Multilingual coronavirus communications
The Finnish Red Cross’s Organisations’ Multilingual and Multichannel Coronavirus Communications Coordination Project (MMCC) was an initiative funded by the Funding Centre for Social Welfare and Health Organisations STEA, running from May 2021 until April 2023.
In cooperation with our partner organisations, the initiative developed and supported the coronavirus communications of organisations and reached as many foreign-language-speaking target groups as possible. The targeted multichannel communications impacted people’s access to information and health behaviour. The project communications focused on close cooperation, open flow of information and making use of existing information.
The project included more than ten organisations, five Finnish Red Cross districts and several other cooperation partners. It also acted as a conveyor of official communications (primarily from the National Institute for Health and Welfare THL) to organisations and foreign-language-speaking target groups.
The coordination project of multilingual coronavirus communications helped and supported the production and distribution of existing and new coronavirus-related materials. It provided training and distributed information according to the needs of our partner organisations. The project also encouraged organisations to conduct mutual cooperation. Shared communications based on cooperation strengthen the position and work of all operators in disruptions and emergencies.
Project Coordinator Marian Ismail and Communications Specialist Erika-Evely Ee Eisen (ee.eisen@redcross.fi) worked on the project.
Get to know the Master multilingual communications! guide created in the project:
Download the guide in Finnish
Download the guide in English
Download the guide in Swedish
The practical checklist included in the guide is also available in the following languages:
Download the checklist in Finnish
Download the checklist in Easy Finnish
Download the checklist in Swedish
Download the checklist in English
Download the checklist in Estonian
Download the checklist in Russian
Download the checklist in Arabic
Download the checklist in Somali
Download the checklist in Chinese
A limited print edition of the guide in Finnish is also available. Order the guide via email from ee.eisen(@)redcross.fi or sanna.saarto(@)redcross.fi
What have we learned about the coronavirus? project seminar in Helsinki on 17 November 2022
Watch the seminar presentations on YouTube here.
Lessons from the project have been published as part of research:
Outreach and dissemination of public information to immigrants during the COVID-19 pandemic
Improving communication with migrants for crisis preparedness in Finland: Lessons learned from COVID-19 in Finnish in English
Disinformation and media literacy cards published in the project
Test your media literacy
Finnish
Estonian
Russian
English
Kurdish/Sorani
Arabic
Somali
Identify false content and fake news
Finnish
Estonian
Russian
English
Kurdish/Sorani
Arabic
Somali
Other materials of the project are available on the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment’s Partnership Platform in the Multilingual and multichannel coronavirus communications workspace. The platform requires registration.
Thanks
Social Welfare and Health Organisations STEA for funding our project
and the National Institute for Health and Welfare for their close cooperation.
Special thanks also go to our partner organisations for
participating in the project and for developing multilingual communications.
So thank you to Afrofinns, Daisy Ladies, HEED Association Finland, JADE activity centre,
Kide Foundation, Physicians for Social Responsibility – Finland, MIELI Mental Health Finland’s Mieli without Borders,
Mirsal, Monaliiku, Moniheli, Finnish Consortium of Intercultural Elderly Care,
Pakolaisnuorten tuki ry’s Kölvi activities, Associaton of Carers in Helsinki and Vantaa,
SAMHA, Multicultural Association of Satakunta, Sonpet, Finland-Somalia
Association, Finnish-Syrian Friendship Association, Finland-Russia Society, Central Organisation of Russian speakers in Finland, Vantaa Russian Club, Varsinais-Suomen
Galmudug, Varsinais-Suomen Viro-keskus, Vuolle Setlementti,
All Our Children and the representatives of other organisations.
We would also like to thank the Helsinki and Uusimaa,
Häme, Satakunta, Savonia-Karelia and Southwest Finland districts of the Finnish Red Cross,
the translation researchers at the Department of Languages of the University of Helsinki, the City of Helsinki,
the City of Espoo and all the key contributors and supporters.