Participatory Practice

Ledwith and Springett's innovative approach bridges the divide between ideas and practice and allows the development of the knowledge that is needed to bring about transformative social change. Their ideas are founded on two premises: firstly, that transformative practice begins in the everyday stories that people tell about their lives and that practical theory generated from these narratives is the best way to inform both policy and practice. Secondly, that participatory practice is a tool for examining this knowledge that allows practitioners to examine the way they view the world and to situate their local practice within bigger social issues. The book will be of interest to both academics and community-based practitioners.

Girls and young women, particularly those from rural and indigenous communities around the world, face some of the most adverse social issues in the world despite the existence of protective laws and international treaties. Ethical Practice in Participatory Visual Research with Girls explores the potential of participatory visual method (PVM) for girls and young women in these communities, presenting and critiquing the everyday ethical dilemmas visual researchers face and the strategies they implement to address them, reflecting on principles of autonomy, social justice, and beneficence in transnational, indigenous and rural contexts.

In this second edition of a bestselling book, the authors’ unique, holistic and radical perspective on participatory practice has been updated to reflect advances made in the past decade, the impact of neoliberalism and austerity, and the challenges of climate change and the pandemic. Bridging the divide between community development ideas and practice, over half of this innovative book comprises new content with updated features including: • reflective questions • key points highlighted throughout each chapter • a glossary of terms The authors argue that transformative practice begins with everyday stories about people’s lives and that practical theory generated from these narratives is the best way to inform both policy and practice. This long-awaited new edition will be of interest to academics and community-based practitioners working in a range of settings, including health and education.

The voices in this collection are primarily those of researchers and developers concerned with bringing knowledge of technological possibilities to bear on informed and effective system design. Their efforts are distinguished from many previous writings on system development by their central and abiding reliance on direct and continuous interaction with those who are the ultimate arbiters of system adequacy; namely, those who will use the technology in their everyday lives and work. A key issue throughout is the question of who does what to whom: whose interests are at stake, who initiates action and for what reason, who defines the problem and who decides that there is one. The papers presented follow in the footsteps of a small but growing international community of scholars and practitioners of participatory systems design. Many of the original European perspectives are represented here as well as some new and distinctively American approaches. The collection is characterized by a rich and diverse set of perspectives and experiences that, despite their differences, share a distinctive spirit and direction -- a more humane, creative, and effective relationship between those involved in technology's design and use, and between technology and the human activities that motivate the technology.

From indigenous people's groups, classroom teachers, and local and international community workers comes the desire to build community. Participatory Development Practice provides a theoretical and applied base for rethinking development practice that is deeply influenced by a 'community' development tradition having its roots in participation and dialogue, yet is broader than that. The book makes the link from the intra-personal to the community and beyond, into the inter-organizational and international domains now required of twenty-first century development work. The book is framed conceptually as implicate method (starting with positioning self), micro (developing constructive relationships), mezzo (forming small participatory groups), macro (structuring participatory work within formal organizations) and meta (working with both local to global and global to local issues). Kelly and Westoby draw on diverse traditions of thought and practice, including the written works of author-activists such as Gandhi, Freire, Fanon, and the unwritten oral traditions of female workers in Asia, and First Peoples. The result is a true and tested methodology using frameworks of good ideas born from practice wisdom, that have come from research and reflection on 70 years of combined experience. Participatory Development Practice helps experienced practitioners, as well as scholars and students of international development, community development and social work, to reflect critically on the concepts and assumptions guiding their work. It is also aimed at corporate actors within community relations departments of major industry who increasingly interact with the public.

Participatory Design is a field of research and design that actively engages stakeholders in the processes of design in order to better conceptualize and create tools, environments, and systems that serve those stakeholders. In Participatory Design for Learning: Perspectives from Practice and Research, contributors from across the fields of the learning sciences and design articulate an inclusive practice and begin the process of shaping guidelines for such collaborative involvement. Drawing from a wide range of examples and perspectives, this book explores how participatory design can contribute to the development, implementation, and sustainability of learning innovations. Written for scholars and students, Participatory Design for Learning: Perspectives from Practice and Research develops and draws attention to practices that are relevant to the facilitation of effective educational environments and learning technologies.

The volume addresses the matter of participatory media practices as playful appropriations within current digital media culture and artistic research. The aim is to explore and trace the shifting boundaries between media production and media use, and to develop concepts and methodologies that work within participatory media cultures. Therefore the articles explore and establish nuanced approaches to the oftentimes playful practices associated with the appropriation of technology.

The rise of digitisation and social media over the past decade has fostered the rise of participatory and DIY digital culture. Likewise, the archival community leveraged these new technologies, aiming to engage users and expand access to collections. This book examines the creation and development of participatory archives, its impact on archival theory, and present case studies of its real world application. Participatory Archives is divided into four sections with each focused on a particular aspect of participatory archives: social tagging and commenting; transcription; crowdfunding; and outreach & activist communities. Each section includes chapters summarizing the existing literature, a discussion of theoretical challenges and benefits, and a series of case studies. The case studies are written by a range of international practitioners and provide a wide range of examples in practice, whilst the remaining chapters are supplied by leading scholars from Australia, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States. This book will be useful for students on archival studies programs, scholarly researchers in archival studies who could use the book to frame their own research projects, and practitioners who might be most interested in the case studies to see how participatory archives function in practice. The book may also be of interest to other library and information science students, and similar audiences within the broader cultural heritage institution fields of museums, libraries, and galleries.

This collective monograph offers new cross-national insight into participatory social work as well as discussion of its barriers and side effects. Prepared by an international team of researchers, it seeks to help further reflection on the implications and consequences of conducting research and practice in participatory manners.

This unique, holistic and radical perspective on participatory practice has been updated to reflect on advances made in the past decade and the impact of austerity. The innovative text bridges the divide between community development ideas and practice and considers how to bring about transformative social change.