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Breathe easy: Learning about adolescent asthma

Asthma is a common breathing condition. Chances are that at least one in every five of your your loved ones will have it. People with asthma might have a cough, or wheeze and a feeling of tightness in their chests. They could feel short of breath, especially after being active or when they hang around people who smoke cigarettes or vape. Feelings of excitement or stress or even a cold could also bring about asthma symptoms. Dirty air can cause or worsen asthma. It’s helpful for a person with asthma to try and avoid air pollution. For example, keeping the house free from cigarette or fire smoke can help asthma sufferers breathe better.

Luckily asthma can be controlled. Asthma medication is safe to use and even young children can learn how to use an inhaler. Inhalers allow asthma patients to breathe easy and continue to live a normal and active life.

A group of researchers from the United Kingdom teamed up with seven African countries to learn about the challenges that children living with asthma in Africa face. This research programme called Achieving Control of Asthma in Children in Africa (ACACIA) hopes to see more kids breathe easy and go about life without the hassles of asthma. One part of their research focuses on air pollution specifically. The researchers chose children to carry a special monitor backpack that can measure the amount of air pollution and link it with their asthma symptoms. This information could help us to better understand the effects of air pollution. Research like this is important to find ways to deal with asthma triggers and help more people understand asthma and enjoy a normal active life.

Jive Media Africa is working with ACACIA, who are educating young South Africans and improving the health of adolescents with asthma in Africa. Together, we have developed resources which can help you to understand the effects of asthma better. Download and the share the resources below (English and isiZulu versions available), and breathe a little more easily!

Acacia Brochure English WEB

Acacia Brochure IsiZulu WEB

Acacia Posters English WEB

Acacia Posters IsiZulu WEB

 

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Taking A Journey Through KAZA

As the tourism industry takes stock after the devastation of Covid-19 lockdown, we’re excited to showcase a challenging, yet exciting project undertaken recently by Jive Media Africa.

The world’s largest trans-frontier land-based conservation area; the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA) spans five countries and includes three UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Working with tourism authorities and tourism marketing agencies in the five countries, and travelling the length and breadth of the region to gather inspiring stories and breathtaking images, we are finally able to share “A Journey Through KAZA” – a beautiful brochure that reveals an appealing and accessible tourism destination, to promote trans-boundary travel and immersive natural and cultural experiences.

With more than 15 years behind us, of helping experts to strategise their messages for maximum impact, Jive Media Africa was thrilled to be part of the team revealing the hidden gems at the heart of Africa. Our journey through KAZA brought us into close contact with the colours, vibrancy, music, dance, food, and culture (not to mention the breathtaking natural splendour) of the region. These are the elements which we have chosen to feature in this brochure, a powerful tool in the hands of those who are tasked with marketing the region.

SADC/GIZ Transboundary Use and Protection of Natural Resources (TUPNR) Tourism Support together with Boundless Southern Africa, procured Jive Media to produce this brochure and position the KAZA TFCA as a distinct, multi-faceted, and attractive tourism destination which has the potential to boost socio-economic development and biodiversity conservation goals. This was done by identifying, developing, and packaging content related to KAZA TFCA’s biodiversity and cultural heritage story and tourism offerings (accommodation, activities, attractions, and natural and cultural heritage encounters).

The regions span the borders of five southern African countries – Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe – covering an area of over 519000 sq km (200387 sq miles). It’s a treasure trove of natural and cultural wonders.

Click to view the final output of an awe-inspiring brochure

Jive Media Africa has continued to #ActivateAfricanKnowledge as we travelled through the five African countries in our quest to reveal the rich tourism potential of the KAZA region to the world.

Talk to us if you are also ready to play a part in visioning and realising a brighter future for Africa. 

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Hay’khona Corona! Partnering with the United Nations to spread the word, not the virus

COVID-19 has become part of our daily lives, and will remain that way for a long time to come. While the total lockdown has started to ease, now is the time to be more vigilant than ever. Here’s a chance to share some information, slow the spread and save some lives.

In response to the global pandemic, and in partnership with the United Nations in South Africa, research communication specialists Jive Media Africa have produced a series of posters to grab attention and engage a broad range of public audiences. Download, print or share them now – in any one of 16 languages.

Click on the links below to access the UN posters in PDF format. Print files are available on request – send us an email on the contact form.

UN Partner Posters

Language
English
Afrikaans
isiXhosa
isiZulu
Sesotho
Setswana

Mask wearing is the new norm. Want to know how to keep our mask clean and stay safe? Click to view, save and share the resource below:

How do you wash your hands when there’s no water? We developed this resource together with Conversation South Africa. 

The COVID-19 pandemic is having devastating global impacts – but it’s important to remember that the spread of the Corona Virus is directly linked to the actions and behaviours of individuals.

Encouraging individuals to change their behaviours is a challenging communications task. Information alone is not enough. People must want to change and they must believe they are capable of that change. And first they must engage with the communication medium.

One of the key elements of the campaign is about ensuring that the messages are more about what you can do for others, than what you can do for yourself. “Altruism is a strong motivator” says Director Robert Inglis, “People are looking for ways they can help. Sharing relevant, relatable messages is one of the ways they can.”

The campaign uses comic characters to create strong identification amongst readers, and thanks to the incredible support of individuals and institutions around the world,  has been translated into numerous languages.

You can download them for printing here, or simply save them and share them on your social media channels. The posters are published with a Creative Commons licenses so you are free to copy, print and share them (non-comercially and provided no changes are made).

If you are able to offer translation to a language we don’t yet have covered – please email us on the contact form.

Hay’khona is a South African expression signalling strong negative sentiment. We’re saying “No, not here!” to COVID-19.

 

The posters are also available in the languages listed below.

Language
  French
    Luo
  Sepedi Currently unavailable Currently unavailable
  SiSwati
 Tshivenda
   Xitsonga Currently unavailable Currently unavailable
  Yoruba Currently unavailable Currently unavailable
  Kiswahili
  Portuguese Currently unavailable Currently unavailable
Luganda Currently unavailable
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#GoodGreenDeeds Campaign

Communities need access to knowledge to uplift themselves and transform their lives. Jive Media Africa partnered with the Department of Environmental Affairs (now the Department of Environmental Affairs, Forestry and Fisheries) to implement the national #GoodGreenDeeds campaign in South Africa. Read more

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Improving young lives with data visualisation

Can data improve the lives of billions of people? When the data in question tells the story of Early Childhood Development in 138 countries (and is launched at the United Nations General Assembly) then it certainly can. Presenting it in an accessible and engaging format was the unique challenge that Jive Media Africa was faced with. Read more

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Drilling Towards Research Leadership

Jive Media Africa DRILL fellow Lihle Qulu

UKZN’s College of Health Sciences (CHS) is taking knowledge production to a new level through their Developing Research Innovation, Localisation and Leadership (DRILL) program.

In collaboration with the Kwa-Zulu Natal Department of Health (DoH), DRILL aims to identify and nurture the next generation of South African health science research leaders. The skills these researchers develop through the DRILL program will help confront local healthcare challenges whilst keeping South Africa on the forefront of globally competitive research and innovation.

Jive Media Africa has been awarded a 4-year contract, delivering strategic communication and media support in support of the program’s goals. We have been intrinsically involved in the development of the DRILL brand, representing excellence and diversity, as well as a suite of communication tools that position the programme as a significant contributor to health research in South Africa.

Over 5 years, DRILL is to link 20 fellows with leading academics in their fields to develop and boost their existing research capabilities in the interrelated fields of HIV/AIDS, Mental Health, Health Professions’ Education, Health Systems Strengthening and Research Ethics. High-profile mentors will arm each fellow with the necessary skills to lead culturally-aware, locally-valuable research programs that respond to the needs and capacities of the healthcare environment in Kwa-Zulu Natal and wider South Africa. Our valuable science communication training further enables the fellows to share their research with the public in meaningful and engaging ways.

We look forward to supporting DRILL on this inspiring journey towards world class research leadership for South Africa, and beyond.

Sources: 1http://chs.ukzn.ac.za/News/16-07-05/DRILL_for_Research_Excellence

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The Science of Storytelling: PCST 2018

Jive Media Africa

Stories simplify communication. Through emotional connection and simple language, stories can make complex information relatable – resulting in dialogue and transformation.

To share experiences in storytelling and to gain insight from other communicators and researchers, Jive Media Africa presented a number of papers at the Public Communication of Science and Technology Conference 2018 which took place in Dunedin, New Zealand. Jive Media Africa’s work in this area includes comics, music and film among others, bringing researchers and the public together through participatory methods to create compelling media to transform the world.

Presentations included:

  1. Participatory approaches to science communication. A workshop exploring approaches from Paulo Freire.
  2. #TheArtofResearch – Collaborations in art and science with comics, music and film.
  3. Comics as a means of science engagement – a poster presentation on the use of cartoons to explore the invisible world of nanotechnology.
  4. Stories can save lives: in their own words…experiences of living with HIV.
  5. Researching marginalised groups with research – a workshop exploring barriers to engagement.
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Put your audience in the picture: Why comics get your message across

Reaching large audiences with important information is a challenge faced by many government departments. Carefully considered policies can fail at implementation if key audiences remain disengaged. Read more

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A film about pioneering work in community engagement

Jive Media Africa HSRC

The Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) lives the spirit of ‘engaged research’ at their Sweetwaters office in kwaMpumuza, South Africa. Jive Media Africa is proud to have produced a film that showcases the HSRC’s Sweetwaters site. Here, in the heart of Kwa-Zulu Natal, the HSRC undertakes ground-breaking research and society-led development efforts from within the Mpumuza community. The film serves as a communication tool which the HSRC can use to help them share their experiences and learnings with the wider research community.

“Thanks Jive Media! It was a lot of fun making this short film showcasing our work over the past 10 years in the Sweetwaters community.” – Dr Heidi van Rooyen: Executive Director, HSRC Sweetwaters

“We enjoyed working with you at our office and in our community. I strongly believe that everybody working with Jive, you leave them smiling, like us. Keep up the good work. It is easy and joyful working with you and I hope that we will meet again very soon. Thank you so much.” Sifiso Qwabe: Project Facilitator, HSRC Sweetwaters

Find out more about the HSRC Sweetwaters office here

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Amazwi Ethu – Speaking Back – Community Engagement Event

Jive Media Africa HSRC

Community Engagement is a key aspect of the work of the Human Sciences Research Council’s Sweetwaters office. The research centre is situated in the peri-urban Vulindlela District and undertakes social science research on a range of issues affecting local communities. The learnings from these communities can be further shared and applied in other settings.

In order to better understand the needs of this community, the HSRC Sweetwaters office embarked on a photovoice project. Photovoice is a participatory action research strategy primarily used in research involving marginalised communities. Photography is combined with other techniques, (e.g. critical dialogue) to encourage participants to reflect on and speak to community concerns. The images (and by extension the voices) can create awareness, engagement and meaningful dialogue with stakeholders and decision makers.

The intention of the project, was to work with vulnerable youth from the Sweetwaters area to gain insights into the challenges and risks faced by the community, especially as they are experienced by young men and women.

Research communication specialists, Jive Media Africa was asked to assist with the production and facilitation of a number of community events, designed to disseminate the outcomes of the project. Two events were held, an exhibition at the Jack Heath Gallery, curated by the Centre for Visual Arts at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, and a gathering of residents from the Edendale area which formed part of the study.

In order to showcase the work of the photographers in these different settings, Jive Media Africa adjusted the delivery mechanism for each setting. For the gallery exhibition, the images were printed and mounted individually. These images have subsequently been sent to the office of the Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban. For the event targeting young people and residents of the study area, which took place in the Caluza Sports Centre, the images were printed onto long vinyl banners. These banners will be used in an ongoing tour to schools to continue to engage young people in discussions about issues of importune to them.

In addition, Jive Media Africa has created a portfolio of these images in printed form.

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Contact

Tel: +27 (033) 342 9380/2
Email: info@jivemedia.co.za
Address: P.O. Box 22016, Mayor’s Walk, 3208