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.
 
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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Break the Silence HIV/AIDS Billboard Campaign

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Implemented by Art for Humanity, hosted by the Department of Fine Art at the Durban Institute of Technology, the HIV/AIDS Billboard Campaign is a South African public education programme that uses art print images produced by local and international artists on billboards to promote the "Break the Silence" slogan about HIV/AIDS dialogue in South Africa. The campaign aims to change people's behaviour relating to HIV/AIDS. The project is supported by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health, which sponsored 3 billboards in areas around Durban in 2001 and 2002, ClearChannel Independent, Association of Medical Pathologists, National Lottery Board and National Arts Council. To date, this campaign has produced 70 billboards and 50 exhibitions of the original artworks throughout South Africa.
Communication Strategies
The campaign aims to inspire in South Africans a sense of "moral ownership" of the HIV/AIDS pandemic and of those infected and affected by the disease. The project organisers facilitate the campaign through "art as advocacy" activity. The billboards are used to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS, to contribute to breaking the stigma surrounding the pandemic, and to promote HIV/AIDS-related social responsibility.
Development Issues
HIV/AIDS.
Key Points
Depending on the availability of the billboards at any given time, the project sponsors agreed to flight the "Break the Silence" message for a minimum of two months. According to organisers, "In all past cases, this period has been extended well beyond the initial two months."
Partners

ClearChannel Independent, Durban Institute of Technology.

Sources

Emails from Jan Jordaan to The Communication Initiative on November 29 2004 and October 16 2006.