2006, Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR)
Participatory methods have gained popularity in recent years as researchers, field practitioners and development professionals have sought more effective ways to involve local people in decision making and research. The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) has developed various participatory tools specifically for use with forest communities and other natural resource dependent groups. Some of these tools are adaptations of existing methods; others were created specifically for work with forest dependent communities. The tools have diverse applications: stakeholder identification, decision making, planning, conflict management, information collection, and other uses.
CIFOR has applied and tested these methods in communities in many countries, including Indonesia, Vietnam, Nepal, Zimbabwe, Cameroon, Malawi, Brazil, and Bolivia among others. This collective experience has strengthened and enriched the tools, making them flexible and robust.
This guide is directed toward environment and development practitioners, researchers, and local government leaders. It provides information on several tools in order to help readers grasp the tools’ basic capabilities, identify the most appropriate tool for their needs and find resources for additional information. The guide does not provide an exhaustive description of how to use each tool but rather an introduction and comparative overview. Much like a map, this guide sends readers in the right direction.
The guide is divided into three main sections. The first provides a brief discussion about forest communities, participation, participatory tools, pitfalls of participatory tools and related concepts. The second section provides a summary description of each tool, considerations when selecting a tool and a comparative matrix to make it easy to find the right tool. The final section provides more details about the tools in a table format. Each tool has a general description, strengths and limitations, practical considerations, an example and resources for more information. As more tools are developed, they will be added to the guide.
Readers who are new to participatory tools may find it valuable to start with the overview in “Concepts.” Those who already have a clear idea of their objectives for using a tool may find it easiest to visit first the comparative matrix in “Guidelines for Selecting a Tool” to determine which tool meets their needs. Others may wish to flip straight to the “Toolbox” and browse.
