Community-Led COVID-19 Messaging: Practical Tools for Building Hyperlocal Custom Communications
Hosted on March 25, 2021, this training was delivered by Erin Mann, Program Manager and co-Principal Investigator, the National Resource Center for Refugees, Immigrants, and Migrants (NRC-RIM); Courtney Chang, Senior Program Lead, IDEO.org; and Ridhi Arun, Senior Program Coordinator, IDEO.org.
Customized health communications developed for specific local communities are thought to be more effective than “one-size-fits-all” mass campaigns. Even materials that are linguistically appropriate and culturally informed may be insufficient if they ignore the importance of local knowledge, attitudes, and practices. Community-led, hyperlocal communications are those that are developed by and for members of narrowly defined local communities. In this webinar, community leaders will discuss their experiences with this messaging approach and will share two tools you can use in your own communications work: NRC-RIM’s Community-Led Messaging for COVID-19 Contact Tracing Guidebook and a Guidebook for COVID-19 Vaccine Messaging. These tools were developed by NRC-RIM in partnership with IDEO.org, with input from multiple diverse communities.
Lesson Objectives
Why should I participate?
After participating in this 75-minute session, you will be able to:
- Describe the steps involved in building community-led COVID-19 messaging;
- Name promising strategies currently being used by community leaders around the U.S.;
- Name two tools for using this communications approach in your work with local communities; and
- Begin developing your own COVID-19 messaging in partnership with communities using the guidebooks and visual toolkits presented during the session.
Webinar Speakers
Ridhi Arun is Senior Program Coordinator for IDEO.org, where she supports health equity-related projects and programs, including community-led messaging for refugee, immigrant, and migrant communities related to COVID-19. She previously worked with Partnerships for Trauma Recovery (Berkley, CA). Ridhi holds an MS in global health sciences from University of California, San Francisco.
Courtney Chang is a Senior Program Lead at IDEO.org, currently leading work to increase COVID-19 vaccine confidence amongst refugee, immigrants, and migrants in the U.S. Previously, Courtney advanced policy and partnerships at PEPFAR, the U.S. government’s global HIV/AIDS initiative. She has also consulted for USAID, Jhpiego, and Vestergaard on tuberculosis, maternal health, and clean water initiatives. Courtney holds an MBA/MPH from Johns Hopkins University.
Erin Mann is the Program Manager and co-Principal Investigator for the National Resource Center for Refugees, Immigrants, and Migrants (NRC-RIM). Erin also serves as the Global Collaborations Coordinator for the Center for Global Health and Social Responsibility at the University of Minnesota, where she manages a partnership between the University of Minnesota, IOM and the CDC. Erin holds an MPH from Boston University.
Veronica Martinez Vargas is a Community Health Worker (Promotora de Salud) in partnership with the Migrant Clinician Network’s Eastern Shore office. Veronica has been involved with the immigrant community since 2010 when she started to advocate for the federal and Maryland DREAM Acts. She volunteers with the Lower Shore Vulnerable Populations Task Force and is part of the Latinx Committee. Veronica holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Physics from Salisbury University.