This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
Reflections on Working in Development If it feels as though the challenge of gender and


sexual equality with participatory methods is becoming cyclical, that’s because it is. As the issues of social change toward gender and sexual equity are pursued, notions of community-based and participatory programming in many contexts are compromised and vice versa. Which brings us back to the question, “How can civil society respond?” Civil society has responded. While the results are varied and in some cases controversial, change is slowly, but surely happening. It comes down to making choices. Does civil society actively drive cultural change on behalf of women and the LGBTTQ community or does it steadfastly hold to the value that communities must be in control of their own development futures? Unfortunately, in many cases, it cannot do both. Development workers face conceptual contradictions,


internationally, on a daily basis. For those who have grown up with an understanding of clearly set gender roles or of the “sinful” nature of homosexuality, pressure to change may be confusing and perhaps insulting. For development workers engaged in social justice advocacy, it might be startling and disheartening to be perceived as a “coloniser” by some communities. These are the challenging and complex relationships that exist in the world of international development and in cross-cultural


dialogue. In practice, most organisations and initiatives currently fall somewhere in the middle, with some leaning more toward advocacy and others toward participation. One could argue that the efficacy of development work has suffered as a result. In challenging circumstances, development workers often allow the contradictory nature of each position to limit progress in either direction. Once civil society decides where to stand on these two important but often-contradictory positions, we can begin to address them openly and honestly.


// David Lane hails from small town Nova Scotia. He


recently completed an MSc in Rural Planning and Development from the University of Guelph. He completed his Master’s research on community participation in the worked for over three years in a small Inuit village in the Northern Quebec region of Nunavik. David is currently based in Toronto, where he is committed to development issues and working with marginalised people.


BBC News, Uganda tackles wife-beating taboo. British


Broadcast Corporation, 19 Mar. 2002. Web. 28 Nov. 2011 Karimi, Faith. Nigerian senate passes anti-gay bill, defying


British aid threat. CNN, Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., 30 Nov. 2011. Web. 30 Nov. 2011.


iAM March 2012 21


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