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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. 

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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Measuring the effect of a hygiene behaviour intervention by indicators of behaviour and diarrhoeal disease

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Pinfold, J. V. and N. J. Horan (1996). "Measuring the effect of a hygiene behaviour intervention by indicators of behaviour and diarrhoeal disease." Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 90(4): 366-371.

METHODS: A social marketing approach used both qualitative and quantitative methods to develop a hygiene behaviour intervention in rural north-east Thailand. Behaviours were preselected from a previous study and the intervention was designed to promote hand washing, especially before feeding a baby, cooking, eating, and after defaecation or cleaning a baby's bottom, and dish washing immediately after eating. A bacteriological indicator (enumerating faecal streptococci using a finger impression technique) was developed to measure changes in hand washing behaviour and observation (spot checks) of dirty dishes to indicate dish washing practice.

RESULTS: There was a significant improvement in both behaviours and a significant reduction in diarrhoeal disease as a result of the intervention. Furthermore, both indicators were retrospectively found to be positively related to diarrhoeal disease incidence. However, receiving and being able to recall the intervention messages was not necessarily sufficient to ensure behaviour change, as some adults found it difficult to change old habits. Villages showing the greatest improvement tended to have a stronger sense of community than others and to have more people actively involved in the intervention.