The Springboard Community: Joining Together to Improve Health Communication

Learning is a social activity. By joining together and learning from each other, we can strengthen capacity, improve programs and maximize results. In 2014, a new community and meeting place for health communication professionals was launched.

Springboard for Health Communication Professionals debuted in May 2014, offering both online and in-person activities to connect practitioners working in the field and enable them to share expertise and learn from each other.

Springboard members are from more than 120 countries

Springboard has since grown to be a vibrant, interconnected and growing community of members focused on strengthening the field of health communication. With a current global membership of more than 7,500 professionals, the rapid growth indicates the desire by social and behavior change communication (SBCC) professionals to communicate with their peers around the world.

This dynamic environment was particularly intended to bring SBCC practitioners from low and middle income countries (LMICs) who often work in a siloed-manner into a global discussion. Springboard members represent more than 120 countries, with nearly 75% of community members from countries classified as LMICs by the World Bank.

The last two years were key years for Springboard. The International SBCC Summit in February 2016 provided a face-to-face anchor for the global community, enabling country participants to meet with other SBCC experts to discuss and learn about best practices, tools and other resources. Robust online activity and active country-based communities of practice (CoPs) ensure the sharing and learning continue on a regular basis. Members report that the online discussions and face-to-face learning forums hosted by several country-level CoPs provides them with ability to discuss problems and learn about new techniques and approaches.

Springboard is now a key place for networking with other health communication professionals, to share and/or locate an SBCC resource and to connect with other users to ask questions and increase knowledge. Join us today!