---Apologies for cross-posting---


Prof. Vinod Pavarala, Dean, Sarojini Naidu School of Arts & 
Communication, University of Hyderabad has been chosen to be the first 
ever UNESCO Chair on Community Media.An agreement to this effect has 
been signed by the Director-General, UNESCO and the Vice-Chancellor, 
University of Hyderabad.The Chair being set up at the University for an 
initial period of four years will serve as a knowledge and resource 
centre for the study and promotion of community media, including such 
things as community radio, participatory video, and other citizen-driven 
initiatives with media and communication technologies.

The prestigious Chair, which is the first of its kind anywhere in the 
world, comes in recognition of Prof. Pavarala’s work in the last decade 
on community radio.His research and writings, including the book, /Other 
Voices: the struggle for community radio in India/, has contributed to 
the opening up of airwaves in India.He has also been the 
founder-President of the Community Radio Forum of India, a collective of 
civil society organizations, activists, and other advocates of community 
radio in the country.

The Chair would operate as a liaison among the communities, media 
activists, academia and policymakers while, simultaneously undertaking 
research and documentation of best practices in the country and capacity 
sharing with the community members.


UNESCO now has the Chair information at this link:
http://www.unesco.org/en/university-twinning-and-networking/access-by-region/asia-and-the-pacific/india/unesco-chair-on-community-media-955/