1st Edition

People, Land and Water Participatory Development Communication for Natural Resource Management

Edited By Guy Bessette Copyright 2006
    334 Pages
    by Routledge

    334 Pages
    by Routledge

    In natural resource management research, best practice implies the participation of community members, research or development teams and other stakeholders to jointly identify research and development parameters and contribute to decision making. Ideally, the research or development process itself generates a situation of empowerment in which participants transform their vision and become able to take effective action. Used increasingly widely in resource management, this process is known as Participatory Development Communication (PDC). This book presents conceptual and methodological issues related to the use of PDC to facilitate participation amongst stakeholders in a variety of natural resource management initiatives. Each chapter presents in-depth experiences from Asia and Africa to highlight different ways in which this process can be achieved. The book describes the major issues involved in applying PDC to natural resource management practices and research, discusses the challenges and the difficulties linked to such an approach and offers insights and lessons from research and experience in the field.

    Part I Introduction * Facilitating Dialogue, Learning and Participation in Natural Resource Management * Part II Regional Perspectives * Participatory Development Communication * Part III Participatory Development Communication in Action * Participatory Communication and Local Knowledge in Mali * Introducing Participatory Development Communication within Existing Initiatives: A Case from Egypt * Goats, Cherry Trees and Videotapes* From Resource-Poor Users to Natural Resource Managers * Participatory Research and Water Resource Management* Communication Across Cultures and Languages in Cambodia * Talking with Decision-Makers in North-Eastern Cambodia * From Rio to the Sahel * Engaging the Most Disadvantaged Groups in Local Development* Conserving Biodiversity in the Democratic Republic of the Congo* The Word that Quenches Their Thirst* Reaping the Fruit of Participatory Development Communication * Giving West African Women a Voice in Natural Resource Management and Policies * Water: A Source of Conflict, a Source of Cohesion in Burkina Faso * Experimenting with Participatory Development Communication in West Africa * Strategic Communication in Community-Based Fisheries and Forestry * Paving the Way for Creating Space in Local Forest Management in the Philippines * Part IV Communication Tools and Participatory Approaches * Communication Tools in the Hands of Ugandan Farmers * From Information to Communication in Burkina Faso * Radio Ada and Participatory Natural Resource Management in Obane, Ghana * Burkina Faso: When Farm Wives Take to the Stage * How the Parley Is Saving Villages in Burkina Faso * Part V Collaborative Learning in Participatory Development for Natural Resource Management * Forging Links between Research and Development in the Sahe * Towards Institutionalizing a Capacity-Building and Networking Programme in Participatory Development Communication for Natural Resource Management * Implementing Isang Bagsak in East and Southern Africa * Reflections on Participatory Development and Related Capacity * Community-Based Coastal Resource Management in Central Viet Nam * Building Communication Capacity for Natural Resource Management in Cambodia * A Window to the World for the Custodians of the Philippine Forest * Part VI Conclusion * Facilitating Participatory Group Processes *

    Biography

    Guy Bessette is a senior program specialist for Canada's International Development Research Centre in the area of environment and natural resource management. Bessette specializes in development communication and participatory development. He holds a doctorate in educational technology and has authored three other books on development communication (published with IDRC)

    'A practical book, with concrete examples of PDC up and running in the field.' Spore, December 2006.