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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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Impact Data - SNAKE Condom Social Marketing Campaign

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In 2004, Marie Stopes International Australia (MSIA) launched this condom social marketing campaign promoting subsidised condoms in an effort to help reduce unplanned teenage pregnancies and the spread and incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV/AIDS, among Indigenous young people between the ages of 16 and 30 years old in Australia. As suggested by a number of young Indigenous people, the new condom was named SNAKE, which is symbolic of Indigenous culture; its logo features a blend of traditional and modern Indigenous art, and integrates the colours of the Aboriginal flag.

SNAKE Condoms (and the safe sex message) are being promoted through a print, poster, transit, and radio advertising campaign focusing on Indigenous-specific and Indigenous-relevant venues. In addition to being sold at traditional retail venues, SNAKE Condoms are also made available at Aboriginal and mainstream sexual health centres countrywide.

This social marketing campaign was designed to break down barriers that have prevented many young Aboriginal people from purchasing condoms. Interviews of 108 Aboriginal youth by researchers at the University of Wollongong found that 45% cite "not liking condoms" as the key barrier to condom use, while 27% said they are embarrassed/ashamed to purchase them. Fourteen percent said they do not use condoms because they do not have STIs or HIV.

Methodologies
Cultural Perspectives conducted the benchmark and evaluation studies in collaboration with the MAHS. These studies served as pre-project and post-project indicators, evaluating the effectiveness of the manner in which the project was conducted and the impact of the 3-month-long Mildura area pilot initiative, which took place in 2004. The respondents were Indigenous people between 13 and 30 years of age.
Practices
Since the launch of the SNAKE Condoms brand in Mildura, there has been a significant improvement in the rates of condom use among sexually active respondents. At the 2005 Victorian Public Health Awards ceremony, Health Minister Bronwyn Pike said, "Results of the trial showed that young Aboriginal people were 18 per cent more likely to use a condom thanks to the SNAKE Condoms initiative." Specifically, the evaluation respondents were found to be much more likely to "always use a condom" (58%) than the benchmark respondents (40%). The research also showed an increase from 15% to 19% in the number of respondents who "usually use a condom". Similarly, the respondents in the evaluation were much more likely to have used a condom during the last act of sexual intercourse (62%) than the benchmark survey respondents (42%).
Attitudes
Since the launch in the Mildura community, the evaluation survey respondents were considerably more likely than the benchmark survey respondents to be worried when they have unsafe/unprotected sex. There was a significant increase from 21% to 46% in the number of respondents who were "really worried" about unsafe/unprotected sex. Similarly, there was a significant decrease from 34% to 11% in the number of respondents who "do not worry" about unsafe/unprotected sex at all.
Access
Intercept interviews of 108 Aboriginal youth following the campaign period found that there was a 90% unprompted recall rate, that 65% of respondents said the main message of the poster was to practice safe sex, and that 59% of respondents said the main message of the poster was to use a condom. The majority (92%) of respondents found the messages relevant to them, and 98% of respondents said the placement of messages in the bathrooms were either very relevant or quite relevant.
Other Impacts
Indigenous people aged 16-30 were found to have a high recall and rate of purchase of SNAKE Condoms - with a greater proportion of evaluation respondents recalling and purchasing SNAKE Condoms compared with any other brand in the piloted area. During the 3-month trial (which began March 28 2004) in Mildura, more than 16,000 condoms were sold. This outcome should be understood in the context of the relatively small Indigenous population of Mildura (3,000-5,000 people).

Evaluators find that "[a]s a result of the campaign, the availability and accessibility of condoms has significantly improved. By making condoms more accessible to Indigenous people at places where they regularly gather and at times when they are making decisions about their sexual behaviour, this initiative has helped reach new groups of potential users. Also, making condoms more available has raised their visibility and made them more familiar to Indigenous people, helping to overcome taboos. Furthermore, by creating a product that is culturally relevant and highly appealing to the Indigenous community, this initiative has encouraged them to actually buy the product and use it."

In Mildura, following the end of the trial, more than 40 stores in the city continued to sell SNAKE Condoms. "The project partners strongly endorse the introduction of a nationwide campaign so that the same sexual and reproductive health benefits can be offered to other Indigenous communities across the country. It will only be when the elements of a nationwide strategy are implemented, that there will be possibility of lasting change."
Source
MSIA website; and "Rural Safe Sex Program a Great Success", Department of Human Services, Victoria, Australia, December 2005; Convenience Advertising website; and emails from Paul Mbenna to The Communication Initiative on September 18 and September 23 2008.