The art of letting go: Transforming participatory
research on adaptation practices among local livestock-
keepers in East Africa in times of Covid-19
Birgit Habermann1, Todd A. Crane1, Leah Gichuki1, Tigist Worku1, Roland Mugumya1, Nathan Maiyo2,
Emmaculate Kiptoo2, Shenkute Goshme2, Fuad Mohammednur2, Tugume Geoffrey2, Alphaeus Satia2,
Reagan Siamito2
1 Sustainable Livestock Systems, ILRI
2 Research Consultants, ILRI
Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) Annual International Conference 2022
Re-imagining participatory research: Towards the inclusion of marginalized knowledge(s) in a hybrid world (2)
Newcastle, 30 August 2022
Better lives through livestock
This work has been financed by the GIZ commissioned by the Government of the
Federal Republic of Germany, grant number: 2017.0119.2.

2
ILRI is co-hosted by both the
governments of Ethiopia and Kenya,
with offices in 8 other countries in
Africa (Burking Faso, Burundi, Mali,
Mozambique, Nigeria, Tanzania,
Uganda and Zimbabwe); 4 countries
in Asia (China, India, Pakistan and
Vietnam); and 2 other hosting
locations: Costa Rica and Scotland.
In 2018, ILRI had 620 permanent
staff. The population at ILRI is 38%
female and 62% male.
ILRI offices and
staff worldwide
Working with
pioneers in the PCSL
project
Participatory Adaptation
Analysis across five sites
in East Africa
Map over the research sites (Michael Graham/ILRI)

3
Identifying adaptation pioneers: Understanding
positive deviance
PDs perform better than others
• with access to the same resources,
• facing similar or worse challenges;
• difference is in their motivation, behaviour
and/or strategies.
Others can learn from their behaviour to produce
better outcomes
Group discussion,
Hida, Afar
Group discussion,
Sanga, SW Uganda
https://positivedeviance.org/
https://youtu.be/0ULZWOm5ukg

4
Said Bahine Ali, Hida, Afar
Participatory Adaptation Analysis: Positive Deviance
Training after Field Days
Field Days
Monthly Record Keeping, partly done by pioneers
2nd Field Visit & SSI
1st Field Visit & Scoping
Interview
Training of ROs and
FRAs online/hybrid
Planning &
Recruitment onsite
SSI
Final Workshops (partly hybrid)
Field Day of Kidane and Weleta, Tarmaber, Ethiopia

5
The Art of Letting Go
Lessons learned during PAR livestock
research in the Covid-19 pandemic in
East Africa

6
Data collection
• Timeframe March 2020 until April 2021
• 3 research officers (staff): written feedback
• 7 temporary research assistants: written
feedback
• 27 farmers/pastoralists: mostly telephone
interviews
Tenagne,
Gudoberet,
Ethiopia

7
Background to Study Area
No structural equality
• Gap in access to digital
World
• Risk of aggravating
exclusion/marginalisation

8
• Covid-19 and the expatriates
• Shift in hiring focus to more local: better
jobs for people living in remote areas
• Including people in crisis remotely
• Devolution of power with less centralization
• Sharing of data collection with
farmers/technology users
Power of decentralisation

9
• Citizen Science as qual/quant
research
• Data combined for purpose of
farmers, social and bio-physical
sciences
• Covid-19 lead to strengthening
of farmers’ independent role
New opportunities for inclusion: Citizen
Science for Livestock Farmers
Bio-
physical
science
Citizen science
Social
science

10
The future of participatory research: what
is needed for a hybrid World
• Equal access to technologies
• Uncensured access to communication
• Shift focus from centres/powerhouses of
research to rural areas: less control, more trust
• Redefinition of roles in the research hierarchy
• What is expertise?
• Who owns results?
• Power over objectives?

11
The future of participatory research: what
is needed for a hybrid World
• Use more locally applicable data collection
methods (potentially online/hybrid/analog)
• Develop triangulation for quality control:
involve multi levels of expertise/disciplines
• Move away from over-researched communities:
be more flexible and trust people to collect
their own data
• Capacity building away from the capital cities:
hire locally

12
• Farmers as research partners with
decentralised roles in data collection
• Networks and skills development in remoter
areas
• Less central control over the research process
• Long term engagement and trust in
communities, more ownership
• Requires more flexibility from researchers and
donors alike
Summary

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