What happened to participatory research at the International Potato Center?

This article documents participatory research activities in the International Potato Centre over the past thirty years. During the 1980s the centre became famous for its development of a flexible approach to research, known as farmer-back-to-farmer. Since that time it has lost leadership in the field. The study finds that during the 1990s the participatory research centre grew unevenly, with little support from the organisations with which it is affiliated. As a result there was fragmentation of the research and a withering away of successful outputs. Recently, however, there has been a revival of interest due to increasing interest in integrated pest monitoring, donor support, and the recruitment of international staff that have been exposed to other currents of participatory research and training. It is recommended that these factors be monitored carefully to ensure a flexible and effective approach to emerge.