Development CommunicationDevelopment communication (DevCom) as a field of study and practice in the Philippines has already gained local and international recognition. A few definitions after the first in the 1970s by pioneer Dr. Nora C. Quebral, DevCom is now described as “the science of human communication linked to the transitioning of communities from poverty in all its forms to a dynamic, overall growth that fosters equity and the unfolding of individual potential.” DevCom has contributed in catalyzing, facilitating, and sustaining social changes among marginalized communities. Communication and development scholars now look to DevCom as a process of helping attain the development goals of a nation.
|
Our History |
Considering the potential of the field, several universities and colleges in the Philippines have degree programs in DevCom or offer DevCom as a major area of specialization of their communication programs. The country’s Commission on Higher Education (CHED) has also required students enrolled in BA/AB Communication to take up an introductory course in DevCom. The offering in more schools has generated a pool of educators and practitioners in DevCom now working in various sectors of the country. In the academe alone, there is a network of nine state colleges and universities linked to the College of Development Communication at the University of the Philippines Los Banos (UPLB), which pioneered the field and provides capacity building for network members.
With the potential of the network for education, training, policymaking, and research, it was formally organized into an organization, the Consortium of Development Communication Educators and Practitioners (CDCEPP) on December 8, 2011 in CDC, UP Los Baños. The organizing process, however, began as early as 2009 among DevCom educators who gathered in UP Los Banos during the Making Waves Congress held for DevCom students nationwide. In 2015, five conferences later, CDCEPP was transformed to the Association of Development Communication Educators and Practitioners (ADCEP) in recognition of its growing networks and alliances with those who are in the DevCom field outside of the Philippines. |
Who We Are |
Since its inception, DevCom has remained as a very promising field of communication. Today, educators and practitioners gather to share and discuss about the narratives, trends, challenges and future of the field in the local, national, and global contexts. ADCEP holds its annual conference of DevCom educators, practitioners and advocates as an avenue for discourse and dialogue on development agenda, issues and policies.
|