Resources

Aspects of RRA are discussed which suggest how a divergence might occur between its social and scientific value. As a positive exercise, it often serves only a legitimating function for policies already confirmed by its sponsors; the prior existence of relevant organized knowledge and the extent of formal method are also determinants of the status of the appraisal. The use and shortcomings of indicators are discussed with reference to the example of social relations within an unsupervised credit strategy. A case study of a rapid appraisal in one village in Comilla District in Bangladesh is described.

Charles Sturt University was approached to help implement a community survey for the Flowerpot Hill Landcare group (FHLG). This group was formed to control run-off water which damaged town property. The information gained from interviews with members of the group, residents, farmers and council members, is presented as "issues" (specific knowledge, problems or feelings expressed by individuals) and "themes" (generally agreed important areas of concern). The themes included "Whose problem is it?", "Who should fix it?" and "Who should pay?" A number of solutions were proposed, with many people expressing a "deep suspicion of quick-fix solutions which the council was often accused of implementing". Recommendations from the study are around "establishing common ground in perception/problem solving and trying to get people committed to working together to improve the situation".

As part of the Scottish programme, four case studies were undertaken, partly to examine the current situation with regard to forestry, and partly to pioneer the use of PRA tools in Scotland, though at this stage in a very extractive manner. In Tomintoul, the focus is on tourism due to its location in the Cairngorms region of Scotland. The changes in employment over time reflect an increase in services and a decrease in farming. Linkages between organizations are examined, again reflecting the importance of tourism, and social, land use and tenure maps are reproduced. Forestry, as a major land use is significant - although it is currently concentrated on private and forestry commision estates.

Two RRAs, each lasting five days, were carried out in two villages in the North of Cameroon, a CARE Canada project area. LEARN (Local Environmental Analysis and Assessment of Rural Needs) type of RRA was used to focus on the environmental problems. None of the team had used LEARN in the field, so this was very much a training exercise, with an honest account of failings as well as successes. A checklist covering "what needs to be known", "indicators" and "methods to be used" formed the basis for guiding activities, choosing respondents and topics of discussion. Field activities are described in detail, and methods (especially interviewing techniques) analysed. Specific characteristics of LEARN are evaluated, as well as the "reliability and representativeness" of the information gained. Findings of the research are given in sections 6 - 12 : sections 1 - 4 are devoted to methodology and training aspects.

This study represents some of the lessons learned over three years by the Indian NGO, The Activists for Social Alternatives (ASA). The origins and principles of PRA are outlined. Six case studies of PRA are given of which two are health-related. Herbal PRA: herbal practitioners identified 144 herbs and their uses, a historical time line of diseases and treatments was constructed (this is given in an appendix). Twenty most important herbs were identified which the herbalists promised to help raise in village herb gardens. Health PRA: this was conducted as a training exercise with 20 NGOs in Tamil Nadu. PRA exercises helped replace curative notions of health care with a focus on the socio-economic causes of ill health. The results of a wealth ranking and a health matrix are presented in the appendixes.

A brief summary by bullet points of lessons from the Dry Zone project. The last page is table of PRA steps taken, the principles applied, the tools used and the important learning experiences.

Newsletter informing about World Neighbors' preliminary phase in the implementation of a community based natural resource management programme in Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia.