“We are all here because we are believers in the power of communication,” asserted Dan Heath as he accepted the Gold Medallion Award from CCP at a ceremony at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health on December 7, 2010.

Communication has the power, Mr. Heath explained, to change individual behavior, spark widespread environmental change and alter longstanding social norms. Dan Heath and his brother, Chip Heath, harnessed that power when they helped CCP’s USAID-funded Strategic Radio Communication (STRADCOM) project in Tanzania develop the successful Fataki campaign. The Fataki campaign has been credited with empowering Tanzanians to act out against cross-generational sex, one of the key drivers of the HIV epidemic in Tanzania.

The Heath brothers, bestselling authors of the critically acclaimed books Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard and Made to Stick, were awarded the 2010 Gold Medallion Award for their outstanding contribution to CCP’s mission of saving lives and improving health through strategic communication, exemplified in their pivotal role in the conception of the Fataki campaign. The award was presented by Dr. David Holtgrave, Chair of the Department of Heath, Behavior and Society, and Susan Krenn, Director of CCP, at a ceremony attended by Jeanne K. Ndyetabura, Assistant Commissioner of the Tanazanian Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Robert Karam, CCP’s Tanzania Country Representative, and Deo Ng’wanansabi, STRADCOM Chief of Party.

The Gold Medallion is given out annually to an individual or group that has shown exceptional leadership in the field of health communication. Asahi Kasei Corporation of Japan sponsors the award. Past recipients include Ms. Catherine Phiri, Social Responsibility Director for MTV Networks International; Dr. Gregory Allgood and Ms. Marwa El Shahawy of Procter & Gamble; and Mr. Hiroshi Taniguchi, Policy Advisor for the Government of Japan.

View photos of the Gold Medallion ceremony

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