New media for poverty alleviation

Associate Professor Jo Tacchi, a Principal Research Fellow in the Creative Industries Faculty, is working on a series of projects funded by the Australian Research Council, UNESCO, UNDP and other international non-government organisations to enlist new media to help poverty alleviation in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Indonesia.

Although each initiative is adapted to local circumstances, the common aim is to give local communities the skills to set up their own independent and community-based media resources to address issues that are important to these communities. Such issues might include health, education or politics, and the media used range from local radio stations to new media forms such as websites.

One of the leading projects in the program is Finding a Voice: Making technological change socially effective and culturally empowering. This project takes a participatory approach to research, aiming to empower people through finding their own voice. It looks at using old and new media technologies to reduce poverty in poor communities in terms of people's participation. This is achieved by examining people's ability to participate in various activities, self expression and freedom of speech.

Research has shown that new information and communication technologies (ICTs) can contribute to the development of marginalised communities; however, they need to be introduced in ways that recognise local social networks and cultural contexts. This project will establish a research network of local ICT initiatives across Asia and the Pacific region. Using ethnographic action research, the network will be populated by local researchers in each of these initiatives, trained and supported by Australian researchers. This will increase understanding of how ICTs can be both effective and empowering.

They are also exploring mechanisms for sustaining community development outcomes through such programs/approaches, including the optimal mix of enterprise and philanthropy required to achieve long-term impact.