Our Vision
A world where all children and families have access to engaging, entertaining, fun and trustworthy education about even the toughest topics related to health, safety and wellbeing.
Behaviour Change Communication
At Project HAND UP we want healthier communities. We help bridge the gap between the problems and the solutions – with education. However, education alone doesn’t improve lives. The knowledge that results in action does.
Memorization isn’t the same as knowledge. And getting kids, families, and caregivers to apply knowledge to create action requires stories that move from the head…to the heart. This is where the hands follow.
At Project HAND UP, we started with the ambitious acronym Healthy Africa (or America, Australia, or Asia…) a New Directive Using Puppets. HAND UP. But the name was also strategic. Our charity was not about providing resources like a “hand out” but providing knowledge as a “hand up.”
Now, of course, our passion has always been using puppets as our primary messaging medium, and so it is actually literal that every one of us puts one “hand up” (inside a puppet body) to bring our characters to life to tell stories. But when it is all said and done, it is about getting our audience to act.
“Who here will put your hand up to commit to treating a child born with HIV with dignity and respect?”
“If you promise to remind the adults in your compound that you need a proper latrine built at home; put your hand up!”
“If you are going to boil your water for 2 minutes before drinking it, raise your hand up!”
So, we are many things, but most of all we are about action.
If you have read this far, we know you are looking for help to get your life-changing behaviour change message out. We are here in the front row, enthusiastically putting our HAND UP to for you to see: “Ooo! ooo! Pick us! Pick us! We want to help!”
How We Work
We are currently employing the ABCDE model of crafting persuasive messages that lead to behaviour change.
We will start with a conversation with our client that defines our Audience, and then the desired Behaviour change. Once understood and well defined we then break down what exactly we need to Communicate. Together we will decide how that message will be Delivered (tv, print, digital, in-person, or some combination) and finally, we will clearly define how our initiative will be evaluated.
Some of our past clients have come with all or most of the steps pre-defined – others come for consultation on their own projects. We are here to serve.
Our Values
- Integrity – We do no harm and we tell the truth
- Cultural Sensitivity – we encourage respect and prioritize representation
- Creativity – we use unorthodox teaching styles, humor, and fun as our foundations for educational content
- Education – health, well-being, and advocacy are our prime directives
- Quality – it has to look nice and never be boring
- Promotion – we want others to do what we do too