By mathew on June 14th 2023
March 2023
This survey conducted by SMART aims to assess the incorporation of gender equality in the management and operation systems of community radio stations. Recognizing the transformative potential of community radios in promoting gender inclusivity and challenging discriminatory practices, SMART seeks to understand the extent to which these stations are sensitized to gender issues and actively foster gender-responsive practices. By examining gender relations and gender-sensitive practices within community radio operations, this survey intends to lay the foundation for gender justice in community-owned media, empowering women to raise their voices and contribute to decision-making processes.
By mathew on May 15th 2023
May 2023
Factshala is an information and Media literacy programme to provide trustworthy and high quality information. The project was first of its kind involving Training of Trainers (ToT) from Community Media (Community Radio) to ensure community members can develop skills to critically analyse information that is coming in. The report gives the detail of how FactShala programme empowers people with key tools for identifying and combating misinformation and building resilience against misinformation for people across India – especially in states and regions with low literacy. FactShala helps internet users navigate the online information ecosystem with confidence and find their way to trustworthy news sources.
By mathew on February 21st 2023
February 2023
The Radio Festival is a unique initiative that brings together all three tiers of radio in India-public, private, and community radio – along with podcasters and others invested in the audio space. 6 editions of TRF have already taken place, and each year there is a different theme. Communicating the sustainable development goals, addressing gender-based violence, understanding digital media literacy, and health communications, TRF explores new ideas to use radio as a powerful tool for connecting with the masses. The brochure gives the SMART team’s first hand account of radio for change. It gives insights and stories from the ground.
By mathew on February 15th 2023
February 2023
The urgency of addressing climate change and its far-reaching consequences, including social disruption, food insecurity, forced migration, and inequalities, is evident. The burden placed on children due to extreme weather events, water and food scarcity, pollution, and environmental toxicity is a significant concern. Recognizing the need for action, the Radio Festival organized a unique deliberation on climate change, bringing together community radio representatives, policymakers, advocates, and stakeholders. The event aimed to foster discussions, share experiences, and promote literacy, mitigation, adaptation, and resilience at both global and local levels, with support from organizations such as UNICEF and UNESCO. The report gives detailed explaination of the event.
By mathew on December 15th 2022
December 2022
SMART, in partnership with UNICEF, implemented a pilot project to engage youth in climate-vulnerable zones across six states in India through community radios. The project aimed to raise awareness about climate change, simplify complex concepts, promote climate literacy, and encourage environmentally-friendly behaviors. The approach involved creating awareness to influence behavior, providing education and information, and fostering public participation through discussions and debates. The project trained a minimum of 50 young ambassadors from each radio station, empowering them to become climate-literate youth reporters capable of practicing and promoting environmentally responsible behavior.
By mathew on December 15th 2022
December 2022
UNICEF’s Early Childhood Development (ECD) programme, known as Aarambh, collaborated with SMART and 10 community radio stations in Maharashtra, India, to promote ECD and nutritional behavior. Extensive research, capacity-building workshops, community engagement, and monitoring was a part of the programme. The radio programs successfully engaged communities and initiated dialogues on early childhood development. The partnership between UNICEF, SMART, and community radios proved effective in disseminating messages that positively influenced the early years of childhood in Maharashtra. The report gives the full details of the programme and how it had created change.
By mathew on December 12th 2022
December 2022
The Vaccine Campaign aims to leverage community radios for localized messaging on COVID-19 and vaccines. It disseminated accurate information, debunk myths, and address misconceptions surrounding COVID-19 and vaccination in local dialects through radio programs. Additionally, outreach activities and narrowcasting were conducted to raise awareness about the importance of vaccination. Through the power of community radios, this campaign aims to provide localized and reliable information to promote COVID-19 awareness and vaccination. the report gives the details of the programme.
By mathew on December 2nd 2022
December 2023
Digital Rights are Human Rights, a project launched by SMART in collaboration with The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, aimed to generate conversations about digital rights. The project involved 10 community radio stations as implementing partners across 6 states. It utilized radio programming, community outreach activities, group meetings, quizzes, and games to engage the audience. The approach included storytelling through a 16-episode series, reaching both rural and urban populations, and addressing digital rights in a simple and relatable manner. The impact of the intervention was assessed through community visits by the SMART team.
By mathew on November 21st 2022
November 2022
“SMART released a modern interdisciplinary journal called ‘The South Asian Journal of Storytelling, Interaction, Games, Multimedia and Arts’ which housed ideas, thoughts, practices, academic work, fictional and non-fictional stories and new forms of art emerging in South Asia. The theme for the first edition of this journal
was ‘Learning and Citizenship’. A bi-annual journal, SMART is collaborating with practitioners, scholars, performers, artists and authors who are pushing the boundaries of communicating democracy, transparency and other core values of liberalism in the South Asian region.”
By mathew on November 18th 2022
November 2022
Poshan Ghar, an extension of the Poshan Abhiyan program, aims to strengthen the implementation of the National Nutrition Mission by. It focuses on promoting nutrition literacy and enhancing knowledge of nutrition through community engagement. The initiative addresses the causes of poor nutrition and aims to create a awareness on nutrition, encouraging communities to understand the importance of healthy eating habits. Additionally, the UNICEF-SMART Poshan Ghar intervention has worked with radio stations and community-based organizations to sensitize vulnerable communities on maternal, newborn, and adolescent malnutrition, using a radio-led approach supplemented by community engagement. the report gives the details of programme staregy, listner’s engagement, deliverables achived and the stories from the ground.