TheWorkshop: Praxis Commune on Participatory Development

The Praxis residential workshop is an annual event that brings together development workers, policy makers and proactive individuals from across the world to share information and experiences as well as keep themselves abreast of the latest in the field of participatory development. It provides both, a theoretical understanding of participatory approaches/tools as well as the opportunity to apply them in the field. While the diversity and the wealth of experiences participants bring with them makes each edition unique and unrepeatable, the workshop follows a common learning programme, grounded in years of experience.

The Objectives of the TheWorkshop are:

• To provide an in-depth understanding of the principles, approaches and methods of participatory practices
• To provide a forum for exchange of ideas and experiences
• To inform participants of the latest innovations developed by practitioners from across the world
• To create a worldwide network of trained PRA/PLA practitioners
• To provide a hands-on learning experience through fieldwork. To make the participants capable of using participatory methods in their thematic area of work.

Programme Outline

• An introductory, common module on Attitudes, Behaviours and Change (ABC) facilitated by Robert Chambers
• Interactive classroom sessions within each thematic module
• Practical sessions in the field, hosted by locally renowned organisations
• Evening talks on diverse development related topics
• Film screenings on issues of relevance
• Thematic group discussions, workshop experience sharing and collective reflection
• Introduction to the latest publications and reference materials
• Field work in rural and peri-urban locations as appropriate to the module content

Recommended Profile of Participants

To date, this workshop has attracted more than 1200 participants from over 33 countries. Among them have been policy makers, government officials, development professionals and donors from INGOs, NGOs and CBOs, students and proactive individuals. The Workshop'10 seeks applications from development professionals, researchers and activists from all the above-mentioned categories.