Case Study: Global Asbestos Awareness Week – A Practical Approach to Integrating Social Media

The case study presentation will discuss how the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO), a leading asbestos victims' voice worldwide, has grown and created a week of international advocacy known as Global Asbestos Awareness Week (GAAW). The week's initiatives promote education, community, and an end to the use of asbestos on a global level. The presentation will highlight and analyze the latest developments in new, traditional, and emerging media, as well as practical applications of building and executing an integrative social media campaign using digital technology and social networks. Focusing on national and international occupational and environmental disease prevention, Reinstein will discuss developing, implementing, and leveraging integrated social media education, advocacy, and community initiative campaigns to harness the power of “new media.” New media forums including websites, blogs, social networking sites, mobile communications, and more have given organizations powerful and dynamic opportunities to interact with the public, share information, and grow. The benefits are numerous: the ability to reach a larger and more diverse audience faster, easier, and cheaper; the centralization of educational information and resources; the transition from one-sided messaging to public interaction; the empowering of individuals to take action; and the ability for individuals to be a part of a larger community of hope and support. The case study will illustrate the practical, systematic, and integrative approach to maximize new media, strengthen communication, and expand collaborative efforts to protect public health.