Students-run initiatives and sustainable development an analysis of the communication factor

Abstract

This study investigated the communication that goes into in three students-run initiatives in Ghana. The students-run initiatives that were understudied were Khays Foundation, Organisation for Inclusion and Empowerment and For the Future Ghana. Underpinned by the social capital theory and the four-flow model of organisational communication, the study employed a qualitative multi-case study using interviews, focus group discussions, and document analysis to assess the nature of the three students-run initiatives in Ghana. The study also examined the direction of communication within the three students-run organisations and examined the communication-based resource mobilisation strategies adopted by the three studentsrun initiatives. The study found that the students-run initiatives were by nature extracurricular, non-governmental, volunteer-driven and operate from the bottom-up. The study revealed four communication patterns employed the three students-run initiatives. These were downward, upward, horizontal, and diagonal patterns of organisational communication. Notably, social media marketing, interpersonal communication, and grant sourcing emerged as the key communication strategies for resource mobilisation adopted by the three students-run initiatives understudy for embarking on sustainable development projects at community level. The study concludes that the students-run initiatives exhibit both horizontal and vertical forms of philanthropy and achieve sustainability by relying on local assets and resources for sustainable development.