Disaster risk communication specialist to create a practical guide

Duration: Approximately 30 days. Exact duration and working arrangement to be agreed

Introduction

BBC Media Action is the BBC’s international development organisation. We believe in media and communication for good. We work in over 20 countries around the world reaching more than 100 million people a year – helping to save lives and improve health, protect livelihoods, challenge inequality and build more peaceful and democratic societies. Our work, in partnership with local organisations, strives to ensure people have better access to accurate, credible and balanced information they can use to make decisions. We believe that media and the creative industries in the global south are critical for engaging people on disaster risk, increasing knowledge, amplifying voices (especially the most vulnerable), motivating action among individuals, groups and institutions across society, and and holding decision-makers to account.

Objective

The overall aim of this assignment is to develop a practical guide on designing risk communication strategies that supports stakeholders to develop robust, effective media and communication strategies with a focus on early warning and early action. Target users of the guide include media and communication professionals as well as stakeholders involved in risk communication, including government, technical experts, and civil society. The guide will be written with low- and middle-income countries in mind, but will be generally applicable globally. The specialist will conduct desk research to identify relevant materials and will be provided with existing data from BBC Media Action’s research and key informant interviews (internal and external).

Outputs

The specialist will work collaboratively with the Project Director and others in the project team to deliver:

• An outline of the guide (by end Jan 2024)

  The consultant will review relevant literature, our existing theory of change and approach to designing media and communication for change, past work and evidence, and insights from stakeholder research currently underway. Based on this, the specialist will propose a detailed outline with indicative content for each section.

• Complete text and content for the guide (by end Feb 2024)

  The specialist will be responsible for writing the full text for the guide and sourcing related content. The specific topics, length and format will be agreed with the Project Director. This is likely to include guidance on the following:

  • Understanding audiences, contexts and media and communication ecosystems
  • Planning objectives (theories of change) relevant to disaster risk communication o Identifying media and communication methods and creating engaging content
  • Measuring impact of media and communication initiatives o Involving and collaborating with stakeholders across society including media, government, technical experts, and civil society.

The guide will be designed and disseminated for global reference and used to inform workshops in three countries in spring of 2024.

Expression of interest

Applicants should submit:

• Their CV
• A cover letter outlining (1) how their experience qualifies them for the job and (2) why they are motivated to take on the work.
• Their proposed fee for the work

Submit expressions of interest by email to recruitment@uk.bbcmediaaction.org. Please include ‘Risk Communication Guide’ in the subject line.