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2005
Support was provided to the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) to conduct a study
that examined the extent of civil society and affected communities participation
in the Global fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM). Facilitated
by the India HIV/AIDS Alliance, the study looked at the nature and extent of participation
by civil society and the affected communities in the decision making of the Country
Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) and to what extent gender concerns were incorporated
into CCMs policies, processes, proposals and operations.
Interviews were conducted with principle stakeholders- government institutions,
academics, multilateral donor agencies and NGOs in Chennai, Delhi, Bangalore and Imphal. A plethora of secondary sources-
the GFATM web site, case studies on report of the national consultation of civil
society on GFATM, minutes of CCM meetings and proposals of projects that had received
funds - were reviewed.
It was found that gender was conspicuous by its absence despite the increasing vulnerability,
it's associated burden on women and the innovative interventions by UN agencies
and civil society players. CCM, for instance, had only four women representing government,
bilateral and multilateral agencies and none from COSs, women's organizations or
the affected community.
2004
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UNODC ROSA entrusted
CFAR with the task of "Developing a Gender Strategy for the Prevention
and Transmission of HIV among Drug Users in SAARC Countries". The aim
being to support various governments, private sector foundations and civil society
agencies working in the field of demand/supply reduction and HIV/AIDS prevention
in the SAARC region to strengthen gender-centric programs that could lead to a reduction
in drug use and HIV/AIDS. We did an extensive desk review and conducted comprehensive
field studies in Bangladesh, the Maldives, Sri Lanka and India that included focus
group discussions with decision-makers from various government agencies and civil
society organizations working in these countries.
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PLAN India commissioned "A five city audience impact study on tele-serial - Atmajaa" - born from the soul" to gauge and assess the overall impact the use of edutainment or infotainment
was having on specific target audiences.
The serial used an upper middle class north Indian family to convey messages on
the inalienable rights of the girl-child and the illegality of sex determination
and sex- selection. The study looked at prevailing mind-sets on the issue of sex
selection, preference for the boy child, discrimination against the girl-child and
whether the serial had succeeded in catalyzing a household and community discourse
on various aspects of the issue.
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2003
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Documentation of Swedish International
Development Agency (SIDA) supported Outreach Intervention Projects among Injecting
Drug Users (IDUs) and their Sexual Partners in Manipur - is based on 45
in-depth interviews with IDUs, their partners, widows, families and communities as well as
various stakeholders. It documents the experiences of three SIDA partners - Lifeline
Foundation, Centre for Social Development and the Institute for Social Disease -
and networks while dealing with the twin challenges of drug use and HIV/AIDS in
the state.
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Positive Speaking: Voices
of Women Living with HIV/AIDS, a study based on the testimonies of human
rights violations of women living with HIV/AIDS and the CEDAW framework was done
in collaboration with PWN+ and published by UNIFEM. The study is a seminal work
on women's rights and the gendered impact of HIV/AIDS in the three southern states
of Tamilnadu, Karnataka and Kerala. Prior to the documentation a national convention
was facilitated by CFAR to shape the mandate and capacity building was done of the
positive women on how they could use CEDAW - the Convention on the Elimination of
Discrimination Against Women - to bring change to their lives.
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UNDP - IT &
Development: A baseline study on information and communication technologies
for poverty eradication. This is primarily a literature review for the purpose of
developing a strategic understanding of the role of media with specific focus on
ICT.
"Monitoring
the Net - Whose Responsibility?" - a survey to assess the roles of parents,
schools, the media and law enforcement agencies on this issue.
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Strategic Documentation of
Mahila Samakhya, Uttar Pradesh - the focus was documenting the empowerment
of women, especially the most marginalized and underprivileged through its Mahila
Shikshan Kendra's (women's education centres), Kishori Kendra (adolescent centre)
in Gorakhpur, Mahasangh (women's collectives) in Auraiya, Nari Adalats (women's
court) in Sitapur and the revival of herbal medicines through Nari Sanjivani Kendra
(women's health centre).
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"TV and My Child
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Mother's Reflections" - on the pressures parents face in setting for themselves
the most do-able norms and standards of parenting with regard to television viewing.
"Depiction of
women and men in advertising and the Image of the self: An interaction with viewers
of Delhi and Lucknow".
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"TV and Elderly - A Research
and Audience Feedback Study": Supported by Helpage, this study based on
media monitoring and audience feedback looks at the representation of the elderly
on television and explores the relationship between the older population and television.
It profiles the watching habits of the elderly of both news and fiction and provides
a qualitative analysis of the content, treatment of the issues of aging and those
that have a direct bearing on their lives. And also identifies the best practices
and omissions in coverage and the viewpoint of the industry on the elderly in terms
of representation and as a target audience.
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Documentation of the Viewer's Forum,
which started out as an informal network of media consumers in Delhi in 1995. The
documentation, based primarily on interviews, captures the process that went into
setting up the forum and its replication in other cities, the individual and collective
journey of its members and how they would like to take it forward as an example
of consumer activism. It also records how leadership was created among women from
bastis, middle class households and those living with disabilities and how this
has enabled them to voice their concerns and bring about change in media content
and treatment.
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"Vulgarity in Television Ads
and Music Videos" -an audience feedback study conducted largely with people
from less privileged sections of society.
"Who is Your Hero?"-
Survey done with children in the 8-12 age group in Delhi and Guwahati on their role
models from the small screen.
"World Cup Grips Families
in More Than One Way" - Study looked at how the all-day television coverage
spread over 43 days during the time of the Board Examinations for classes 10 and
12 impacted the lives of families. How parents who wanted to watch the matches themselves negotiated
with their children keeping in mind the need to ensure that the children did not
neglect their studies.
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HIV/AIDS Prevention Education
Programme, Maharashtra- documents the AIDS Prevention Education Program
that was initiated by UNICEF in 1993 in partnership with the Mumbai Municipal Corporation
among students of class 9 and 11 in municipal schools. The
rational being that the young were more likely than adults to adopt and maintain
safe behavior and thereby defeat the pandemic. As of July 2003 the program had touched
over two lakh students in 1,000 of the city's 1,163 secondary schools. The documentation
includes the background of the program, the constraints that were faced as well
as detailed interviews with teachers, students and school authorities.
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2002-03
Developing Behavior Change
Communication Strategies for the Health and Family Welfare Program of the Ministry
of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Uttar Pradesh and Orissa. CFAR
conducted a Rapid Communication Appraisal Study on behalf of Hindustan Latex in
these two states to identify health communication priorities and assist in developing
future strategies to address the goal of population stabilization through a behavioral
change approach.
"Representation of Specialized
Social Issues on Media" : Commissioned by the Ministry of Social Justice
and Empowerment this monitoring and research study looked at the representation
and treatment of social issues like leprosy, aging and disadvantaged children by
the media.
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"Domestic Violence on TV"
: A monitoring and audience feed back study on the presence and treatment of domestic
violence in television fiction.
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"Media Habits of People with
Disability" : This study was done to understand the individual and collective
perceptions of this community on the representation of disability on television.
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"Impact of the Perfect Body
on Persons Living with Disabilities" : This study was done with five groups
of 6-10 persons from Asra, Muskan, Amar Jyoti and other groups working with the
disabled to understand how the emphasis given by television to the perfect body impacts
those with disabilities.
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"Man-Woman Relationships as Portrayed on the Small Screen" : Study done on how people with disabilities
perceive their realities in relation to the images portrayed in popular serials.
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A media education booklet, "Who
Pays for Television Entertainment", was produced to provide viewers with
information on existing and future technology and the options available to them
to inform the industry of their grievances.
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2001-02
Media Violence and Its Impact
on Children: A five-city research study was conducted with support from
UNESCO and UNICEF to understand the impact that continued exposure to media violence
has on child-viewers.
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The study, which was conducted in Delhi, Lucknow, Ahmedabad,
Kolkata and Hyderabad, identified specific areas of concern like the slotting of
horror programs, representation of child and gender-violence, glorification of
violence and the role of corporate houses that specialize in children's products
that support such programs.
The findings were shared at a public
meeting facilitated by CFAR between parents, representatives of the media and official agencies such as the Children's Film Society. The meeting agreed that
a information and regulatory mechanism was required with program rating, warnings,
watershed timings and a redressal authority.
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A grant from the Ford Foundation enabled CFAR to undertake a three-year
project on Media Monitoring and Research on women's Issues and Media Advocacy
Training for Human Rights NGOs. It entailed the generation of products
and services in the areas of media research with a gender and development perspective.
Strengthening the capacity of grassroots groups in media advocacy. Strengthening
the public role and response of consumers of mass media and strengthening a user-friendly
documentation and media research service.
2000
"Sharing Viewers' Feedback
on Television Coverage on Earthquake" : Whether those who had experienced
the earthquake had found the television coverage informative, authentic and useful.
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