PLA Notes CD-ROM 1988-2001 10 Communities meet policy-makers through video-supported analysis: rural energy issues in Malawi

Document begins: PLA Notes CD-ROM 1988­2001 10 Communities meet policy-makers through video-supported analysis: rural energy issues in Malawi Su Braden and Valerie Nelson Introduction participatory approach, using video as a tool with communities to research, reflect and In March 1997, villagers contributed to the analyse their own problems, and to represent Malawi Government policy on rural energy themselves directly with policy-makers. and natural resource management by This action-research approach is an example presenting their video-based research. This for extending participation from the village article discusses some of the steps in a level to national policy-making processes. progressive sequence of reflection involving different participants and audiences over a 14 This article describes the steps we took. month period. Broadening the research The original research task had been written question behind the desks of various international and Malawi Government partners. Their interests Based on a literature review by one of the had led to a narrow research question that authors, we renegotiated the original research seemed to favour external technological question from the specific issue of adopting solutions, such as energy-saving stoves. fuel-efficient stoves to the more integrated However, the research process showed that question of how villagers access, use and this ...