Posts by Jon Hargreaves
“Please come soon!” A community faces crisis
As news filtered through of yet another so-called ‘rebel attack’ against a village in the DR Congo’s North Kivu province, the prospects of extending our Umoja FM project began to dwindle. And yet the need is urgent.
Read MoreWe did it ourselves!
When we work in and with communities, one of our animating principles is: “Start with what’s strong, not with what’s wrong,” which, by the way is the subject of a great TED talk by Cormac Russell. The principle is simple: instead of trying to right what’s wrong within a community, Cormac argues that we need…
Read MoreMy voice has cleared the air
For many years Sangeetha has suffered from coughing and shortness of breath, like many of her friends in Kahandol village in central Maharashtra. During a medical camp last year, Doctor Chavan told her she had a smoke-related illness called “Dama” (asthma). He condition had been caused by years of breathing in the thick smoke from…
Read MoreCovid’s most important public health message
“It’s the most important public health message that is now becoming famous all over Nashik,” Shilpa told me, as they placed more speakerboxes in clinics across the city at the invitation of the Municipal Corporation. Which message is that, I asked. “That we love our neighbour as ourselves,” she said. “On top of all the…
Read MoreProtecting India’s Adivasi communities during the second wave
As the Indian health system buckles under the strain of a Corona virus surge that has eclipsed anywhere else in the world, our partners in Maharashtra say the pandemic is now rapidly impacting remote Adivasi (indigenous) communities. Adivasi Voices Project leader, Shilpa says that while the pandemic has greatly affected the livelihoods of tribal people,…
Read MoreRadio supports digital learning in Kenya
Adopting technology for learning is attractive in the digital era. It gives a sense that we are changing the old for the new. But technology itself is not transformative. Education technology is not about devices or exchanging a blackboard for a computer screen or tablet. However with one in three children around the world lacking access…
Read More“You’ve given us the gift of life!”
As far back as she can remember, Sunita has been collecting water for her family. Instead of playing as a carefree child, she had to walk to the river, fill up large vessels, and carry them back to the small Maharashtran village of Kobada, India. This arduous task would become one of her lifetime duties.…
Read MoreSchool’s on air for summer
With Kenyan schools now unlikely to reopen until January 2021, radio has become an educational life-line for many families across the country. Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, Amani FM, HCR’s partner station in Eastern Kenya, in collaboration with Zizi Afrique Foundation, has been delighting children and parents across Tana Delta, with a variety…
Read MoreCovid19 – Nudging Nairobi’s youth
As the number Covid-19 cases begin to rise dramatically in Kenya, health authorities have been urging communities to stay at home, observe physical distancing and not to go back to work. However there is a major concern that many young people, particularly in Nairobi’s informal settlements, are not heeding the warning. To that end, Mtaani…
Read MoreOvercoming fear, fake news and misinformation at a time of crisis
Our partners at Amani FM in Tana River County, eastern Kenya, report that rumours, fake news and misinformation about the Corona virus, are causing fear and panic. They are working hard to ensure that good information is being disseminated, that constructive dialogue is happening and that community fears and concerns are being heard.
Read More