Inclusive management of local knowledge through systematization of best practices

Methodological and Practical Learning Workshop

Khartoum, Sudan 18 – 20 September2016

POURUNEGESTIONINCLUSIVEDESSAVOIRS LOCAUXGRÂCE ÀLASYSTÉMATISATIONDEBONNESPRATIQUES 8

01

What is systematization?

A critical process of experience reconstruction

geared towards generation of knowledge, starting

with local knowledge and experience of the

protagonists

The systematization is an orderly process of:

i. Reconstruction of

experiences;

ii. Knowledge creation through critical

thinking of the participating players; and,

iii. Communication of the resulting

knowledge both within and outside the

programme.

This definition of systematization of experiences seeks to

permanently articulate and share accumulated knowledge

(theory and practice, local, general and specialized

knowledge) with strategies and approaches used to

produce new knowledge that can be applied to other

contexts. Finally, systematization is - and should be - a

participatory process undertaken from the beginning

mainly by the protagonists of the experience being

systematized. This means that the concerned persons are

directly involved in the process of development of the

methodology, the fieldwork, the analysis and the

communication of the systematization results.

Accordingly, this is a process that seeks to enhance

experience by offering new raw material - knowledge,

learning - both for the managers of the experience itself as

well as for other actors outside of it who can have access

to this organized knowledge and learn it, not from scratch,

or through repeating mistakes but rather duplicate / adapt

ideas or models that have proven very effective elsewhere.

02

"Capitalizing"experience means transforming it into

knowledge that can be shared (Pierre deZutter,

1994)."Capitalization of experience"systematization

is a knowledge creation process that can be widely

shared and which is useful for improving your project or

organization‟s practice or that of peers in similar

contexts. As a strategy, systematization should be an

integral part of the knowledge implementation and

management processes of projects and rural

development initiatives such as a systematic continuous

learning and improvement processes(FAO,2012).

Systematization is conducted with local protagonists of

the experience. This self-analysis process enables the

actors of a process to organize, position and analyze the

paths travelled in "acquiring knowledge" from their

experiences and passing on this knowledge to other

groups or actors, thus strengthening their capacity for

effective decision making when faced with problems

and opportunities in their environment. This means that

the people concerned are directly involved in the

development of the methodology, the fieldwork,

analysis and communication of results of the

systematization process.

POURUNEGESTIONINCLUSIVEDESSAVOIRS LOCAUXGRÂCE ÀLASYSTÉMATISATIONDEBONNESPRATIQUES 10

03

3. Systematization of learning experiences

Local knowledge reflect the know-how spanning several

generations of experience and continuous adaptation of

external knowledge in order to solve problems; this local

knowledge makes up an essential element of the social

capital of rural communities which enables them to take

control of their own development (Bruckmeier and

Toivey, 2008).

The "local knowledge" is "valuable knowledge"

concerning practices and know-how specific to

individuals and communities; they can be used and

applied to generate economic value or, otherwise

generate individual or collective benefits (Mendoça

Ferreira, 2012).

A bigger part of this knowledge appears in an "implicit"

manner in the practices and know-how of local actors.

Thus, the process of systematization should support

managers to ensure that this knowledge becomes explicit,

conscious and transmissible.

Moreover, innovative social practices operate in specific

contexts. Therefore, the systematization process requires

addressing and understanding the political, economic and

social context in which such social practices fit, as well as

the concepts, approaches and methods used by local

champions to create knowledge.

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE AS ASOURCE F O RSYSTEMATIZATION

Knowledge is based on experience; this means that it is primarily implicit / tacit knowledge

Knowledge is shaped by traditional knowledge as well as new knowledge (external), synthesized in a

new practice and application (complementarity of implicit and explicit knowledge).

Knowledge is adapted to the environment and culture of the community (created in the physical environment).

It is immersed in community practices, know-how and expertise of institutions, in community relationships and

rituals, (it is essentially collective in nature).

Since they are a shared resource in the community, they are divided, that is to say, it is fragmented knowledge.

It is dynamic and constantly changing; for this reason, it is important to preserve and re-construct the experience.

04

3.a Systematize experiences? What For?

Systematization of experiences enables us to identify,

validate and share knowledge assets, which are valuable

and relevant for learning purposes, social innovation and

for development capabilities. Consequently,

systematization has two main objectives:

1. With focus on the experiments or programs

themselves, systematization enables local champions to

conduct a retrospective and collective analysis on

experiences throughout the process (successes, mistakes,

strategies, achievements, key to success, lessons learned,

limitations, challenges) in order to improve on their own

practices or to create new knowledge. Systematization is

thus a tool for learning and improvement for the

protagonists of the experience.

It aims to showcase this local knowledge accumulated in

practice and to help its owners (local champions) in the

distribution and transmission of the same.

2. When systematizing identifies, develops and shares

accumulated knowledge through experiences, it enables to

disseminate, exchange and promote this learning and

innovations in other contexts that share similar problems

and challenges.

In this sense, the systematization creates raw materials for

the processes of learning and social innovation by putting

in order and documenting local knowledge and practical

experience. This allows dissemination and

communication of the same with other actors and

contexts, with a utilization value which increases the

usefulness of this knowledge.

FOR AN INCLUSIVE MANAGEMENT OF LOCAL KNOWLEDGE THROUGH SYSTEMATIZATION OF GOODPRACTICES 05

KEY ELEMENTS FORSYSTEMATIZATION OF LEARNING EXPERIENCES

1. INCLUDING THE VIEW OF VARIOUS ACTORS

Direct and indirect protagonists of each experiment: It is

a matter of including the views of project leaders, local

operators and community facilitators as well as

beneficiaries of natural resource management projects

and fair trade.

2. NOTING THE ROLE OF MEN AND WOMEN AND

FOSTERING YOUTH PARTICIPATION:

In order to analyze the experiences, it is important: to

interview male, female actors, as well as the youth;

interviewing actors with "traditional"positions and more

"progressive" positions so as to get a full perspective of

the study process; to include in the interview topics

references to conflicts or tensions that may have occurred

in the context of the experiment.

3. ADDRESS THE DIFFERENT MOMENTS OF THE

EXPERIMENT (JOURNEY):

This involves considering an initial situation, a response

process and a final or current situation, in order to show

the advancements, lessons and unresolved challenges.

4. INTEGRATING CONTEXTUAL FACTORS IN THE ANALYSIS:

It is a matter of identifying the elementsof the social,

political, cultural, e c o n o mi c contexts, e t c .,

related to the experience, their path and results. In

this case, the initial description of contextual

factors must consider mapping of the general

conditions of territories where every experience

was carried out.

5. IDENTIFYLESSONS A N D SKI LLS LEARNT:

Drawing lessons learned from the systematization

supposes i) a process of reflection on experience; ii) in

order to make a general assertion on the likely impact of

specific processes or practices; iii) applicable to a large

number of experiences that have common characteristics.

6. INVOLVING ALL PROTAGONISTS OF THE EXPERIENCES IN

THE SYSTEMATIZATION ACTIVITIES ANDCOLLECTION OF

INFORMATION DURING THE FIELD WORK:

This means not only the "participants", but “the team”

involved in the systematization process.

7. FOSTERING AND ENCOURAGING INSTANCES O F GROUPS OF

ANALYSIS AND DEBATE:

They help bring out different ideas and experiences of the

process and build consensus or debate on the successes

and challenges of the experiences.

06

1

4.Steps involved in the experience systematization process

The systematization process is carried out in four major steps:

Identificationa n d selectionof good practices and development of the systematization plan;

1

2 Systematizationin the field;

3 Drafting systematization report or

developing other communication

products;

4 Sharing of the experience, its knowledge,

good practices and innovation .

Step1.a:Identificationand

selection of good practices

1

The first step towards experience systematization is to clearly

identify the experiences that we would like to systematize and the

reasons why, based on what strengths or success.

During experience mapping and selection process, the offer

of knowledge must constantly be linked to actual or

potential demand of the learning or exchange programme

by identifying the beneficiaries of the systematization and

the expected results.

The identification andselection of successful or outstanding

experiences shall be guided by a basic principle: their

potential practical usefulness for the daily organizational and

community actions, in order to guide the institutional actions

and / or to inspire formulation and implementation of public

policies for development. Once the successful experiences

have been identified, priority shall be given to those that can

be shared, those bearing value of use to the learning

programme users and those that can be replicated at minimal

cost in contexts with similar conditions.

FOR AN INCLUSIVE LOCAL KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT THROUGH SYSTEMITIZATION OF GOOD PRACTICES 07

WHAT IS AN EXEMPLARY OR OUTSTANDING EXPERIENCE?

•This is an experience that showcases use of good

practices and / or innovations to face challen ges

within a given territory and positive impact in

improving people‟s living conditions.

•Improving the living conditions could be :a)

material: more income, more physical assets, access

to natural resources, etc. b)immaterial:

Every experience stemsfrom various components (social,

economic, environmental, etc.) that are integrated and

complementary to each other. At the same time, a wide

range of interdependent key topics and thematic areas can

be identified in each experience. However, considering the

key innovations and good practices developed, we should

be in a position to identify the thematic areas with a greater

potential of knowledge compared to the rest in order to

enable us to focus on such areas when carrying out the

systemization process.

Equity and social inclusion, political participation,

leadership –empowerment of actors, etc.

•Good practices, innovations, lessons or knowledge

can be drawn from an exemplary experience, which

could be applied in other contexts that share similar

conditions or needs.

08

In order to identify the good practices, the following criteria should be considered:

CRITERIA QUESTIONS RELATED

1.Thematic importance and

relevance

2.Innovation (novelty)

3.Impact/SUCCESS

4.Applicability/

REPLICABILITY

5.Sustainability/VIABILITY

6.Organizational

strengthening/

OWNERSHIP

7.Equity/PARTICIPATION

Is there any significance for the defined / requested thematic?

Why? For who (profiles)?

In which context does the thematic appear?

Is it an alternative bringing new responses or solutions to development issues?

Does it change previous practices?

Does it broaden local knowledge or technics?

Who are the beneficiaries of such experience?

To what extent or with which macro, meso and micro impact?

Does such experienceimprove the preceding practices / technology and knowledge?

Does it enable optimization of the working time?Does it generate new working sources? Does it

contribute towards income increase?

Is it possible to obtain results in similar conditions? Is it replicable?

Atwhat cost?

What are the internal and external factors affecting the success of this experience?

Did the changes or improvements last long? Do they involve

dependence vis-à-vis third parties?

Do they favour better economic empowerment? Are they

socially and environmentally sustainable?

Have the local actors or institutions integrated the practices / technology or methodologies?

Have they been shared or transmitted to other people?

Does the experienceincludewomenand youth participation?

What is their role within the experience?

FOR AN INCLUSIVE LOCAL KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT THROUGH SYSTEMITIZATION OF GOOD PRACTICES09

Once a wide range of experiences have been mapped out, a second assessment should be carried out while trying to give priority

to the important experiences geared towards meeting the strategic objectives set for each systematization and learning

programme.

In this second phase, selection is based on a set of more specific criteria that include:

CRITERIA DESCRIPTION

Role of knowledge and

ownership by local champions

The Learning Roots and other educational tools aim at systemizing and disseminating

knowledge accumulated by those referred to as development „„practicing people‟‟, i.e. those

who implement the strategies and policies on the ground facing real challenges with real

solutions within a given territorial context. Consequently, while selecting experiences, one

should first of all aim at capturing development of experiences at the micro level and later

channel them in to meso and macro levels while ensuring the lead role of „„talented‟‟

protagonists who implement the development initiatives in that environment.

Value of usage To start with, the Routes generally require a wide or general knowledge which must be

gradually reduced to in order to define what type of knowledge is going to be the most

useful and functional taking in to account the users involved.The profile (real or

imaginary) of the participants of each Route should be established by stating clearly who

is targeted by the learning experience and also by ensuring that those participating will be

the very people in charge of applying the learned knowledge.

Specific learning

objectives

Each experience contributes some knowledge and specific good practices that should be

identified in order to be linked with the specific learning objectives set for each learning

initiative under the overarching thematic. At the same time, following the systematization,

the learning objectives must have answers to the following questions: ‘‘what do we learn

from this experience? What lessons, good practices and innovations does it offer?’’

10

CRITERIA DESCRIPTION

Complementarity and

topicality of the experiences

A content programme for each learning initiative has to be developed in line with the

learning objectives of each experience, complemented by technical and thematic

induction activities. Thus, there is need to look for experiences that complement each

other bearing various analytical dimensions of a topic or process / strategy phase.

Similarly, since systematization aims at creating dialogue to enable the actors of an

experience to pass on and share the experience, it is necessary that such experiences be

on-going or just happened so as to render the context and their actors active.

Ability to share

experiences (At various levels)

Systematization in the learning initiatives, just like the Routes and other methodologies, is a

step that comes before the development of the learning and exchange programme. Hence, it

is essential that skilled main actors at various levels of the experience (beneficiaries, local

leaders / governments, technical operators, government agencies and others) be capable not

only of developing systematization for the process but also becoming ‘‘hosts’’during visits

whereby they should pass on such knowledge to other people.

Logistic criteria During assessment of the experiences, it is worth taking in to account, together with the

technical and educational criteria, the operative variables in order to organize the Learning

Route trip later or the needs for other educational initiatives: resources available, time,

distance between the cases, etc.

FOR AN INCLUSIVE LOCAL KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT THROUGH SYSTEMITIZATION OF GOOD PRACTICES11

1 Step1.b: Designing of the systematization plan

Once the experiences to be systematized have been

defined, upon consent from the protagonists regarding their

availability to participate in the systematization and

dissemination of their knowledge, a systematization plan

for each experience has to be developed. The following

considerations should be taken while developing this

systematization plan:

• Define the systematization axe (why do we want to

systematize this experience? What aspects of the given

experience do we want to systematize?)

• Know the context in which the experience is taking place

and identify the key actors in the experience (mapping out

the key actors);

• Suggest learning objectives for the case (preliminary);

•Develop systematization guidelines and instructions for

collecting information for the field work with local actors;

and

•Fieldwork plan, contact with local actors.

2 Step 2: Systematization on the field

In this step, systematization is done with real experience.

The fieldwork must take in to account the experience path,

the knowledge and teachings from the local actors. In order

to do this, the research and reflection activities must clearly

address four fundamental1 aspects:

Initialsituation (before the experience);

Development process or experience path;

Finalor current situation;

Knowledge and lessons learned.

FIELD SYSTEMATIZATION PERIOD

Generally, the experience systematization fieldwork takes 3

to 4 days maximum, with the following being the general

structure of the work:

•DAY1:General systematizationworkshop.

•DAY 2 and 3: Collecting raw materials for gathering

testimonies and contextualizing the experience.

•DAY3:Classification and analysis of general outcomes.

•DAY 4: Validation of systematizationconclusions and

registration of local champions.

1See Annex 1: General guiding questions for experience systematization

12

Several activities may be conducted in the course of the

fieldwork; which should at least include the following:

ACTIVITY1: Systematization workshop:

Collective reconstruction of the

experience

ACTIVITY 2: Contextualization and

reconstruction of testimonies related to the

experience

ACTIVITY 3: Analysis of the experience and

workshop to validate the systematization outcomes

ACTIVITY4:Identificationand registration of local

champions and their skills

4 Step4:Dissemination of the experience, its lessons, good practices and innovations

The finalstageof the systematization process brings

together the communication activities and dissemination

of the documented experiences through the products

developed on the field (reports, notes, maps, videos, etc.)

and also through creation of exchange and learning

forums (Learning Routes, internships, field visits, etc.)

where the local champions can share, in practice, the

systematization outcomes, in the real context where the

experiences took place.

3 Step3:Drafting the systematization report or developing other communication products

At theend of the reconstruction, analysis and experience

interpretation step, it is important to prepare a document or a

communication product that shall serve as the

systematization product or outcome.

FOR AN INCLUSIVE LOCAL KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT THROUG H SYSTEMITIZATION OF GOOD PRACTICES 13

ANNEX1:Guiding questionsonsystematization

GUIDING QUESTIONS FOR RECONSTRUCTION OF EXPERIENCES

QUESTION DESCRIPTION

In what context is the experience

taking place?

How is the experience appearing

and what is its purpose?

What good practices and

innovation aspects can we draw

from the experience?

In which manner is the experience

taking place?

Who are the main actors involved

and what is their role /

contribution?

What success and / or impact have

resulted from the innovations?

Geographic, demographic, socio-economic, political and productive characteristics of the context

including data of interest regarding the specific topic that fits the particular experience.

Characterization of the challenges being faced or of the opportunity for capture.

Identificationof strategiesorinnovationsto meet the challenges or take advantage of the

opportunities such as organizational improvement, new products and / or services.

Experience path and steps starting from the timelines developed by its protagonists.

Characterization of the organization, the working area and the organization chart; mapping of the

main actors and their roles.

Identification of tangible success resulting from the experience at different levels i.e. economic

(change in production, sales and revenue, etc.), political etc.

What were their major

problems?

Identification of difficulties related to the experience, internal problems, obstacles due to the

context and actors involved.

What are the challenges

faced?

Challenges of the experience, key factors to enabling upscaling of the positive impact resulting

from the experience on its main actors and their territory.

Information sources: Municipal Development Plans.

Municipals‟ official websites.

Previous research or diagnosis.Collective reflections.

Testimonies from main actors and photography

Capacity building tools for Large-scale replication of innovations

INTER-REGIONAL PROGRAMME FOR LATIN AMERICA AND AFRICA