IAMCR's Community Communication Section (ComCom) and the UNESCO Chair on Community Media, University of Hyderabad, organised a two-day pre-conference on community media. “Building Community–Shaping Change: The Role of Community, Citizen and Alternative Media in Regional Transformation”, took place on July 13 and 14, 2014, supported by UNESCO, AMARC, CEMCA, Ideosync Media Combine and the Ford Foundation.
More than 100 participants, including scholars, activists, advocates, and practitioners attended the pre-conference and made presentations on a range of community media and deliberated on issues of concern to the sector, such as policy environment, sustainability, representations of marginalized groups, technological possibilities, links with social movements, etc. There was special focus on the South Asian region, with a number of participants from India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh taking part in the discussions.