In a job like mine, as with many others, it is often quite hard to see the results of your labour. What we are working to bring about are changed lives, both outwardly and inwardly. These kind of changes not only take time but we're also very rarely around to actually see it happen! However, sometimes we do get indicators of progress that show us we're moving in the right direction. Just like buses, after having waited for a while without seeing any, during my most recent trip to Thailand two encouraging things happened at once!
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Firstly, we held another Language, Education and Development (LEAD) 'community of practice' event, with 60+ participants from 15 different country contexts attending. The group was very enthusiastic and keenly explored many of the challenges and successes of working with other organisations. As they interacted in small groups, they were able to share their own experiences and learn from others. It was exciting to see such a hive of activity and energy and to hear so many encouraging comments afterwards. It is our hope, of course, that as the participants return to their normal work contexts they will be able to put into practice all that they have learnt.
Secondly, the book that a colleague and I had been working on for the last 6 months was finalised and published! Based on experiences gathered during community of practice (CoP) events, the book sets out practical examples of how to work sensitively and sustainably with minority groups. We wrote Signposts to Identity-Based Community Development (IBCD) as a Guide, literally outlining resources (and giving real life stories as examples) and directing people to them. We really hope that community development practitioners all over the world can make use of the learning that has been generated through the CoP. If you would like to take a look and see the final result, click here to read an introduction and then download it and let us know what you think. We'd love to hear your thoughts!