Papers by Robert Chambers
IDS Bulletin, 1988
My concerns are the fit and misfit between local diversity and what we can call normal bureaucrac... more My concerns are the fit and misfit between local diversity and what we can call normal bureaucracy. The issues are relevant to the field organisation and operation of field bureaucracies in rural areas in Third World countries, both government ministries such as agriculture, health and forestry, and parastatals in the agricultural sector. Most attention will be given to the case of agricultural research. The word 'bureaucracy' is a problem. However hard I try, I often end up using it pejoratively. This problem is shared by the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary which gives, in its 1955 edition, only one illustrative quotation, from Carlyle-'The Continental nuisance called "Bureaucracy". Here I shall strive to use it neutrally and to use 'normal' to refer to both good and bad aspects which are commonly found. The word 'reversal' I shall use to mean acting in a way that is opposite or contrary to what is usual. The fact that something is a reversal does not necessarily mean that it is good or for that matter bad. Field bureaucracies present three normal tendencies which are well known and not in dispute. The first is centralisation in a hierarchy; the second is standardi
The Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries
In recent years, changes in participatory methodologies (PMs) may have been even more rapid than ... more In recent years, changes in participatory methodologies (PMs) may have been even more rapid than those in spatial technologies. Local people's abilities to make maps only became widely known and facilitated in the early 1990s. Participatory mapping has spread like a pandemic with many variants and applications not only in natural resource management but also in many other domains. With mapping as one element, there are now signs of a new pluralist eclecticism and creativity in PMs. The medium and means of mapping, whether ground, paper or GIS and the style and mode of facilitation, influence who takes part, the nature of outcomes and power relationships. Much depends on the behaviour and attitudes of facilitators and who controls the process. Many ethical issues present troubling dilemmas, and lead to overarching questions about empowerment and ownership. Questions to be asked, again and again, are: Who is empowered and who disempowered? And, who gains and who loses? OUR CONTEXT OF CHANGE We are living through an age when there is a sense, and perhaps a reality, of accelerating change. Perhaps the most obvious domain is communications technology and its applications. Specifically, in the context of this conference, the development and spread of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Global Positioning Systems (GPS) immediately stand out. Much has happened since the workshop to discuss participatory research and the potential for participatory Geographic Information Systems convened at the University of Durham in the UK in January 1998 (Abbott et al 1998). The range of experience that could be brought together then was quite limited. In the seven years since, GIS technologies have evolved and become more accessible and adaptable, and applications have multiplied. This may tempt us to focus on the technology. But to do so could overlook or undervalue the explosive multiplication of participatory approaches, methods and their combinations during the same period 1. With participatory methodologies (PMs) we have entered a phase of increasingly inventive and eclectic pluralism with borrowing and cross-fertilisation between participatory streams, in which the old labels-Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA), Appreciative Inquiry, Participatory Technology Development, the more inclusive PLA (Participatory Learning and Action), and the like-are still used but less and less refer to anything that could be described as schools. So in the focus of this conference we have two intermingling streams, GIS and Participatory Mapping (PM), both evolving and changing fast, and as they combine perhaps also accelerating the potential for learning how to do things differently and better. I cannot judge well, but it may even be that more has changed and is changing faster and more creatively, in PM t han in Geographic Information and Communications Technologies (GICTs). 1 For an overview, see Chamber 2005.
ABSTRACT:" An overview paper for Only One Earth, Conference on Sustainable Development, orga... more ABSTRACT:" An overview paper for Only One Earth, Conference on Sustainable Development, organised by the International Institute for Environment and Development, Regent's College, Regent's Park, London, 28-30 April 1987.". Bibliography: p. 29-32.
Practising what we preach? The failure to apply sustainable livelihoods thinking where it is most... more Practising what we preach? The failure to apply sustainable livelihoods thinking where it is most needed-in the North 'Sustainable livelihoods' are two words put together initially without an explicit meaning. This has the advantage that the phrase can be appropriated and given meanings by different actors to suit their conditions and purposes. A disadvantage, however, has been that meanings or implications which are complicate, inconvenient or threatening can be ignored. With this in mind, three aspects stand out for their importance and potential.
Repinfed from J~U R N A L OF LOCAL A n~r r m s m~n o n OVERSEAS, Vo1. 111, No. 3 July, 1DG4 T Use... more Repinfed from J~U R N A L OF LOCAL A n~r r m s m~n o n OVERSEAS, Vo1. 111, No. 3 July, 1DG4 T Use of Case Sf?dic.~ i~?. Public Administmliorr CASE st~udics have Ilecr~ \rirleIy accepletl ar n means ol'rlevclc~~~ing j~ldgment a i d practising decisiol~-rriaking atlrl, al ll~cllrgl~ ~I I P Y~ is v x~i c t y ill t.lie rnethorls or ~x+cl~aration nncl u5e r;lvou~,ril 11y il~divirl~inl t r~i n~~, cer~aiu tcclii~irlucs are rnor'e or less siandarcl practice. ' l 'liesc irlvolve ~hr: presenlx~jnr I or prol,lem situatio7is to groiq~s of's~~~cIr:i~~s TVIIC) ~~S C I I S S hen1 in sjrndicatc and l-eport I~aclc ~h c i r conclusions. Tllerr is a ~i-ritlirnnm or dircetion by the tutor, the theory being that tlie stude~~ts are men or expericncc ancl will Icarn Gom rllc material and from one anotlzer. This approach is valid for adnlil~istratitrc stuclcnts, rcgnrdIcss uT how jn11ch prac~ical cxpcricncr thry have harl, hr r t it5 i~srfi~lncss m~rst rlrprnd to Some extent on thc arnouni of'rrlevant expeiience nn ~I l i c h they can dra~v. \ $ b a t sort of case stucly rr~nterial is ap~~ropri:lte, a11t1 Iro~v i~ is ~escntecl, rrnlsi be related both to ihc level uT rspe~iencc of thc sll~dol~tr aljcl to t11c trairii~ig necds that arc to 1)e fi~lf~llcd. l u rrlany devrlq~itag co~rntrirs, adnlinistrriiors and managers, sometimes wit11 little or tlo 1,revious nrlrniriistmlive espt:rience, are being irainerl to ialie over posts ~vhicll e~I~atriates ~vould previously only laaye llcld aftm long service anrl often wi ~h Iligl~cr erlncationnl q u a l i 6cntious. Tvi ihese circzu~ist;mcee, the urger11 train in^ ~zceds arc not only thc usual oncs or developiilg judgnlenl and sound decision-making, vital thoi~gh thcsc arc; thrrc is also s great i~eecl for the students to pi11 ski11 a i d tonficlence in c q i n g out the actual pmcecl~lres or the 6013. To acllieve all thme ubjectu iliroz~dl the use of case st~irlies, two co~lclitioils must he ii~lfilled: t l~r makrjal of ihi: siurly must he iaken Tl-orn the job for ~rlaicll thc s h~d e~~~s are beir~g trained; autl sonle problcms and cxcrcises in the study murt he IlantlIecl I)); students individ~~ally, ,anti not only in qrtlclicaie.
A key challenge for t h e Social Summit, argues Robert Chambers, is t o define t h e "problems" a... more A key challenge for t h e Social Summit, argues Robert Chambers, is t o define t h e "problems" and seek solutions from t h e perspective o f t h e poor. If this challenge is not met, h e says, we risk along in worthy but well-worn ruts that lead nowhere new.
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Papers by Robert Chambers