WHO: Reframing Trust in Global Health Communication
The World Health Organization sits at the centre of global health security, but trust in international bodies has become more fragile. After the pandemic, countries and communities have questioned mandates, motives, and leadership. WHO’s communications leaders needed a narrative that could rebuild confidence, strengthen coordination, and reflect the urgency of the moment without relying on technical language or institutional slogans.
Impact
The session provided a strategic foundation for narrative alignment across WHO's communications network. Key outcomes included clear, values-rooted guidance for countering misinformation, not just process or protocol, a shared vocabulary and strategic framing adopted by communications leads across global regions, and greater internal confidence to engage assertively with misinformation and deliver communications that reflect WHO's mandate with renewed clarity.
Approach
We designed and facilitated a high-intensity, four-hour narrative workshop for WHO's global communications leadership. Our approach challenged senior leaders in Geneva and across WHO regions to move beyond institutional caution and craft messaging with greater clarity and resonance. We reframed WHO's role in global health protection through a stronger human narrative, developed language to proactively counter misinformation in the most politicised environments, and equipped global teams with a shared framing model to apply across markets, languages and crises.
