The cover for this issue is an illustration from www.choice.com.au

The subject of Covid-19 continues to be popular among our paper contributors and this is certainly due to its ongoing cases and the devastating impact it gives globally as a result of the public health crisis that leads to severe social and economic disruptions.  Two articles published in this issue are about Covid-19; one is a review of the vaccine acceptance in Papua New Guinea, and the other is a Nigerian case study on how theatre reorients the audience’s misguided perceptions of the pandemic. Two articles are devoted to the subject of peace communication. The first paper is a focus-group study to explore what Rawabi city means to Palestinians who are living and working there. Rawabi is claimed to be the first-ever planned Palestinian city located in the occupied West Bank area and is viewed by its founders and advocates as a symbol of hope and peace. The second paper reviews some of the challenges and issues in peace education, and how communicative peace is central to peace education. The last two papers cover two different issues; one on the print media in Ghana and the other on climate change reporting in the Hindi language newspapers. The cover for this issue is an illustration by Mayur Deshpande on Unsplash .

When the pandemic spread across the globe, most countries implemented various intervention measures in their attempt to control the virus. Many of these measures and their impact differed from country to country and the comparisons make fascinating reading. In this issue of JDC, we publish three different studies from three countries: Jordan, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka. The intervention measures in Jordan relate to youth volunteer activities, engagement of frontline workers, and social listening.  In Vietnam, the study highlights the operation and role of Community Radio Stations and Community COVID Teams while for Sri Lanka, the research, using Focus Group Discussions, investigates the challenges of Open and Distance Learning. Three other papers are unrelated to the pandemic issues: one paper examines women’s emotional well-being in a computer-mediated environment; another paper aims to develop a package of tools for improving care practices in antenatal and post-natal care, and another paper looks at the digital divide in Nigeria and proposes certain ways in which the divide can be bridged. 

Being located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, an area with a high degree of tectonic activity, Indonesia must cope with the constant risk of natural disasters, namely volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, floods and tsunamis. The country is estimated to have 129 active volcanoes, and several hundred others are now considered extinct. More than five million people live within the "danger zone" of a volcano, and there is at least one significant volcano eruption in Indonesia every year. On 4 December 2021, Mount Semeru in East Java's Lumajang District erupted, shooting a towering column of ash into the sky, killing more than 43 people and leaving many with severe burns while many more were missing. Mount Semeru is one of Indonesia's most active volcanoes and is Java's tallest mountain. Cover photo of Indonesia's Mount Sinabung by Yosh Ginsu on Unsplash.

Communication about development challenges and advocacy for change continues to become more intricate. At the same time, the number of issues on the development agenda seems to be growing. This edition of JDC highlights various topics relating to two crucial factors, namely communication and people’s involvement, in determining the successes and failures of most development projects. Among the topics in the area of communication relate to the role of traditional folk media and the ICT, communication strategies and platforms, and role of motivation and ability in persuasion communication. Issues related to people’s involvement include civil society participation, alienation of the underrepresented subordinate groups from the decision-making process, and communication skills among development professionals. All these aspects address certain specific questions in the areas of social, health, agriculture, education, governance as well as in the scope of communication research method. The cover for this issue of JDC carries a photograph image, copyright © 2021 Freepik Company.

Despite the progress in public health that have resulted in improved health and longevity for populations, millions of people are still struggling with health and medical issues. The effects of civil war, poverty, natural disasters, and population growth restrain public health efforts. However, underlying reasons for the health crisis are also found in poor domestic and personal hygiene and sanitation practices, as well as inadequate education of health care providers and recipients. The current issue of JDC continues to  focus on health communication that involves health-related persuasion strategies employed in a wide range of communication channels. The two dominant research paradigms in health communication which are reflected in the papers published in this issue are  audience-based and message-based. In audience-based research, appropriate target groups are identified and effective ways to reach them are drawn up while in the message-based research, the focus is on the use of strategies to design effective health messages. The cover for this issue of JDC is illustrated by Engku Safiah Nabella Engku Murad.

Disasters, either natural, technological or man-made, affect in a most traumatic way both the society and the economy of a country, causing the loss of many lives. The Covid-19 pandemic that we are facing currently is a clear testimony.  Disaster-stricken populations suffer a great deal and need prompt assistance. In order to alleviate the trauma and the damage during a crisis and prepare for the unexpected, organizations practice crisis management and an important aspect of crisis management includes crisis communications. The main papers in this issue are dedicated to research and reviews on crisis communications relating to polio, cholera, sexual exploitation and cyclone. The cover for this issue of JDC carries an illustration by Andrei Rybalko/123RF.com.

From food preservatives to natural medicines, cosmetics and personal drugs, spices can be used for numerous different purposes. As natural medicines and homemade remedies, spices have played a pivotal role in the health care of many cultures, both ancient and modern. The Indian system of holistic medicine known as “Ayurveda” uses mainly plant-based formulations to treat various ailments. Certain spices such as turmeric has a very long history of medicinal use, dating back nearly 4000 years. The healing power of spices is a holistic treatment that has been passed down through many generations in many cultures. The cover photo of this issue shows a spice shop at the famous Morocco’s Jemaa el-Fna Market Square in Marrakech. Jemaa el-Fna dates back to the founding of Marrakesh by the Almoravids in 1062. Today, the historic square attracts the entire spectrum of life in Marrakesh: locals and tourists from across the world. The cultural importance of Jema el-Fna has inspired UNESCO to create its “Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.”

Text: Md Sidin Ahmad Ishak | Cover Photo: ©Marcin Jucha/123RF.com

A farmer on dried loamy soil in Basti Lehar Walla village, Punjab, Pakistan. Due to prolonged drought in parts of the country, rivers are drying up, livestock are decimated and rainfed crop productions are severely affected. Rare species are also threatened and people are struggling to feed themselves. Literally means the land of five rivers, Punjab is the most fertile and most populated province of Pakistan. It plays a leading role in agricultural production, contributing nearly 70% to the annual food grain production in the country. All the provinces of Pakistan have a history of facing major droughts in the past. This prolonged period of drought in recent years has developed into one of the worst disasters in Pakistan, badly affecting food production systems hence the health of community members, especially women and children. 

Text: Md Sidin Ahmad Ishak | Cover Photo: Courtesy of Alamy Stock Photo

A drone view of a curvy road reflects our main theme in this issue: rural development, communication and technology. Called Transfagarasan, this 150 km long Romanian mountain highway starts at Bascov in southern central Romania and it follows the valley of the River Argea and after mounting to the highest point, it descends to Cartisoara in the Olt Valley where the road ends. As one of the most spectacular roads in the world, the highway climbs, twists and descends through the Fagaras mountains, a part of the Transylvanian Alps, which are very rich in unique wildlife. 

In April 2018, almost 1,200 people gathered in Indonesia for the Summit on Behaviour and Social Change Communication. Practitioners, researchers, donors, and leaders  from more than 400 organisations travelled to Nusa Dua from the Asia Pacific region, Africa, Europe, Latin America, and North America. This issue features ten papers prepared by SUMMIT participants based on their presentations. They cover a range of challenges from using story-telling to help fishermen in Belize deal with threats to their occupations, and influencing adolescent girls and boys in India to address gender discrimination and stereotyping – to the use of social media to change norms regarding babies’ health in Malawi.

Since the founding of AIDCOM in 1986 and this journal’s first edition in 1989, its articles have reached into Africa and into countries around the globe, including Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Israel, India, Nepal, Norway, Netherlands, Malaysia, Philippines, Pakistan Singapore, Taiwan, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Thailand, and the USA. Its founding editor Khairul Bashar, who left this earth in 2015, would be happy to see this and future issues of the Journal reaching farther around the globe via the internet ― and raising its original modest circulation from a few hundred to potentially thousands. We anticipate this broader exposure will attract not only new readers but also new contributors.

Beijing Opera or Peking opera, also called “Eastern Opera”, is a principle tradition in Chinese culture. It is called Beijing opera because it was formed in Beijing and has a 200-year history, in which its fountainhead can be dated back to old local operas, especially Anhui. It was born when the “Four Great Anhui Troupe” brought Anhui opera in 1790 to Beijing, for the eightieth birthday of the Qianlong Emperor on September 25. Originally, it was staged for the court officials and emperor and become a traditional art form that turned fashionable among ordinary people later. Performances were watched in tearooms, restaurants, and even around makeshifts stages.

Malaysia, due to its diverse cultural and ethnic heritage, boasts a very rich array of cultural dances. Its unique history – from the Orang Asli, Orang Asal and Malays, later with the Chinese, Indians and Arab who came to trade, and afterwards colonialized by the Portuguese, Dutch and English – resulted in so many dances, where after a while, these dances develop their own local and unique Malaysian identity.

JDC is sad to announce the demise of its Editor, Mr Khairul Bashar. Mr Bashar founded Aidcom in 1986 and since then, the NGO has been a leading voice in development communications through its many trainings, seminars and publications, including this journal. This issue is dedicated to him.

Since the last issue was published, a violent earthquake has devastated Nepal. Instead of cultural depiction, the cover of this issue portrayed an image of devastation. This is because we want to share the grief and trauma of those who are affected.

For this issue, we decided to combine articles we received as well as proceeding from a conference Aidcom held in June this year called Engaged Learning and ICT for Development in the University Curriculum. The conference was jointly organised with Unisel in association with Cornell University of the USA, and the UN-APCICT.

Kyrgyz folk dance always attract the attention worldwide. The culture of Kyrgyzstan has a wide mix of ethnic groups and cultures. Bright, colourful and unique costumes, national music of Kyrgyz, choreography of dances appeals to spectators. For a long time in the East, the woman was keeper of a family hearth. In spite of anything, woman is soft and gentle, proud and strong. She understands that wisdom of the world is in her hands. 

Myanmar (formerly known as Burma) is a country in Southeast Asia bordering the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal. A land of hills and valleys rimmed in the north, east and west by mountain ranges forming a giant horseshoe, within which lie flat lands and river valleys where most of the country’s agricultural land and population are concentrated.

National Uzbek dance is very expressive. It presents all the beauty of nation. The main difference of Uzbek dance from dances of other Eastern nations is the accent on complicated and expressive hand gestures and animated facial expressions. Uzbek dance includes two categories: classic traditional dance and folklore dance.

Attan is a form of dance that originated in Afghanistan centuries ago. Performing Attan in open air is a part of the Afghan culture. The dancers usually form a circle by holding each other’s hands. The Attan is accompanied by music especially of drums and pipes. The dance begins slowly but grows in the momentum for one or two hours with breaks for changes in tempo and in song.