Danube Watch 3/2018 - Reaching out to the people of the Danube the ICPDR launches its new social media channels

T echnical experts and members of expert groups at the ICPDR are working tirelessly for the Danube River Basin and its people. Now we want to give every single resident of the Danube Basin an opportunity to make their voices heard and get involved in restoring and safeguarding the waters of the basin for future generations. Social Media is an excellent tried and tested channel that is perfect for such a challenge.

The constant development of our communication activities, under the lead of the dedicated Public Participation expert group (PP EG), have allowed the ICPDR to position itself and to present our work for the Danube in an increasingly visible manner. Now we would like to get to know our various stakeholder groups even better. To achieve this, the ICPDR officially launched its social media channels on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube on November 30th 2018. We now invite all of you to be part of this process and to help us share with the world everything that makes the ICPDR so special. Each day you act as the keeper of the Danube and it is time to tell your stories.

Opening ourselves up to communication also means showing confidence in our competences and bringing our expertise to a broader public. These additional communication channels will contribute to strengthening our image and reputation, building our credibility with an even wider audience and persuading even more people to support our mission.

With our social media channels, we are not only engaging in dialogue and interaction with a wider public audience, we are also making sure that information is disseminated among all members of the internal ICPDR family. Exchanging information, discussing important themes and relaying them to the outside world is also a vehicle for the promotion of our internal, multi-disciplinary communication as we strive to strengthen our common interests.

The widespread use of social media is growing at a phenomenal pace. Facebook alone saw over 2.13 billion monthly active users worldwide in the fourth quarter of 2017. With their continued annual 14 percent increase in user activity, it is clear that social media outlets represent an excellent opportunity and have become a must for organisations who wish to communicate with their internal and external stakeholders.

With the launch of this initiative, the ICPDR social media communication network is seeking to expand its outreach, and better integrate messages to current users by keeping them informed of new developments and activities. For the ICPDR, the advantages of a social media presence network include:
 

• construction of sustainable networks
• immediate and direct communication
• demonstration of presence and activity
• promoting participation and building dialogue through mutual communication channels
• transparency and creation of trust
• providing information in real-time
• making use of the dissemination mechanisms of social media platforms
• promotion of engagement

The ICPDR has a great base for effective social media presence:

• 19 countries share the Danube River Basin
• more than 81 million people call the Danube Basin their home
• we are working 24/7 for the Danube Basin and its people

The PP EG group is the driving force behind this initiative and is currently striv- ing to increase its outreach by carrying out research to select appropriate platforms that will reach all the people we want to reach. We presently have several methods of visualising information for our stakeholders. However, the PP EG’s primary objective is to actively engage with stakeholders and involve them in ICPDR activities. Social media is an in- valuable tool that can be used to in- crease the PP EG’s reach to the broader public. We have compelling stories to tell: and we trigger reactions

• AWARENESS "We know the ICPDR"
• ENGAGEMENT "We want a cleaner, safer, healthier Danube"
• COMMITMENT "We support the ICPDR"