Strategic Communication for Ukrainian Media Professionals

The goal of this IVLP program was to help city and oblast officials from various parts of Ukraine learn about how the USG, at all levels of government, from local to federal, uses strategic communications to communicate with its citizens. In additional to giving participants an overview of how strategic communications structures are organized at various levels of government, the visit focused on daily communications regarding policy and administrative decisions as well as communications during a local or national crisis. Participants also focused on the structure of communications offices and how each level of the communications hierarchy differs in responsibility.

Although Ukraine has been an independent country for 23 years, the legacy of Soviet propaganda and “communications” techniques that value information “hoarding” over sharing are very much alive.  As Ukraine finds itself in an era of rapid economic and political change, its new leaders recognize the need to communicate with their citizens, but old habits are hard to break.  By giving this group of young Ukrainian officials a better understanding of how properly managed, transparent strategic communications in a democracy help build confidence and mutual trust, the program assisted them in building a strong, transparent, democracy in the heart of Europe.

See Meridian's blog The Lead for more program details and participants' first- hand accounts of their experiences.

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