Texts, tweets and social change: how can communications contribute to development?


Event Details


Over the past decade, the world has witnessed a digital revolution and its impacts have not been limited to those living in wealthy countries. By 2014, it is predicted there will be more active mobile phones on the planet than people.

Increasingly, those in the aid sector are seeing the potential for these media and communication technologies to be harnessed for development.

But can these tools transform democracy, governance, transparency, accountability and humanitarian responses? Or does their power lie in generating hype rather than impact?

Drawing on their experience implementing programs and conducting research in Asia and the Pacific, panelists from ANU and Internews, an NGO working to strengthen information quality and access in developing countries, will discuss the potential of new communications technologies and approaches.

This forum is presented by the Development Policy Centre at the Crawford School of Public Policy at The Australian National University.

Speakers:

–       Oren Murphy – Internews Regional Director for Asia

–       Dr Nicholas Farrelly  — Research Fellow, School of International, Political and Strategic Studies, ANU

–       Matt Abud – Internews Research Consultant for Indonesia

–       Sarah Logan – PhD Scholar, State, Society and Governance in Melanesia program, ANU

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Ashlee Betteridge

Ashlee Betteridge was the Manager of the Development Policy Centre until April 2021. She was previously a Research Officer at the centre from 2013-2017. A former journalist, she holds a Master of Public Policy (Development Policy) from ANU and has development experience in Indonesia and Timor-Leste. She now has her own consultancy, Better Things Consulting, and works across several large projects with managing contractors.