Operationalizing participatory approaches in natural resource management, Ahmedabad, 16-17, 2002

This report gives account of the proceedings of the workshop Operationalizing participatory Approaches in Natural Resource Management organised by the Development Support Centre, in Ahmedabad, India, in 2002. The aim of the workshop was to share and reflect on the experiences of policy makers and implementers in promoting participation in three natural resource management (NRM) programmes, promoting watershed development, irrigation management and joint forest management, in the state of Gujarat. The facilitators and participants also looked at ways and means to enhance peopleÆs participation in these programmes. Participants included government policy makers at state level, practitioners at district level and NGO leaders. Participatory methods were used extensively during the workshop with experience sharing being central. The proceedings are initiated with a description of the inauguration and the methods used to meet and greet each other; expectations of the participants; and explanation of words frequently used in the development field. They go on to take a brief look at each presentation and describes the participatory facilitation techniques used, including: the understanding of participation, with a card game; ladder diagram of levels and types of participation, with experience sharing including presentations from the participants; stakeholder participation and classification using matrices; recent trends in participatory approaches at an international level; attitudes and behaviours of stakeholders and project facilitators, using role play; and analysis of participation at different levels. The results of all exercises and discussions are presented in matrices and diagrams. Finally some brief conclusions and evaluations are given