Communication for development: new paradigms?

The paper looks at an “orchestral” perspective on communication not only as a tool, but as the way in which the social communicator relies both on multistrategical approaches and dynamics of social actors involved in a pluralistic mutual endorsement. The development itself could be a component of communication-processes, which lead us to examine the interaction among planners, decision-makers, change agents and people in the specific development contexts. After the failure of development schemes in many situations, new paradigms have come, pointing out that there is no one way for development: it is an integrated process which embrace social, cultural, human, environmental, economical and political perspective. Participatory approach for communication has been highlighted as the new key strategy. Communicational theories started to integrated “society specific” models, including traditional media and community networks, which give greater emphasis on the complex role of interpersonal than only mass media channels. The “multiway” or “orchestral” visions of communication propose that the flow of messages is not the mainly focus of the social communicator, emphasising on additional functions of communication (i.e. sharing production of knowledge processes). So we need methods to understand the interconnected and distinctive mechanisms of the social and local arenas where different forms of communication and power relationships contribute to negotiate, produce and share knowledge. Sometimes participation becomes like a ‘buzz-word’ which should be act in every context. We focus our analysis on this multifaceted concept along with the enhancement of horizontal communication models: what is participation in a communication paradigm? is it really possible from a strictly donor-receiver perspective? are there any risks to give it a ‘magic-automatically’ power? how can it act as a way to share knowledge and to start up mutual empowerment processes? We try to find answers considering different social arenas and points of view, by the means of two case analysis, looking for integrated methods in “orchestral communication”. Communication might be a tool to build flows of information between social subjects of change, grassroots movements and institutional organizations. Instead of bottom-dawn communication strategies, local communities call for a multi-level strategy to achieve self empowerment on their own rights and resources. However participatory approach has been show as the contemporary way to manage conflicts related with natural resources management, it has been shown the need to empower democracy throw an integrated perspective between local and central perspective. A case study on “Indian women role in water management” will show that lack in communication may affect participation in local community democracy issues. We will consider two different communication methods on the grass-root and international arenas. As we can assume by the experience of two NGOs working on Indian women’s issues, locally oriented and internationally oriented perspectives lead to different perceptions on the local level as on the international level. This scenario tells us about the way in which institutional and non institutional bodies can work in order to improve communication between local movements and international mediatic arenas giving the idea of a new role for local community subjects on the international stage.