Center for Communication for Sustainable Social Change honors BRAC

The Center for Communication for Sustainable Social Change at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst is is presenting its annual award to BRAC and Ms. Sheepa Hafiza, BRAC’s Director of Gender, Justice & Diversity and Advocacy.

The award aims to honor outstanding contributions by individuals or organizations to the theory and practice of communication for sustainable social change, said the center’s director Jan Servaes of the Communication Department.

The award, he added, also recognizes Ms. Hafiza’s longstanding involvement in the field of communication for social change and her leadership in training on gender, justice and diversity projects, as well as advocacy projects, that have contributed to sustainable social change.

Inter-governmental organizations, non-governmental organizations, international, regional and national academic and professional communication associations, international media networks and communication and social change consortia are encouraged to submit nominations for this annual award.

This year’s selection committee consisted of:

• Prof. Claude-Yves Charron, vice-chancellor of the Universite de Quebec a Montreal (Canada), secretary-general of ORBICOM, the UNESCO Network of Chairs in Communication, and senior fellow of CSSC;
• Professor emeritus Royal Colle of Cornell University, Ithaca NY, and senior fellow of CSSC;
• Professor Jarice Hanson of the Communication Department and board member of CSSC;
• Tom Hogan of Macquarie University, Sydney (Australia) and senior fellow of CSSC;
• Neill McKee, Associate Director, Center for Global Health Communication and Marketing, of the Academy for Educational Development (AED) in Washington DC, and fFellow of CSSC;
• Ms. Emily Polk, doctoral student in the Department of Communication and junior fellow of CSSC; and
• Susan Seigel, Associate Director of CSSC and secretary of the selection committee.

Servaes called the process “challenging” due to this number and the quality of the nominees. In selecting the 2010 award winner, the CSSC jury has considered both theoretical and practical innovation and commitment to sustainable social change, and notable achievements in applied communication practice.


Click here to read more about the award and CSSC.