Tag: COVID-19

ICCO begins ‘PR professionals for reliable Covid-19 vaccine information’ initiative

Stuart Mitchell

ICCO is collaborating with the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to support promotion of reliable information on Covid-19 immunisation and address false or misleading messages. Covid-19 has led to a parallel pandemic of disinformation that directly impacts lives and livelihoods around the world and communications professionals have a responsibility to drive people towards reliable sources of information such as EMA’s website and official channels on Twitter and LinkedIn. There is also an obligation to educate against unreliable, unsolicited sources or falsehoods commonly spread through social media and instant messaging. ICCO encourages PR professionals to use these…

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IFC Training Helps Companies in Fiji Facing Increased Gender-Based Violence Due To COVID-19 Pandemic

Stuart Mitchell

IFC will offer world-class training to companies in Fiji facing a likely increase in gender-based violence from the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Partnering with the Australia Pacific Training Coalition, IFC will offer a 12-day Train the Trainers Course on workplace responses to gender-based violence. The course, based on IFC’s work with more than 50 businesses in Fiji, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands, is targeted at professionals in human resources and business consulting services. Even before the outbreak of COVID-19, gender-based violence affected two in three women…

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UNESCO calls for COVID-19 vaccines to be considered a global public good

Stuart Mitchell

UNESCO’s International Bioethics Committee (IBC) and the World Commission on the Ethics of Scientific Knowledge and Technology (COMEST) have called for a change of course in current COVID-19 vaccination strategies, urging that vaccines be treated as a global public good to ensure they are made equitably available in all countries, and not only to those who bid the highest for these vaccines. Both committees have a long track record in providing ethical guidance on sensitive issues*. The statement was presented during an online event on 24 February, which gathered UNESCO’s…

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Research investigates COVID-19 impact on UK farmer mental health

Stuart Mitchell

The COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the mental health and resilience of farmers and farm workers will be the focus of new research led by University of Reading. The project is receiving £190,000 funding from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) as part of UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) rapid response to COVID-19. It will be a joint effort between: University of Reading University of Exeter The University of Sheffield. Working with farmers and supporting organisations They will work with farmers and the organisations that support them to: understand how…

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Activists silenced by governments during COVID-19 pandemic – new report

Stuart Mitchell

Amnesty International has revealed human rights defenders around the world are facing ongoing attacks from governments for their brave work during the COVID-19 pandemic. A new report published today (10 February), ‘On the human rights frontline – How the UK Government can defend the defenders’ is based on interviews with 82 Human Rights Defenders from Colombia, Egypt, the Philippines, Russia, Libya, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan. The report calls for the UK Government to increase efforts to protect HRDs during the pandemic and beyond. In total, 94% of activists interviewed – including journalists,…

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