IAMCR and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) are delighted to announce the 2025 FAO/IAMCR Rural Communication Services Award winners. These awards recognise outstanding research that advances our understanding of Rural Communication Services (RCS) in areas such as agriculture, family farming, natural resource management, climate change adaptation, food security, and disaster risk reduction and management.
The winners of the 2025 FAO/IAMCR Rural Communication Services Awards are:
- "Developing a National Strategy for Enabling, Shaping, and Seeding Meaningful Community-Centered Connectivity in Rural Indonesia". Subekti Priyadharma, et al.
- "ICTs, Community Empowerment and the Politics of Inclusion and Exclusion in Rural Bangladesh". Mohammad Sahid Ullah
- "The Impact of Trust in Information Source on Farmers’ Intentions to Adopt Agricultural Technologies: An Empirical Study from Inner Mongolia, China". Li Zhang, et al.
The award-winning papers will be presented at a special panel organized by the Rural Communication Working Group during the IAMCR 2025 conference in Singapore.
The selected papers will be published in a FAO/IAMCR publication, contributing to the global discourse on rural communication and sustainable development.
Developing a National Strategy for Enabling, Shaping, and Seeding Meaningful Community-Centered Connectivity in Rural Indonesia
By Subekti Priyadharma, Rudi Hartanto, Donny Utoyo, Devie Rahmawati, Dita Rachmawati, Indriyatno
Banyumurti, Gustaff Iskandar, Tisha Anwar, Akhmat Safrudin, Elanto Wijoyono and Savero Dwipayana
Center for Communication, Media, Culture, and Information Systems, Universitas Padjadjaran, and other institutions, Indonesia
Abstract
In an increasingly interconnected world, meaningful internet access remains a critical enabler of communication, social, economic, and cultural development, particularly for rural, remote, and marginalized communities. To support this vision, a national strategic plan is developed to advance meaningful Community-Centered Connectivity (CCC) initiatives, known in Indonesian as Internet Komunitas Bermakna. This initiative aims to address not only the digital divide, but also the unique needs of communities by ensuring that connectivity acts as a catalyst for local well-being, socio-economic empowerment, and cultural preservation. The development of this strategic plan is rooted in research conducted from August to December 2024 by a dedicated consultant team. This research employs a multi-method approach –field research, interviews, participatory discussions, and involvements in major events such as the Rural ICT Camp and the National Convening 2024– to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities related to CCC. Grounded in the Theory of Change developed by the Local Networks (LocNet) initiative, this research addresses three core objectives: enabling, shaping, and seeding meaningful CCC. Gender equality and inclusivity serve as cross-cutting dimensions in each of these objectives, reflecting a commitment to ensuring that no one is left behind. The findings are structured around five pillars, five key issues related to internet network utilization, and five primary stakeholders that constitute the supporting ecosystem for the development of CCC. This study successfully identified significant opportunities that can be leveraged for the establishment, development, and strengthening of inclusive and sustainable CCC. In addition, the paper highlights the relevance of these findings to Rural Communication Services (RCS). Furthermore, the study produced a medium-term action plan for the next five years, which includes advocacy for regulatory reforms for the recognition of various forms of community networks, community capacity-building, the promotion of multi-stakeholder coordination platforms, and culturally attuned policies that prioritize community needs.
Dr. Phil. Subekti W. Priyadharma, M.A. is a lecturer at the Faculty of Communication Sciences, Universitas Padjadjaran (Unpad), Indonesia and currently serves as the Head of Center for Communication, Media, Culture, and Information Systems (CMCI). He earned his bachelor's degree from Unpad and completed his M.A. and Ph.D. in Media and Communication Science at the University of Erfurt, Germany, supported by a DAAD scholarship. His doctoral dissertation, Internet and Social Change in Rural Indonesia (2021), introduced a periphery-centric approach to community-driven communication development. He also served as a DAAD guest lecturer in Erfurt and has led or participated in numerous national and international research projects. His academic and research interests include ICT for development (ICT4D), communication for social change, rural digitalization, community networks, and counterpublic spheres. He integrates the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into his teaching and emphasizes community-based, participatory research. Dr. Priyadharma recently led a national research team to develop a National Strategy for Meaningful Community-Centered Connectivity in Indonesia. Outside academia, he is active in labor advocacy, currently serving as the Chair of the West Java Chapter of the Campus Workers Union (SPK).
ICTs, Community Empowerment and the Politics of Inclusion and Exclusion in Rural Bangladesh
By Mohammad Sahid Ullah
Department of Communication and Journalism, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh
Abstract
This study explores the gaps between the principles and practice of the Union Digital Centre (UDC), an ICT project implemented by local governments in Bangladesh. Its findings reveal that the empowerment of rural communities is conditioned by local power hierarchies and that this issue with the existing social structure needs to be addressed prior to the scaling up of ICTs in development. Engaging with David Harvey’s “accumulation by dispossession”, it deals with the power dynamics, local hierarchies, the politics of exclusions and inclusions and the context-dependent nature of UDCs in community empowerment. The study demonstrates that the power-rich have both access and the capacity to benefit from this project at the cost of dispossession of the power-poor and argues that the introduction of UDCs as an ICT intervention in poor nations is not enough to combat power inequalities. The power dynamics maintained through the accumulation of material wealth and other resources that reconstitute themselves in discursive power relations are more influential in determining who benefits from any ICT investment. ICT intervention from the top arguably could not bring substantial change for the people who are living at the bottom of the power pyramid. The UDC nevertheless functions as another metaphorical ‘magic bullet’ within the neoliberal journey of Bangladeshi political economy. The results are the outcome of the observation of the power dynamics of rural communities in six UDC areas, including the daily activities of UDCs from across Bangladesh, where half of the total 186 million people used to reside. The study includes 55 in-depth interviews from various stakeholders—two national-level key policy coordinators of the UDC initiative, center entrepreneurs, center users, and non-users in UDC service areas.
Mohammad Sahid Ullah is a Professor at the Department of Communication and Journalism, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Queensland, Australia, in Communication and Arts. He is the author of three books with international repute, 60-plus book chapters, and research articles published in impact factor journals, including International Communication Gazette, Journal of Science Communication, Journalism Studies, South Asia Research, Asia Pacific Media Educators, and many more. He is the recipient of the Best Paper Award of the First World Journalism Education Congress (WJEC) in 2007. His main area of research interest comprises journalism education, new media and social change, community radio, and media laws. Mohammad Sahid Ullah is associated with a number of media, journalism, and communication associations, including the Asian Media and Information Center (AMIC) and the South Asian Communication Association (SACA). He served as the Country Director of the Worlds of Journalism Study (WJS) from 2012 to 2016 and served as the Co-Chair and Vice Chair of the Law Section of the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) for a decade (2006-2015).
The Impact of Trust in Information Source on Farmers’ Intentions to Adopt Agricultural Technologies: An Empirical Study from Inner Mongolia, China
By Li Zhang, Zongyi Huo, Yu Su
School of Journalism and Communication, Tsinghua University, China
Abstract
Employing the theory of Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM), this study explores the impact of trust in information source on Chinese farmers’ intention to adopt agricultural technology, particularly the Nature-based Solutions (NbS) in agricultural production. It conducts an offline survey in December, 2023 in Inner Mongolia, China. The results indicate that for farmers with limited knowledge, trust in government, scientists, and media outlets significantly enhances their intention to adopt NbS technologies. However, for those with high objective knowledge, only trust in local media has a significant positive effect on adoption intentions, while trust in new media shows no impact. Additionally, NbS training programs are effective only for farmers possessing high level of knowledge. This study suggests that promoting farmers’ adoption of new technologies requires institutions and individuals to prioritize building trust in information sources. This finding not only improves our understanding of farmers’ decision-making processes, but also provides valuable insights for designing more effective communication strategies to promote sustainable agricultural development. The study results not only demonstrate the validity of the ELM theoretical framework, but also extend its applicability to agricultural production, providing new insights into farmers' adoption of new agricultural technologies. By emphasizing the role of information processing routes and source credibility, especially trust in government, scientists, and the media, it deepens our understanding of the trust mechanism that drives technology adoption in rural areas. By extending the theory of ELM to the context of agricultural production, this study provides a nuanced understanding of the trust-based mechanisms shaping farmers’ adoption of new technologies. The findings offer dialectical insights for policymakers and researchers aiming to improve the rate of technology adoption in rural areas.
Li Zhang is Professor and Vice Dean of the School of Journalism and Communication, Tsinghua University, China. She holds a PhD from the University of Leeds and is Fellow of Higher Education Academy, UK. Before joining Tsinghua, she had held a permanent academic position at the University of East Anglia, UK, where she supervised PhD students toward completion. Her research interests fall in international communication, rural communication, and strategic communication. She has published over 100 articles in English and in Chinese. She is the author of News Media and EU-China Relations (Palgrave Macmillan 2011) and China in European Narratives (Routledge 2023). Her publications appear in JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies, Journal of Contemporary China, Comparative European Politics, Asia Europe Journal, Journal of Contemporary European Studies, International Communication Gazette, and Chinese Journal of Communication, among others.
Members of the Selection Committee
- Rico Lie, Wageningen University and Research, the Netherlands; Chair of IAMCR's Rural Communication Working Group; Global Research Initiative – Rural Communication (GRI-RC)
- Mario Acunzo, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Italy; CCComDev
- Ataharul Chowdhury, University of Guelph, School of Environmental Design & Rural Development; Global Research Initiative – Rural Communication (GRI-RC)
- Maria Stella C. Tirol, University of the Philippines Los Baños, the Philippines; CCComDev; Vice-chair of IAMCR's Rural Communication Working Group; Global Research Initiative – Rural Communication (GRI-RC)