Public Participation in Agriculture and Natural Resource Management Projects in South and Southeast Asia: A Literature Review

Facilitators of participatory approaches to community development in agricultural and natural resource management settings frequently encounter dilemmas due to embedded social and power structures that potentially interfere with achieving desired outcomes. These dilemmas underscore the need for better facilitation structures and techniques to mediate the complexity of disagreements. This paper reviews the literature on selecting and applying participatory facilitation methods in Asia, focused on South and Southeast Asia. The analysis acknowledges critics of participation and identifies elements for involving marginalized communities when using participatory approaches to increase the likelihood of successful outcomes.