PROTOCOL P-20 | Communication & Information Sharing

Information Disclosure Protocol Protocol

TRIGGER At each project phase gate; whenever project scope, timeline, land status, or environmental conditions change; before any major community consultation.

STEPS

1. Identify what must be disclosed at each project phase

   Minimum required categories at every phase gate: project scope and timeline updates, land acquisition and permit status, environmental and livelihood impact assessments, compensation and benefit arrangements, grievance channels and how to use them, changes to any prior disclosure since the last review.

2. Assess the accessibility of each disclosure item

   For each item, ask: Can the typical community member (with primary school education, in local language, with no prior knowledge of renewable energy) understand this? If not, what accessible format is needed?

3. Prepare accessible materials in local language

   Use the Communication Kit (T-14) as the framework. For each disclosure item, prepare: a plain-language summary; a visual version where complexity requires it; talking points for verbal delivery at community meetings.

4. Deliver disclosure through multiple channels

   Do not rely on a single channel. Use: community assemblies (for group delivery); posted notices (for ongoing access); direct distribution to households or groups with specific interests; and follow-up channels (phone, barangay official relay) for those who did not attend formal events.

5. Verify that disclosure was received and understood

   After disclosure, verify using the Information Asymmetry Audit (T-15): ask a sample of community members to summarize what they understood. If understanding is low, revise and re-disclose before proceeding.

6. Document disclosure and verification

   Record: what was disclosed, when, in what format, through which channels, to which groups, and what verification found. This is the disclosure record. The evidence that information was shared and understood.

7. Update disclosure whenever material facts change

   A disclosure that was accurate at pre-development may be inaccurate by construction. Update at every material change. Not on a scheduled cycle alone..

PURPOSE

To define what information must be shared, in what form, through which channels, and at what project milestones, ensuring that disclosure is proactive, accessible, and verified as received, not merely technically compliant. Information that has been disclosed but not understood has not been disclosed in any meaningful sense.

Roles and Responsibilities

Primary:

Actor: ComRel Officer / PCO
Responsibility: Prepares accessible materials, coordinates disclosure events, manages verification, and maintains the disclosure record.

Supporting:

Actor: LGU / Barangay Officials
Responsibility: Supports community-level distribution; briefs constituents; relays questions back to the ComRel officer.

Approves:

Actor: Project Manager
Responsibility: Approves disclosure content for accuracy; confirms that material changes trigger updated disclosure.

Field Notes and Adaptation Guidance

• Field Note — Disclosure is not a one-time event

  Disclosure at the start of a project is not sufficient for the life of the project. As conditions change (land acquisition progresses, timelines shift, environmental assessments are updated) the information communities need changes too. Each phase transition should trigger a disclosure review. Each material change should trigger an update.

• Field Note — Verification is the missing step

  The standard disclosure process ends with delivery. This protocol adds a required verification step: asking community members to summarize what they understood. This step consistently reveals gaps that practitioners assumed did not exist. Invest in verification, it takes one hour and prevents months of misunderstanding.

• Adaptation Guidance

  In communities with active social media presence, consider a dedicated project page or group where disclosure materials are posted and community members can ask questions directly. This supplements formal disclosure with an ongoing accessible channel. Monitor it regularly, questions asked informally online are signals worth capturing.

Required Output / Documentation

• Disclosure record: what was shared, when, in what form, through which channels, and verification findings

• Updated Communication Kit materials for the current phase

• Information Asymmetry Audit completed after major disclosure events