Click to view audiovisual presentation about CREATE!

Communication is a critical component of successful disaster response. UNICEF developed the CREATE! framework following the Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004, in order to open the channels of communication and facilitate better emergency response.

The tsunami disaster of December 2004 struck without warning, and left catastrophic consequences in its wake. In a matter of minutes, large numbers of traumatized people were displaced from their homes; the demand for information was high. Programme communication needs were immediate and urgent – from promoting life-saving hygiene and sanitation behaviours to dealing with traumatized and vulnerable children. Across South-East Asia, UNICEF strove to distribute information on breastfeeding, immunization and the urgent need to encourage children back to school.

Because the disaster impacts were felt so quickly, communication tools would have made a difference from the very first day. However, as in previous emergencies, country programme teams reported that one of their major limitations was a lack of readily available and effective response tools. In reality it took several weeks (and in some cases several months) to produce the simple (and often predictable) materials that were needed.

CREATE! (Creative Resources, Essentials and Tools for Emergencies) was developed to prevent this situation from happening in the future. Through its framework, appropriate, effective and professionally produced emergency communication tools can be adapted, produced and delivered to where they are most needed. CREATE! presents a core set of tools developed in cooperation with programme communication teams in five emergency ‘hot-spot’ countries (countries judged to be at a particularly high risk of future disasters). Material is available not only as finished products, which can be finalized within a matter of days, but also as a series of individual elements like artwork, photography, texts, scripts, etc.

In this way, highly professional communication tools can be quickly adapted to meet the needs of affected communities in a matter of hours or days. This enables an immediate programme communication response for the acute phase, as well as facilitating transition towards recovery and reconstruction.

Using an innovative participatory approach, CREATE! develops and tests the tools in partnership with at-risk communities. In-country adaptation can translate the core materials into local languages, as well as produce culturally sensitive versions of graphics and illustrations. Through Create!, programme teams can draw on the very best communication tools developed during UNICEF’s previous emergency experiences.

CREATE! thanks the Government of Japan for their generous contribution to the development of these resources.