Wednesday, 11 September 2013
Tiger Team Story
Stories stick better than reports or factsheets. Linda Kartika (from the Ministry of Forestry of Indonesia) was for three months an intern at WildTeam in Bangladesh as part of her Wageningen University training. From the footage she shot in Bangladesh she made this video in which she tells the story of what she has learned about tiger conservation and strategic communication.
Wednesday, 4 September 2013
A story sticks better than a case study
PCI Media Impact is a pioneer and world leader in Entertainment-Education and communications for social change. For more than 25 years, we have advanced the well-being of vulnerable populations by improving knowledge, shifting locally-determined attitudes and changing behaviors toward critical social issues. Working in a capacity- building model, through our My Community approach, our unique strategy of storytelling allows millions to live healthier lives, sustainably, and in harmony with their natural world.
Together with our partners around the world, PCI Media Impact has
produced more than 5,000 episodes of 100 serial television and radio
productions reaching more than one billion people in over 45 countries.
Our programs have increased knowledge, changed attitudes and facilitated
behavior change on some of the most pressing issues of our time, including
violence against women, HIV/AIDS prevention, sustainable development,
reproductive health, human rights and democracy. Currently, Media Impact is
working in more than 30 countries throughout Latin America, the Caribbean,
North America, Africa, Asia and the United States.
We work using Entertainment-Education (E-E). E-E, sometimes called
Edutainment, is the process of purposely designing and implementing a media
message both to entertain and educate, in order to increase audience members’
knowledge about an educational issue, create favorable attitudes and change
overt behavior.
Even in written form a story is more sticky:
In 1984 the Father of Entertainment-Education Miguel Sabido, met with
our founder and Indira Ghandi to launch a program in India. The program, Hum
Log, was a success: it soared to the top of entertainment charts and drew a
regular viewing audience of more than 50 million people. It also began to shift
family planning practices. We knew we were on to something, and so continued
producing radio and television programs to promote family planning throughout
Asia and Africa.
During one of these programs a young character, Shandi, asked a question
on the radio drama Taru that echoed throughout Bihar, India: “Why don’t I have
a birthday?” Little girls in Bihar didn’t celebrate their birthdays. Only boys
did. Over the course of a few weeks, Shandi, aided by a social worker, Taru,
planned and hosted her birthday party. Soon after the broadcasts, girls
throughout Bihar began to celebrate their birthdays.
But the change didn’t stop there. Birthdays were symbolic of other
inequalities – who went to school, who ate first, who received the best medical
care. These things started changing too. An entire village decided it was
time for all little girls to receive an education, so that year little
girls got to go with their brothers to school. Each of our 100 programs has a
Shandi, someone who asks the seemingly simple question that transforms a society.
Tuesday, 3 September 2013
Story telling demand survey
To develop the new frogleaps course on storytelling to trigger action for conservation, we did not only research the literature, but also did a few surveys on line and through skype and telephone. To articulate the demand, to map existing experiences with storytelling and to generate stories of successful campaigns. Through three mailings we reached about a hundred experts and received feedback from about forty respondents. In this blog article we present some highlights from our findings.
Stories to friends and colleagues about the business
we are in
What stories do conservation
communicators tell about their job during a birthday party? Most of them tell
funny or unusual anecdotes. About the similarities between animals and human
beings. About the amazing and successful reintroduction of a species that was
thought be extinct. The indigenous knowledge that helped save a conservation
issue. The awe and wonder we experience in a national park or when we see a bee
pollinating an fruit tree. The links between nature and our health. The many
things we can learn from nature. To fight the extinction of species living in
our backyard, as every species is worthy of our effort, and each has a right to
flourish. One respondent engaged in education answered:
My typical party’s story it is that instead of answering the question about
my job, I start talking about my ‘private’ forest. I am living in a place where
the forest is “invading” my rooms through the open doors. I tell funny stories
about different adventures with
biodiversity: field mice cutting
the wires of my computer, bats hanging in the corner of my wardrobe etc. Then
after my funny stories people usually
start telling their own adventures with animals even in city flats. After some of their stories I am able to the
answer question – what is my job? My job is to provoke people into talking
about their experience with nature very close to us. I am doing it in my books and radio play. But
everybody can do it: simply chatting
with friends or co-passengers in the train. Such conversations about one’s own
experience with nature makes people think about nature as an important part of
their life.
Most respondents
stressed the importance of telling something personal that touches the emotions
and invites the audience to react. One spiritually oriented respondent said it
in a very personal way:
I can tell it in the form of my private prayer to St
Francis from Assisi: “Holly St Francis,
I am predicating your message by cultivating my private reserve area in my
garden where I am protecting…weeds. Weeds may not be “nice”, but most of them
are medicine plants. Our grandmothers cured our wounds when we were young using
different weeds and leafs. Most weeds deserve protection not only because they are
used in native medicine, they are also food for birds and butterflies. Most of
all I am following Your instructions given to monastic brotherhood of
Franciscans to keep some parts of the gardens of the monastery uncultivated as a
place for wild creatures. Because all
God’s creation needs to be respected.” I hope that St Francis as holy patron of
ecology will treat my conservation project in the same way as my prayer.
Stories to local communities about conservation
What do you tell
local communities about conservation? Respondents referred to our dependence on
nature, the services it provides and how it enhances our lifestyle. One African
respondent tells:
Our natural resources and farming harvests are also
dependent on wildlife---birds, bees, butterflies, worms and wild animals. They
all support nature by pollinating, spreading seeds, revitalizing the soil and
creating a natural balance of predators and preys. Conservation is about
supporting the nature of nature to benefit your own life, income, and security.
Respondents also tell
about the need for local communities to manage their own environment, the
opportunities for extra income and the enhancing of their security and
resilience. The need to love their local nature: if we don’t who will? A
respondent from Europe says:
I am asking people to try to imagine their local
country as different species and habitats are disappearing one by one.
How will the neighborhood look like? How
are we able to manage our plantation
without bees and birds? How the
landscape had changed since their childhood ? What changes are good and what bad
for their heath and budget ? How it is possible to improve their life
conditions. What a role nature can play in it.
Then I am telling story about “talking golden fish” and what had
happened If somebody wish to remove
different elements of nature and what if
he wish to much only nice elements of
nature.
One respondent
mentioned that stories about what happened elsewhere can be a powerful to raise
awareness. E.g. when Chinese farmers in South Sichuan Province, the largest
producers of pears in that region of China, alerted their government to the
absence of bees and that the year's crop was endangered, the government's
unprecedented response was to insist on hand-pollination. This story
might be used to raise awareness that the use of pesticides for grain
production in the US or elsewhere may cause other (fruit) farmers to face the
same dilemma and may wonder if
this method will someday, too, be their fate.
Most effective stories
What stories about
conservation have motivated people to take action? Some respondents said that
experiencing nature is at the basis of a change in beliefs, attitudes and
finally behaviour. Stories can help to evoke such experiences. Respondents were
of the opinion that such stories either moved people emotionally or showed
direct impact on their well-being. A good story also should be close to the
experience and values of the audience. And nature should be presented with a
human dimension. An example is the story about the reintroduction of Lynx to
Masurian forest with the romantic title “born to be free”. One respondent wrote
us:
The Jungle Book by Kipling inspired me as a child. It
presents life of animals as adventures and makes them “human” in terms of
feelings and characters.
A French respondent
tells the story of the bat who returned by plane: A small bat that had departed from Germany fell down in a Spanish
school yard exhausted from fatigue. It was rescued by the school children and
sent by their teachers to a wildlife centre. It was fed and recuperated. The
Minister of Environment of that time paid the air plane ticket for the bat back
to Germany. This positive and amusing
story teaches important things:
About the migration of bats, their measurements and weights, their capacity to travel far despite the fact they are so small (children love to hear the heroic acts of small beings, as it is an example for them.
About the need for a habitat: trees in this case, more precisely dead trees in a forest used by bats
About the fact that children, adults and even a minister can help, each at his own level and that in reality they have succesfully done so.
It provides a personal satisfaction to know that somebody has helped another sentient being somewhere. That is reassuring and triggers your wish to help when it is your turn.
Respondents also pointed out that it makes
a difference who the audience is and who the story tells, e.g. for local
communities the person telling the story should preferably be another local. Quite
often these stories are partly fiction, but with a message based on a true
example. Many used comic books, radio or folk theatre to reach the local
audiences.
For the general
public it is important that campaign stories touch on emotions and humour. Stories appealing to health and budget are also
reported as motivating. Such stories can be connected to food from ecological farms. Women magazines
are a good channel for stories of young mothers about the relation between
organic food and the health of their children.
Most respondents have little experience with techniques
to make an effective story. Although they all stress the need for a positive
approach and a happy ending, they often have no conflicts in their stories nor any
heroes, villains or obstacles. Literature shows that a story with a conflict
which is resolved by the hero, is most effective to engage the audience and
communicate messages. One respondent from Meso America answered:
For me the heroes are the youth. The
villains are the ignorant who only think short term. The obstacles are the lack
of social capital and the happy ending is the fact that in this world there
exist people just like us who have realized innovations in conservation and
that you can do the same in the place where you live.
A French respondent
answered:
In the positive stories that I tell, there
are mainly heroes who act against the bad guys, but without elaborating on the
negative impacts of their acts. I like to keep it positive. There is a villain,
or a bad event, but the story is about the solution. The end is always happy or
partly happy when there is still hope to do more. The story is focused on
action. I give opportunities for action on different levels or difficulties depending
on the action perspectives for smaller or bigger issues.
A third respondent
referred to Chief Seattle’s 1851 response to the treaty to sell two million
acres to the USA:
“How can you buy or sell the sky, the warmth of the land? The idea is
strange to us. If we do not own the freshness of the air and the sparkle of the
water, how can you buy them? Every part of this earth is sacred to my people.
Every shining pine needle, every sandy shore, every mist in the dark woods, every
clearing and humming insect is holy in the meaning and experience of my people.
The sap which courses through the trees carries the memory of the red man.”
Respondents also
refer to the importance of the mythology of cultures living in great dependence
from nature, as nature plays a predominant role in the stories of such cultures.
And the importance to ask local communities about the traditional fold stories
from their grandparents. One respondent from Africa says:
Stories are precious sources of experience and wisdom
concealed in the actors, their movements and happenings and the symbols
applied. Many symbols are universal, such as sun, moon, sea, water, tree, lion,
eagle etc. African stories are very much different from European, Arabic, and
Indian stories. As far as I have read them they are rougher and their symbols
and meanings sometimes hard to crack. I
don’t know whether European stories, such as fairy tales like Cinderella, are
suitable i.e., consciously and or unconsciously understandable and meaningful. Therefore, I ask local grandmothers to do the
storytelling of their tribes to the children.
A French respondent
answered that the best stories about doing the right thing come from the realm
of animals themselves, e.g. a whale that takes charge of an orphan whale at the
risk of her life as it is already difficult to feed and defend her own baby
whale; or a lioness that protects a herbivore orphan against other lions until
the time it is fully grown.
These examples from nature make a huge impression
on me as no one has taught these females to protect other small beings,
especially when they normally belong to their prey. It touches my maternal
fibres. It tells me that protecting life is encrypted in our genes, or at least
in female genes (even if men may feel the same inclination to such compassion
of course). In any case I do so without thinking: I had found a baby titmouse
that had fallen from its nest on the a Parisian sidewalk. I put the small bird
in a bush as high as possible and then phoned the Animal Welfare Organization
to know if I had done the right thing. They told me that actually you have to
put the bird back as high as possible in a tree to protect them against cats.
And they told me also that other passers-by could easily have trampled the
bird. I had difficulty to believe that. So I thought that we should circulate
each spring a brochure “how to protect a small bird fallen from its nest”, so
people could get the reflex do the right thing without thinking.
An e-learning course on storytelling: success factors
What would make the
course a success? Respondents stressed that the course should be short, fun and inspiring. It
should also demystify the CEC Love. Not Loss message. It should be based on
real life examples. It should provide users opportunities to interact and send
their stories in. It should provide tools that users can immediately apply.
Conclusions
There is a lot of experience in the CEC network. Members share the importance
of storytelling as an instrument for conservation. They have some degree of
knowledge of the main features of storytelling. There is a demand for a short course
on the various aspects of storytelling connected with examples from real life.
We thank all the respondents for their time and the sharing of their expertise
and experience. They will be mentioned in the colophon of the course that is due to be on line end of September.
Monday, 2 September 2013
Better in the dark
A new social media campaign, launched as a result of the Powered by Nature Awards - an initiative of IUCN CEC and ALCOA - encourages people to turn off their lights and turn on their senses. With cheeky humour and simple graphics, the campaign “Better in the Dark” invites community contributions to the question: What things are better in the dark? Stargazing? Hide and seek? Sleeping?
Once appliances are switched off, so the story, we can finally see the stars and connect to nature and the people around us. Ultimately, this will help us to save energy and take better care of our environment. Mostly, “Better in the Dark” is an invitation to engage playfully with sustainability and experiment: What happens when we turn the switch?
The accompanying video provides one possible answer (skinny dipping). For those that need more light in this situation, it continues, LED torches might be the way to go. From the campaign description: “When the time for new light comes, we will waste no rays. The sun shall power our lives, and no longer will we burn up the dark energy from deep below.” Check out the “Better in the Dark” campaign at www.betterinthedark.com or on Facebook and Twitter.
Sunday, 1 September 2013
Rhino campaign in Vietnam
Strategic communication aims to support a change in behaviour. "Say no to the illegal trade and consumption of rhino horns", is the message of this campaign of Education for Nature Vietnam. It aims to end the myth and rumors about the magical properties of rhino horn:
- Don’t consume medicines made from endangered wildlife
- Report wildlife crimes to appropriate authorities or ENV’s Wildlife Crime Hotline 1-800-1522
- DONATE and help support our efforts.
The questions the campaign raises with me are the following:
1. If - as the video says - the ultra rich are the consumers, would they change their beliefs, values and behaviour by seeing this video?
2. If the general public sees the video, will the factual information trigger them into action (reporting wildlife crimes and donating money)? Or will they think: "sad, but let is move on".
3. And most importantly: what is the change strategy behind this campaign?
4. To reduce the demand for rhino horn, should we not touch on emotions, values and beliefs of the super rich? Should we not work through 'ambassadors' from this group in stead of using mass media?
Monday, 12 August 2013
Frogleaps on strategy
- The first skill is to unconditionally accept uncertainty on the road towards a desired result.
- The second skill is to see the unique possibility that will help us gain a decisive advantage along the road towards the desired result.
- The third skill is to timely exploit that unique possibility to gain this decisive advantage on the road towards the desired result.
The principles of the way of the strategy
In 1645 Miyamoto Musashi wrote the Book of The Five Rings. A manual on strategy for samurai. In his introduction he explains that this strategy also has guided his mastering of other skills and arts. Some of his calligraphy and drawings can still be admired in Japanese museums. Over the years his book has become a source of inspiration not only for those specializing in martial arts but also for modern managers and politicians.
How to most effectively reach your goal?
Strategy is about how to most effectively reach your goal. Most communicators concentrate on tools: brochures, videos, photo exhibitions. The question is: will that help us reach our goals? Frogleaps often gets the question: what is a strategic communication? The true answer: it is a way of life!
Value the use of tools
We paraphrase Musashi. A strategy for effective communication is not different from a strategy for success in business development or war. If you don’t appreciate strategy, you won’t value the use of tools. Each situation is different and does not stay the same. Before you communicate you have to analyze it, including the context and key people.
Then define success.
Understand the context, your options and timing
Each situation may ask for a different tool, set of tools or a different use or timing of the tools. The main tool is speech. You master it when listening becomes hearing.Then you also know how to use the other written media. The other tool is drawing. You master it when looking becomes seeing. Then you also know how to use the other visual media.
Planning is key
The success of a strategy is not in the plan but in the planning. It is professional way of life. The principles of the way of the strategy, according to Musashi, are:
- Always be honest.
- Keep on practicing and learning.
- Become acquainted with every art.
- Know the mindset of all professions.
- In worldly affairs go for the result.
- Develop your intuitive judgment and understanding for every person or situation.
- Perceive things that cannot be seen.
- Pay attention to details.
- Do nothing which is of no use.
2 Responses to “What is strategy?”
Friday, 2 August 2013
Eye in eye with the tiger
Friday, 5 July 2013
Sundarban Mayer Moton (Motherlike Sundarbans) campaign theme song
Music can be a powerful means to get attention, touch emotions and convey a message. Wildteam of Bangladesh uses in this video a message strengthening the relationship between the mangroves of the Sundarbans and the people living in the communities around the area. The lyrics are about the beautiful forest and the many natural treasures it gives a home to. It aims to generate awareness about the importance of nature and create a basis of support among villagers for tiger conservation. It is a good example of the IUCN CEC campaign of Love! Not Loss. The CEC campaign aims to make conservationists aware the power of a positive approach to conservation when addressing the general public.
Tuesday, 25 June 2013
Education or communication?
Campaigning involves stimulating action, best achieved by narrowing the focus and eliminating distractions and reducing options, as in advertising (Figure 1). Typically, it starts (left column) with a problem and moves a target audience through the stages of awareness (and alignment, not shown here), concern and so on, to action.
Education expands awareness of options and complexity (right-hand column). It typically takes a problem and shows that it is not so simple as you may have first thought.
More on this in Proven top tips on communicating your issues effectively from one of the UK's most successful campaigners....
Wednesday, 5 June 2013
Learning to start a sustainable change strategy
Frogleaps offers
you knowledge and tools for sustainable development
Achieving environmental objectives requires behavior change. You want to
influence people to stop harming nature. And to start protecting our
environment. How can you maximise the results of your efforts?
Influencing behavior is difficult. Would you change your behavior just
because we ask you? Or just because we present facts to you? Probably not!
Frogleaps strengthens your change strategy with strategic marketing expertise. Look at the site...!
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Giap based himself on the writings of Sun Tzu. Sun Tzu was a Chinese general and philosopher who lived in the century before Xenophon. He wrote a treatise the ‘Art of War’, based on his experience during the ‘Warring States period’. Apart from analyzing the terrain and the opponent, the treatise also stresses and explains the skills and attitudes of a competent leader. In the 8th century AD the Art of War was introduced into Japan. It influenced the writings of Miyamoto Musashi, the famous samurai, who wrote his treatise on strategy – The Five Rings – in the 17th century. It is Musashi who I quote when describing the principles of strategy.
The closest a definition of strategy would come to this idea of principles and skillsets or ‘a way of life’ is maybe to define strategy as change leadership. Such definition also would recognize the fact that conservation and sustainable development in reality means dealing with change. And to realize change effectively you need the right leadership or strategy.