Global Handwashing Day

HBCC and Global Handwashing Day
The Hygiene & Behaviour Change Coalition (HBCC) is a partnership between Unilever and the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) aimed at promoting handwashing and good hygiene against the backdrop of the global pandemic
The purpose of Global Handwashing Day (GHD) is to raise the profile of handwashing with soap
This GHD campaign supports the strategic HBCC objectives to scale up simple hygiene practices like handwashing, and the advocacy objective to call on governments to increase funding for WASH, in particular in institutions like school for behaviour change programs, infrastructure and maintenance

Background
The Global Handwashing Partnership (GHP) is a coalition of partners both private, public and NGO sectors to promote handwashing with soap. Global Handwashing Day was established as October 15th in 2008
Several HBCC partners are already part of GHP- including FCDO, Unilever, Unicef, LSHTM, IRC and World Vision. This GHD gives us a big moment to rally around the need for hand hygiene for all, which is particularly relevant in this year of a pandemic
This campaign has been developed as a public facing celebration of Global Handwashing Day by Unilever-Lifebuoy in consultation with the Global Handwashing Partnership and Hand Hygiene for All.

How do we leverage GHD this year to reinforce handwashing habits not just on this day but EVERY SINGLE DAY?
The pandemic has changed everything.

Caution fatigue
Given the massive scale of handwash education that all of us have been doing there is a risk of people becoming fatigued of the warnings and the instructions, which leads them to drop their guard and become less vigilant.
Through GHD we want to ensure that we can bring handwashing back into the forefront of their conversations once again! Cutting through noise to garner maximum engagement and impact!

Never has there been a better time for us to change the handwashing behaviour of the world forever
We require a fundamental change in 2020.
A change that starts with the young, but, will be heard by every one

Reaching them young
We know that teaching language skills in the early years of a child’s life has a lasting impact on their lives. Language development not only supports the ability to communicate, think and problem-solve but also establishes patterns and memory storage
Children have been learning the letters of the alphabet for hundreds of years through simple connections with everyday things. A for Apple, B for Ball, C for Cat and so on
These connections have helped teachers establish the building blocks of language and literacy – through pictures, song and even through tactile and experiential methods.

GHD 2020 campaign
In order to make handwashing a part of the everyday in the lives of children, we propose a small, yet a fundamental change in the way the letters of the alphabet are taught.
The letter H has always mainly stood for ‘Hat’, a common object and a part of the everyday, hundreds of years ago. This is the right moment in the history of the world for educators everywhere to forever change what H stands for.
From ‘H for Hat’, to ‘H for Handwashing’
A single intervention that will introduce the concept of handwashing to children at the right age, making it a widespread and a common habit that is learnt early but can last a lifetime.
Partners can localize H for handwashing to their country's common alphabet/script as appropriate
LOGO

Studies suggest that when you teach a concept, you also learn it well yourself. ‘Being able to understand an idea well enough to convey it to others will help you relate to it and internalize it yourself’
The protégé effect is primarily associated with the academic context, where teaching others can help you learn material that you need to learn yourself
H for Handwashing isn’t just meant for children, but for educators everywhere – teachers, parents, mentors, care-givers, siblings, grand parents
Kickstart change early

Key Visual
H for Handwashing

Two pillars of the initiative
Pillar 2
ADVOCACY:
Transforming the letter H into a symbol for Handwashing.
Advocacy at the highest levels with ministries, education policy makers and influencers, schools and curriculum experts, to ensure handwashing behaviour inculcation is implemented at scale.
Pillar 1
AMPLIFICATION:
Inspiring people to join
the movement
People participation through creation of their own versions of the letter H for sharing on social media in solidarity with the cause

Pillar 1 | AMPLIFICATION

We want to invite people to create the letter H in their own personal way and use it as a reminder for handwashing.
This can be done through
Offline: Installing reminders of H for Handwashing at home or in public spaces
Online: Amplify through social media channels. Share pictures of their H’s using #Hforhandwashing. This includes people at large as well as celebrities, influencers
Amplification activities aim to drive inspiration, engagement and participation to remind ourselves about #HforHandwashing

Here are some simple yet creative ideas to create the reminder – place them at key locations (entering the home, reaching for food) where they can remind people to wash their hands

Posts for Social Media:
Facebook

Call upon celebrities and influencers to share this message
Encourage celebrities, influencers and leaders to join in and amplify the campaign by posting videos pledging their support for the initiative!
Sample social media post:
Adopt handwashing with soap early on to make it a lifetime habit. This #GlobalHandwashingDay, we’re on a mission to ensure handwashing is a lesson never forgotten #HforHandwashing #HandHygieneforAll #HBCC @Unilever @FCDO @partner

Celebrities and influencers ideas
On GHD celebrities/influencers can post photos of their creative renditions of H in their own homes – through craft, or even some innovative reminders – latte art, Lego blocks, sketches, sculptures - to boost public participation.

InstaStory
‘Swipe up’ text
Posts for Social Media: Instagram

Insta stories and filters for influencers, leaders and key opinion leaders
Celebrities, influencers and leaders can kickstart a social media movement inviting everyone to record and share.
Search for Insta filter #HforHW
Don’t forget: Tag #HforHandwashing
The filter will go live closer to GHD: Estimated to go live on 5th October
Sing the H for handwashing song with the alphabet icons
This will be a native Instagram Filter, which anyone on Instagram will be able to use
We also encourage you to create or adapt something like this in your local languages and alphabet/script

Sample Instagram stories for Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs)
Since KOLs will also be doing the ABC video, break the story into 3 Insta stories:
Story 1
KOL looking into the camera and saying: “How do we make sure people never forget handwashing?
It’s simple we make a slight change in the way we teach ABCD
Watch my next story to know how.”
Story 2
Their version of ABC video
Story 3
They will say : “Make your videos using the H for Handwashing filter and put it on your stories to spread the word.

Other options to activate H for Handwashing on Social Media
Option 1
Hold a picture of a hat
Say “H for hat. That’s how we were taught the letter H.
Hats were really important back when letters were being invented.
But today Handwashing is.
So from now on let’s teach kids the letter H as H is for Handwashing. Let’s introduce them to a critical habit”.
Option 2
Hold a picture of the letter H.
What are the words that come to your mind when you see the letter H?
90% chances are you didn’t think of the word handwashing.
That’s why we are proposing a change in the way letters of the alphabet are taught to kids.
From now on let’s teach kids the letter H as H is for Handwashing. Let’s introduce them to a critical habit”.
Option 3
Hold a picture the letter H.
What are the words that come to your mind when you see the letter H .
90% chances are you didn’t think of the word handwashing.
The one act that can help us during these times.

Pillar 2 | ADVOCACY

Advocacy activities aim to teach children the simple lesson and beyond GHD transform the letter H into a symbol for handwashing
We want to teach children a lesson on H for Handwashing, and advocate for future generations of children learn this important lesson
This can be done through
On GHD: Teach children a lesson on H for Handwashing in schools, preschools and households
Beyond GHD: Work with partners and governments to introduce ‘H for Handwashing’ into early childhood learning. Special efforts should also be made to reach children who may be left behind from formal education settings, such as girls and refugees.

Playbook: Interactive stories, activities and posters for all educators to teach pre-school aged kids about handwashing with soap. View, download, print, share.

Alphabet Poster: H for Handwashing
View, download, print, share

Posters on the importance of washing hands on key occasions: View, download, print, share

Make your own H for Handwashing reminder to place in key spots around the home and share it on social media. The reminder activity and cut out is within the playbook.

Snapshot of all channels & assets available
Playbook, posters
Key visual, Social media posts

The campaign materials shared on the slides can be downloaded via this link: http://bit.ly/HforHandwashing
For any questions, please contact Andy [e-mail]. Further resources on GHD can be accessed on the GHP website https://globalhandwashing.org/
Let’s make this Global Handwashing Day a lesson the world will never forget!