new ideas as we consider how best to contribute to social and behaviour change in our rapidly evolving environment.

If you are joining the International Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) Summit in Panama, please join Wits and CILA on Monday, 22 June, to share your thoughts and suggestion for the relaunch of the Communication Initiative. We will be in Pacifica 5 from 12-1:25 for the Refuel, Reflect, and Renew Lunch Series: The Communication Initiative: celebrating a driving force for Communication for Social Change and the way forward. We will reflect on the legacy of Warren Feek and family in creating the Communication Initiative, consider the contributions of CI over the years and then turn our attention towards the future in this dynamic session. 

If you are unable to join us in Panama, we still want to hear from you. Please contribute your thoughts by following this link: https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026 or reaching out to ci_surveys@commint.com. 

You can also follow the QR Code:

 https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026

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HIV/AIDS: Principles and Strategies by the European Union

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Four Priority Strategic Objectives
  1. to reduce the spread of the epidemic while preventing discrimination and exclusion of people at risk of infection of living with HIV/AIDS
  2. to enable the health sector to cope with the additional burden of HIV/AIDS
  3. to lessen the impact of the epidemic on economic and social development
  4. to increase scientific understanding and know-how

Six Guiding Principles for Action
  1. adaptation to risk environments: measures to prevent the spread of the epidemic must be tailored not only to individual behaviour but also the social and structural factors which are the basis of risk exposure
  2. gender sensitivity: analyses and measures must take account of gender issues and special attention be given to women's problems
  3. respect for human dignity: coercive measures should be avoided and all forms of discrimination against communities and individuals prevented
  4. empowerment and responsibility: communities and individuals must be helped to asses their own risks and behaviour and make the appropriate choices
  5. integration into a wider framework: measures focusing on HIV/AIDS must be incorporated in social policy for education and health and in other aspects of development policy
  6. adaptation to the stage of the epidemic and rapid response: the response must be tailored to the real stage of the epidemic and must be as swift as possible
Source
'Development Cooperation to Improve Health in the APC Countries', Development, European Commission, DE 97, December 1998. Page 11.