Caring for the Environment

This issue of The Soul Beat focuses on information from the network about communication related to caring for the environment. If you would like to contribute your own experiences, please contact Anja Venth aventh@comminit.com

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COMMUNITY BASED INITIATIVES

1. Change Radio: A Radio Script

This publication provides news and features on environment and development issues in the form of radio scripts. Some of the issues discussed are HIV-AIDS in Africa, micro-credit as an engine for growth in developing countries, international women's conferences in Namibia and New York, pollution and global warming, violence against women, children and women's human rights, the trade of endangered species, ethno-botany, press freedom awards and development broadcasting.

2. Youth Media & Communication Initiative (YMCI) - Nigeria

This organisation aims to equip children and youth with communication skills on child rights, environment, leadership and development. YMCI trains children/youth to develop media literacy skills to evaluate and respond to the media for a more informed and empowered citizenry. By adding children/youth voices into the regular mix of mainstream media, YMCI aims to ensure accurate, relevant and fair representation of issues that affect children/youth and their communities. Programmes focus on conflict and diversity, HIV/AIDS and the environment. The environmental programme aims to teach the importance of caring for and protecting the environment, understand the socio-economic dimensions of environmental degradation and its impact on their lives, as well as how to hold stakeholders accountable.

Contact: YMCI@hotmail.com

3. Calabash - Southern Africa

The project is a civil society capacity building programme for countries of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) that aims to increase the effectiveness and ability of civil society to participate in environmental decision-making and governance. The focus of this project is to develop a capacity building and research programme at the community and government levels so that communities and government ministries involved in Environmental Assessment (EA) have the capacity to use public participation more effectively. According to the organisers, the project is about trying to close the gap between regulators and community bases organisations (CBO's)/communities with respect to public participation in EA.

Contact: Peter Croal Peter_Croal@acdi-cida.gc.ca

4. Abalimi Bezekhaya

A bi-annual newsletter published for the Cape Flats, South Africa, that deals with urban agriculture and environmental action. It aims to assist individuals, groups and community-based organisations to initiate and maintain permanent organic food growing and nature conservation projects as the basis for sustainable lifestyles, self-help job creation, poverty alleviation and environmental renewal

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3rd Annual International Photoshare Photo Contest sponsored by The INFO Project and Canon

Do you have photos of programmes in action and the people you serve? Pictures illustrating the realities of urban and rural life in developing countries? Snapshots from your personal travels, volunteer service, or work experience? You may have an award-winning photo and a chance to win cash and/or a Canon digital camera. Entries will be accepted August 1 - October 15, 2005.

For more information, Click here

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NETWORKS

5. Africa Water Journalist Network - Africa

An initiative to promote dialogue and coverage of water issues among African journalists. The network consists of a community of more than 1000 journalists concerned with water. The network uses a web-based resource centre, which includes a database of information on water subjects as well as a list of contacts. The website is updated daily with news and relevant documents. Journalists are able to contribute to a blog and a weekly newsletter is sent to 2000 readers.

Contact James M. Dorsey jmdorsey@questjournalists.org

6. Environmental Information Network (EIN) Project - Ghana

The Ghana Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG), and the Building and Road Research Institute (BRRI) initiated a project to increase the quality of environmental management in Ghana. The Environment Information Network (EIN), which is publicly available for free use, is an electronic information network system that links the databases of the participating environmental agencies. The purpose of the project is to facilitate accessibility to information that supports decision-making and stimulates research in urban and rural areas in Ghana. Network partners engage in the following activities: collating and organising information; creating a meta-database including bibliographies and directories of environmental information; developing database search and web-based retrieval applications; linking the information sources of EPA, FORIG, and BRRI; and identifying means of disseminating the information to ensure public access to the network and information sources

Contact Agnes Adjabeng aadjabeng@epaghana.org

7. Environmental Justice Networking Forum (EJNF) - South Africa

The Forum is a shared resource established to service South African non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and community- based organisations (CBOs) on issues relating to environmental justice and sustainable development by improving information and communication functions of participating organisations. EJNF aims to provide a structure through which different civil society sectors explore, strengthen and advocate on environmental justice and sustainable development issues. Participating organisations include trade unions, civic organisations, environmental and development organisations and youth, women, rural and religious groupings. Participants are organised at provincial level to ensure sensitivity to local issues. The network has administrative offices countrywide.

Contact: Shireen Wentzel shireen@ejnf.org.za

8. Rainwater Harvesting Network - East & Southern Africa & South Asia

In March 2003, the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) and Regional Land Management Unit (RELMA) entered into a partnership in an effort to spread awareness about the potential of rainwater harvesting practices (RWH) in Africa and South Asia. A network of 18 nations in Africa and South Asia is participating in the programme, which involves site visits to varying community-led water works projects. The 18 nations forming this network are Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Rwanda, Somaliland, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Botswana, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan. While working together, CSE will focus on the south Asian region while RELMA will cover eastern and southern Africa. The central programme strategy is knowledge sharing through face-to-face conversation.

Contact: m.malesu@cgiar.org

9. Forest Action Network (FAN)

A networking organisation to generate and share information on sustainable natural resource management in eastern and southern Africa. FAN also works in collaboration with organisations in Ethiopia, Mozambique, Tanzania and Uganda.

ANALYSIS AND THINKING

10. Children & Environment in Emthanjeni: Report on Training Workshop for Adults in Emthanjeni on Working in a Participatory Way with Children to Attain their Environmental Rights and Participatory Workshops for Children in Emthanjeni

This 127-page report looks at the training workshops conducted at Emthonjeni, South Africa for adults working in a participatory way with children to attain their environmental rights and using participatory children workshops to promote environmental awareness amongst children. The research found that success would be based on: children getting parents to become involved with teachers; peer education and mobilisation creating a stronger voice; holding workshops for teachers; adults helping children to write letters to appropriate authorities about abusive situations in schools, e.g. to the police and children’s representatives in government; and finding ways to get teachers to support children.

11. Gender and Water Development Report 2003: Gender Perspectives on Policies in the Water Sector

In this report, water management issues are reviewed in four categories: Water for Nature, Sanitation for People, Water for People, and Water for Food. The authors use them to assess the gender implications of the key issues, and to determine which gender-sensitive approaches could contribute to addressing them. According to the publication, sustainable water management and gender equity are mutually supporting and interdependent.

12. Understanding the Indigenous Knowledge and Information Systems of Pastoralists in Eritrea

by Alessandro Dinucci & Zeremariam Fre

This publication intends to contribute to the definition of demand-led communication and advisory services aimed at nomadic herders in Eritrea, through a better understanding of their indigenous knowledge on livestock production and natural resources management, and their own sources and channels of information, as a prerequisite for future field activities. Specifically, the authors studied the indigenous knowledge of the Beni Amer, a semi-sedentary pastoralist ethnic group of Eritrea, which maintains traditional animal production, animal husbandry and ethno-veterinary practices.

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Looking for more information on communication and the environment? Please visit the Soul Beat Africa website, and use the search function in the upper right corner.

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BUILDING KNOWLEDGE

13. Communication for Sustainable Development

by Hughes Kone & Jacques Habib Sy

This publication provides basic material on communication for development in Africa to students, teachers and researchers, on the one hand, and to development planners and actors on the other. The former will discover texts about theory, concepts and methodology, while the others will find ideas and guidance for drawing up strategies for information, communication and education (IEC) that are adapted to the African context. Some of the basic questions addressed in this publication are: How is communication used in Africa to promote development? What are the tools being used or likely to be used? What lessons have been learned? What can be done to improve the use of communication for development?

14. 11th World Lake Conference - Oct 31- Nov 4 2005 - Nairobi, Kenya

The theme of the conference is "Management of Lake Basins for Their Sustainable Use: Global Experiences and African Issues." This conference is about the conservation and management of lakes and the African experience. The World Lake Conference is a biennial conference co-organised by International Lake Environment Committee (ILEC) and a local host. The principle objective of the 11th World Lake Conference is to bring together diverse groups of people and organisations dealing with lakes to provide a rich forum for exchange of knowledge and experiences on the management of lakes in general and African lakes in particular. The conference will review progress on ongoing lake basin initiatives as well as set future goals for lake basin management.

15. Empowerment for African Sustainable Development

An African private non profit organisation based in Cape Town, South Africa. EASD promotes sustainable development in Africa and globally by providing information, capacity building, knowledge management, environment, development and poverty alleviation strategy services.

16. Green Belt Movement (GBM)

A grassroots organisation that specialises in environmental conservation, community development and capacity-building in Africa. Based in Kenya, GBM hosts a number of educational programs that seek to raise awareness about environmental degradation including indigenous tree planting workshops and community-based safaris.

17. African Environmental Film Foundation (AEFF)

Distributes environmental documentaries filmed in Tanzania and Kenya for the purpose of educating East Africans about ecological awareness, conservation and utilisation of natural resources. Based in California, USA, AEFF distributes its films internationally free of charge. The films are available in English, Kswahili as well as nine indigenous African languages.

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The Soul 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.

Please send material for The Soul Beat to the Editor - Anja Venth aventh@comminit.com