Sustainable Development as a Continuous Information and Communication Engagement: Towards a Theory of Societal Negentropy

The purpose of this volume is to revisit the core principle that growth is a function of communication, encapsulated in the term, negentropy, in the light of noteworthy initiatives that applied this construct in the pursuit of development goals. The book explores evolutions in the theory of information and communication for development, and offers concrete examples of theory in practice, drawing heavily from the author’s own experience.  Presented as an autoethnography, it incorporates the voices of a variety of actors who were at one time or another involved in the theory and practice of sustainable development – researchers and scholars, practitioners and field workers, alike – representing a cross-section of the community that built this body of knowledge and its emergent culture in the past half century. This book is a valuable reference to development communication, sustainability communication, C4D, ICT4D and KM4D students, academics and professionals in both developed and developing countries with its field practice documentation, theoretical insights as well as back stories involving key actors in this global undertaking.

DR. ALEXANDER GONZALEZ FLOR is Professor Emeritus of the UP Open University, where he served as Vice Chancellor for Research and Development (2002-04) and Dean, Faculty of Information & Communication Studies (2004-10, 2026-22). He held the rank of Professor 12, was awarded the distinction of UP Scientist III (2015-23), occupied the One UP Professorial Chair in Knowledge Management (2014-22) as well as the UP SEARCA Inaugural Centennial Professorial Chair (2008). He served as the first Chair of the Commission on Higher Education Technical Committee on Alternative Learning Systems and Member of the Technical Panel on Teacher Education (2010-2014). He was also the founding Program Manager of the SEAMEO-SEARCA Knowledge Management Program (1998-2002). Dr. Flor has worked with the University of the Philippines since 1976 and has served as technical adviser in eighteen (18) countries under official development assistance missions.