15th Leadership in Strategic Communication Workshop

The Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs (CCP) and the Center for Communication and Change – India (CCC-I) jointly facilitated the 15^th Leadership in Strategic Communication Workshop-Asia Regional, in Gurugram, India.

The workshop, led by course directors Uttara Bharath Kumar, Senior SBC and Capacity Strengthening Advisor, CCP, Sanjeeta Agnihotri, Director, CCC-I, and Radha Rajan, Research and Evaluation Officer II, was designed to promote the common goal of improving the communication quality for better health outcomes, focusing on social and behavior change (SBC).

“Global health professionals often struggle with trying to move social and behavioral barriers to health outcomes. This workshop offers them the space and tools to critically think about these challenges,” Bharath Kumar said. “When the pieces all come together for them on the final day, it is very gratifying to witness their ‘aha moment,’ new confidence, and excitement to apply their learning in a practical and systematic way to their own work.”

Eighteen participants from India, Myanmar, Nepal, Qatar, and the Philippines represented a variety of different sectors, ranging from government and non-government organizations to civil societies and journalists at the 10-day event.

“I get the opportunity to interact with all participants even before the workshop begins. It is gratifying to see their journey as they work in their groups, familiarizing themselves with each other’s strengths and work areas. Since SBC is a cross-cutting concept, over the span of this workshop the participants get a chance to take a closer look at the concepts and systematically apply them, taking insights from their work,” Ankita Kumari, the workshop manager for the event said. “It is interesting to witness how everyone brings in their own experience from different fields, yet all are connected in some way or the other to bring a collective idea together.”