Inclusive Communication Guide for International Cooperation
This Inclusive Communication Guide for International Cooperation is a product of the Partos Innovation Hub in collaboration with the Humanitarian Communication Expertise Centre (HuCom). We see ethical, inclusive and equal communication as essential for creating a more just world. With this guide, we offer international cooperation organisations in the Netherlands and abroad feedback and tools to become aware of and contribute to this.
This guide consists of three parts that form a whole but can also be read and used independently: the Basic Principles for Inclusive Communication, the Inclusive glossary and the Future Briefs on the history, representation and production of humanitarian communication. Together, these publications offer depth and reflection on the practice of ethical, inclusive and equal communication in international cooperation.
Read the Guide in English
Read the Guide in Dutch
Community of Practice on Inclusive Communication
Since April 2022, we have been working with the Community of Practice on Inclusive Communication on topics related to inclusive communication. Together, we explored ways to make our communication work more ethical, inclusive and equitable in all senses. Not only through the stories we tell or the words and images we use but also in our ways of working with our international partners and communities involved. We discussed and worked on creating tools to make our communication practices more inclusive, just and ethical. We put the results of this exploration into the Inclusive Communication Guide, which includes guiding principles, a glossary and future briefs with reflections on topics such as history, power relations and storytelling. We also created the Inclusive Communication guide to train ourselves and others to make our sector’s communication practices more inclusive.
The 10 Principles of Inclusive Communication is now also available in video!
Earlier in the trajectory, we wrote the 10 guidelines as a part of the Inclusive Communication Guide. To make the 10 guiding principles more accessible to a broader audience, we have now explained them in a video:
Printable PDF versions
Although we’re very happy with the interactive design, we can imagine that a PDF version can be useful. The individual PDF versions (for printing) can be found below:
- The Guiding Principles for Inclusive Communication
- The Inclusive Language Glossary
- De Basisprincipes Inclusieve Communicatie (Nederlands)
- De Inclusieve Woordenlijst (Nederlands)
- Future Brief 1: The history of communication
- Future Brief 2: Storytelling genres
- Future Brief 3: Production practices in humanitarian communication
Hope-based communication
Research shows that a hopeful communication message makes organisations and citizens feel more involved in solving problems and fosters active cooperation in sustainable development. That is why we focus strongly on hope-based communications. A hope-based strategy is needed to build greater support for international solidarity and to work against power structures that undermine social, fair and sustainable development.
Values, strategy & activities
Partos stands for sending hopeful & inclusive messages, showing impact & results, and building commitment on an equal basis for sustainable development. The strategy focuses on connecting through universal values and on implementing a joint, solution-oriented approach to problems. Therefore, we facilitate a process in which members and their partners can learn and develop hope-based, inclusive communication strategies through various activities and (research) labs. Together with members and partners, we can raise awareness, support, and engagement in society for inclusive and sustainable development worldwide.