Asia Publications

Gender Mainstreaming in Action: Successful Innovations from Asia and the Pacific

Evaluating Capacity Development: A study of capacity development in RDRS Bangladesh through IIRR’s international training courses

Trade Liberalization, Agriculture and Small Farm Households in the Philippines
Proactive Responses to the Threats and Opportunities of Globalization.

Integrated Watershed Management Approaches to Alleviating Poverty in the Bicol Region, Philippines: Learning from Past Experience

Advancing Participatory Technology Development: Case studies on integration into agricultural research, extension and education.

Participatory Technology Development for Agricultural Improvement: Challenges for Institutional Integration. 2002

Sustainable Agriculture Training of Trainers: A Resource book. 2002

Enhancing Ownership and Sustainability: A Resource Book on Participation. 2001.

Enhancing Participation in Local Governance: Experiences from the Philippines. 2001.

Shifting Cultivation: Towards Sustainability and Resource Conservation in Asia. 2001.

Towards Better Enterprises: Business Development, Marketing and Microfinance Practices. 2001

Utilizing Different Aquatic Resources for Livelihoods in Asia. A Resource Book. 2001

Going to Scale: Can we bring more benefits to more people more quickly? 2000.

Indigenous Knowledge & Practices on Mother and Child Care: Experiences from Southeast Asia and China. 2000.

Social and Institutional Issues on Watershed Management in India. 2000.

Environmental health: A sourcebook of materials. 1999

Farmers Changing the Face of Technology: Choices and Adaptations of Technology Options. 1999.

Research Partnerships: Issues and Lessons from Collaboration of NGOs and Agricultural Research Institutions. 1999.

Creative Training: A User's Guide. 1998.

Livelihood Options for Coastal Communities. Volume II. 1998.

Organizational Performance and Change Management: Workshop Proceedings. 1998.

Participatory Methods in Community-based Coastal Resource Management. 1998.

Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation: Experiences and Lessons. Workshop Proceedings. 1998.

Resource Management in Rainfed Drylands: An Information Kit. 1997.

Environmentally Sound Technologies for Women in Agriculture. 1996.

Recording and Using Indigenous Knowledge: A Manual. 1996.

Resource Management for Upland Areas in Southeast Asia. 1995.

Ethnoveterinary Medicine in Asia: An Information Kit on Traditional Animal Health Care Practices. 1994

Agroforestry Technology Information Kit. 1992

 

Gender Mainstreaming in Action: Successful Innovations from Asia and the Pacific
Just off the press, Gender Mainstreaming in Action: Successful Innovations from Asia and the Pacific contains 18 case stories that highlight innovative and practical experiences on mainstreaming gender at grassroots, program and institutional levels. Seventeen development organizations from 10 countries across Asia and the Pacific involved in partnership collaboration among more than 100 development partners have contributed to putting up this volume, generously sharing their experiences in a writeshop. Many of the experiences are rooted in community-based efforts from dozens of rural communities from across the region. A team of professionals from InterAction’s Commission on the Advancement of Women (CAW) and the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) coordinated the effort.


Top of Page


Trade Liberalization, Agriculture and Small Farm Households in the Philippines
Proactive Responses to the Threats and Opportunities of Globalization.
This is a landmark publication in that while there is extensive literature on agriculture and the Filipino farmer, and growing literature around the world on globalization, this is the first that documents trade liberalization’s actual impacts on small, resource-poor farmers, the most vulnerable sector of Philippine economy. The book features 20 case studies, the product of the coming together in a writeshop of local and international development organizations working with the rural sector. Subjects of the cases range from policy, fair trade and sustainable agriculture initiatives, to issues in food security, diversification of farms, land tenure, commodity liberalization, market access, among others. The book’s greatest strength are the cases that illustrate some of the ways in which farmers and farmers’ groups have proactively battled poverty and responded to trade liberalization’s opportunities and threats.

Top of Page

Evaluating Capacity Development: A study of capacity development in RDRS Bangladesh through IIRR’s international training courses
Published with assistance from the International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR) in the Netherlands, the book reflects on the effectiveness of IIRR training services delivered for a development NGO, Rangpur Dinajpur Rural Service (RDRS) in Bangladesh. It also provides a methodology for evaluating training’s effectiveness in building the capacity of organizations. The period covered by the study is from 1996-2000. Book may be of interest to senior and mid-level staff of development organizations, the donor community, and other training and development organizations.

Top of Page

 

Advancing Participatory Technology Development: Case studies on integration into agricultural research, extension and education.
This publication includes a selection of 12 case studies on institutionalizing Participatory Technology Development (PTD) approaches in Africa, Asia and Latin America. It shows how various organizations in agricultural research, extension and education have attempted to integrate PTD into their day-to-day operations, decision-making and culture.

The case studies included in this publication were generated as part of a study conducted in 2001 and were presented at international workshop held at IIRR in the Philippines. IIRR worked in partnership with ETC Ecoculture of the Netherlands in producing this publication, with funding support from the ACP-EU Technical Center for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA)

Top of Page


Integrated Watershed Management Approaches to Alleviating Poverty in the Bicol Region, Philippines: Learning from Past Experience

The book is the result of a learning workshop in 2003 and documents the outputs, lessons, as well as the process of beginning to put into action integrated watershed resources management in the second poorest region of the Philippines. Integrated Watershed Management: Approaches to Alleviating Poverty in the Bicol Region, Philippines offers a framework for developing integrated watershed management as a sustainable way to address rural poverty and manage a region’s natural resource base. Appended are lessons from some 20 past natural resource management projects in Bicol on which the framework builds upon.

Top of Page

Participatory Technology Development for Agricultural Improvement: Challenges for Institutional Integration. 2002

Since the 1980s, participatory approaches to agricultural extension and research have been promoted across all continents and groups of development actors. An increasing number of organizations are now implementing participatory technology development (PTD) in various settings. In the course of implementation, PTD projects have faced challenges of integrating the practices into the various institutions.

This publication, and the accompanying interactive CD, is a result of a study conducted by ETC Ecoculture of the Netherlands and the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) in 2001 on institutionalizing PTD. The study generated 19 cases from around the world. The case studies were critically reviewed at a workshop held in the Philippines. The publication, therefore, is based on both the cases and rigorous workshop review. While the publication is largely an analytical report of the study and the workshop, the interactive CD contains both the publication and the detailed cases presented in very reader friendly and easily navigable formats.

 

Top of Page

Sustainable Agriculture Training of Trainers: A Resource book. 2002

This resource book is designed for trainers in sustainable agriculture. It is in response to the growing need for sustainable agriculture training institutions to do a better job at imparting and sharing the sustainable agriculture concepts, principles and experiences. It is a product of both the over 40 years training experience of the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR), and a five year Training of Trainers project on sustainable agriculture funded by the Netherlands government and implemented by IIRR.

 

Produced in 2002, the resource book and accompanying interactive CD offer a complete set of materials, training session guides and handouts useful for training on all aspects of sustainable agriculture, with illustrations. The materials can also be useful to those involved in or planning for training programs in development organizations. The resource book is divided into two parts: the first part is a reflection on key considerations in sustainable agriculture training, while the second part focuses on training program development and management.

 

Top of Page

Enhancing Ownership and Sustainability: A Resource Book on Participation. 2001.

This publication describes a broad range of first-hand experiences with participatory approaches in the context of projects funded by International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) NGOs and governments in Asia. It also contains details of some of the newer approaches that are being tried in the region.

 

This compilation would be useful to local government units, NGOs and networks of community-based institutions. It focuses on participatory processes and their management, and presents a broad range of concrete experience with different tools. It is assumes that the reader is already familiar with the use of tools like PRA/PLA/PME and is now interested in second generation issues related to project design, training and measurement of impact associated with the use of participatory processes. Each article reflects specific experiences. As such, it has own validity.

 

This resource book was produced through the writeshop process organized by IIRR, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Asian Coalition for Agrarian Reform and Rural Development (ANGOC), South East Asian Rural Social Leadership Institute (SEARSOLIN), Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific and MYRADA.

 

Top of Page

Enhancing Participation in Local Governance: Experiences from the Philippines. 2001.

The publication features a unique compilation of field-tested approaches from a wide range of local government initiatives and projects in the Philippines. All articles are based on existing literature and secondary materials. Sources are indicated at the end of each article.

 

It is divided into three chapters. Chapter One represents various perspectives on the concepts, frameworks, principles, issues and challenges in the pursuit of decentralization and local governance and, ultimately that of genuine and sustainable development. Chapter Two shares some of the successful experiences in public sector reform or the adoption of modern management approaches and techniques in the areas of governance such as local development planning as well as financial management. Chapter Three highlights similarly successful experiences in other development endeavors, (i.e. health service delivery, natural resource management, local economic promotion, among others). This publication was a collaboration between SANREM-CRSP/Southeast Asia, Philippines -Canada Local Government Support Program and IIRR. 

 

Top of Page

 

Shifting Cultivation: Towards Sustainability and Resource Conservation in Asia. 2001.

This collection of "best practices" in shifting cultivation is built upon the actual field experiences of some 30 expert development practitioners, researchers and policy makers drawn from across the Asian region and beyond. Diverse traditional and modified practices of shifting cultivation are presented and analyzed in an objective search for sustainability and the implications for those associated with this cultural practice are presented objectively. This multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral approach has yielded a publication extremely useful for all those concerned with rural development and natural resource management: foresters, agriculturalists, community workers, students, government officials, researchers and environmentalists alike. An extremely intensive and participatory workshop process has practical material to be presented, critiqued by peers, illustrated and edited for inclusion. The resulting materials are written in simple, easily understood language and are illustrated with numerous, clear line drawings.   This publication is the output of the workshop organized by IIRR and International Center for Research in Agroforestry (Southeast Asia Office) with funding support from International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the International Development Research Center (IDRC-SARO) and Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development (CIIFAD).

 

Top of Page

Towards Better Enterprises: Business Development, Marketing and Microfinance Practices. 2001

This resource book focuses on business development services, marketing, market linkages and microfinance, as well as education, technology and social dimensions of microenterprise development.  Primarily designed for practititioners and managers of microenterprises already engaged in enterprise development, this sourcebook could also be of relevance to economic planners and policymakers attempting to draw lessons from the field in designing new microenterprise programs.

 

The publication is the output of a writeshop conducted by IIRR in collaboration with the Citigroup Foundation and SwissContact-Philippines.

 

Top of Page

Utilizing Different Aquatic Resources for Livelihoods in Asia. A Resource Book. 2001

The search for sustainable, livelihood approaches to reduce poverty continues to pose a challenge to rural development planners and practitioners. Many fishers and farmers have developed methods of aquaculture that use water-based, natural-capital stocks and which utilize resources available locally. Development agencies have undertaken research and development efforts that build on these initiatives.

 

This resource book is an example of one such effort and consists of a compilation of proven field-derived experiences from Asia.

 

This publication is divided into different chapters: general issues and principles of small-scale aquaculture as it relates to small farmers; emphasis on participatory approaches and extension strategies pertaining to small-scale aquaculture; management of aquatic resources by the communities; specific systems such as freshwater, brackish water and marine systems as well as lake and reservoir based aquaculture.

 

This book intentionally presents a diversity of perspectives, viewpoints and positions. It is of relevance to a wider range of development practitioners, local government officials and academic institutions.

 

An output of the workshop organized by International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR), International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Network of Aquaculture Centers in Asia-Pacific (NACA) and International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management (ICLARM) in partnership with Asian Institute of Technology, The Netherlands Embassy - Manila, Deustsche Welthungerhilfe, German Agro Action and Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center.

 

Top of Page

Going to Scale: Can we bring more benefits to more people more quickly? 2000.

This publication presents the highlights from the Washington workshops held on October 22-23, 1999 at the World Bank and the Philippines workshop held on April 10-14, 2000 at International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR). This book contains the concepts, principles, strategies and issues that were raised and discussed during the workshops. It features the summaries of the selected case studies presented at both workshops. These case studies are of varying foci - sustainable agriculture, natural resource management, health and social development, micro-credit and agrarian reform - and are about the experiences, strategies and approaches of various organizations in scaling up.

 

The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)-NGO Committee and Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR) provided the funding support.

 

Top of Page

Indigenous Knowledge & Practices on Mother and Child Care: Experiences from Southeast Asia and China. 2000.

Produced through a participatory writeshop, this resource book features practices, strategies and issues with programmatic implications (not just anthropological documentation of practices). Each paper describes the indigenous knowledge, beliefs and practices and also provides a development perspective to the topic. The geographical focus is Southeast Asia and China.

 

This publication, produced in collaboration with PLAN International, Save the Children Federation, Inc., UNICEF and Lutheran World Relief, is designed for use by extension workers, field staff and middle level managers of community development projects. It is intended to help development practitioners understand and appreciate indigenous practices in the context of Southeast Asia and to develop IK sensitivity (affirmation of the value accorded to IK across cultures in Southeast Asia). The retrieval mechanism for specific IK practices is also featured. 

 

Top of Page

Social and Institutional Issues on Watershed Management in India. 2000.

This resource book has brought together "tried and tested" experiences in dealing with social and institutional issues in watershed development. These field experiences, drawn from across India, demonstrate how people's participation can be operationalised, how equity issues are addressed and social institutions are strengthened.

 

This publication, produced in collaboration with OIKOS, India, is a collection of resource materials for trainers, project/field managers, local government officials, researchers and policy makers. The Department for International Development (DFID) provided the funding support.

 

Top of Page

Environmental health: A sourcebook of materials.1999

People are not often aware of the hidden dangers in the environment they live in. These problems demonstrate the need for relevant materials confronting such issues in their day-to-day work.

 

This sourcebook gives practical ideas on issues affecting health and the quality of life in general. It is a compilation of articles on environmental issues based on a wide range of previously published materials drawn from bilateral and multilateral agencies, individual writers, non-governmental organizations and the global press.

 

This sourcebook contains 68 topics useful for trainors, program managers and rural development institutions. The sheets are grouped into seven major areas:

·         Environmental health concepts

·         Agriculture and agroecosystem health

·         Agricultural/livestock production and human health

·         Water, sanitation and water-related health problems

·         Health, housing and urban development

·         Climate change, waste and air pollution

·         Occupational health

 

Each sheet presents a single issue on environmental health. The sheets can be reproduced and distributed in a training session. Each topic is presented in easy to understand language and fully illustrated.

 

The production of this sourcebook was funded by Institut fur Internationale Zusammenarbiet des Deutschen Volkshochchul-Verbandes (IIZ/DVV).

 

Top of Page

 

Farmers Changing the Face of Technology: Choices and Adaptations of Technology Options. 1999.

The study explored what happened to technologies after being introduced to farmers; the way these technologies were incorporated into the household farming system; put into regular use or not; and the spread of technologies from trained farmers to other farmers. The study generated new hypotheses which could be used to develop approaches and strategies for cost-effective and environmentally-sound agricultural development in the uplands.

 

The project, as well as the production of the publication, was funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC).

 

Top of Page

Research Partnerships: Issues and Lessons from Collaboration of NGOs and Agricultural Research Institutions. 1999.

This publication is an output of the International Workshop on Research Partnerships Between Non-government Organizations (NGOs) and Agricultural Research Institutions (ARIs) that brought together 35 participants from 14 countries. It discusses issues and lessons of collaboration between NGOs and ARIs in the formal research process. Summaries of the 12 cases of successful research partnerships from Africa, Latin America and Asia feature the nature and mechanisms of partnerships between local NGOs and ARIs and provide insights on a wide array of relationships and strategies for collaboration. This document contains topics useful for field extension and research workers from NGOs and ARIs and can be reproduced and distributed in different fora. Materials may also be used on web-sites of interested institutions.

 

The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)-NGO Committee, MISEREOR and GTZ-BEAF of Germany provided funding support for the workshop and the production of the workshop proceedings.

 

Top of Page

Creative Training: A User's Guide. 1998.

Creative Training Guide was produced by IIRR at the request of the Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO). It is a compilation of various creative training and facilitation techniques and methods based on the experiences of VSO volunteers and their counterparts. The contents of the publication can easily be translated and adapted for use in both formal and informal education. The compilation contains creative education techniques that have already been tried and tested in the Philippines but are likewise applicable to other countries. The publication encourages the trainers to think more creatively in adapting tools to suit their needs.

 

Top of Page

Livelihood Options for Coastal Communities. Volume II. 1998.

This publication is the second volume of a compilation of small-scale, appropriate technologies aimed to provide and improve livelihood opportunities for coastal communities in the Philippines. The subjects covered are water- and land-based activities in the coastal areas including topics on aquaculture, capture fisheries and other livelihood endeavors. The book is especially helpful to extension workers engaged in information dissemination and technology transfer in coastal communities.

 

This publication was co-produced with the Small Islands Agricultural Support Services Programme, a special project funded by the European Union.

 

Top of Page

Organizational Performance and Change Management: Workshop Proceedings. 1998.

A workshop conducted in October 1997 wherein Philippine non-government organizations shared their experiences in implementing change in their organizations, produced this output. The publication documents the workshop flow and covers the internal and external impetus for organizational performance and change management. It also features six case studies written by the concerned organizations themselves.

 

Each workshop section identifies certain factors such as critical performance assessment points and indicators; frameworks, tools and techniques for assessing performance; and facilitating and hindering factors to change management.

 

The publication was collaboration among IIRR, the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), Philippine-German Development Foundation (PhiIGerFund) and World Vision. Funding for the workshop and the publication was provided by the Ford Foundation.

 

Top of Page

Participatory Methods in Community-based Coastal Resource Management. 1998.

The sourcebook is a documentation of various tools and methods developed in the course of doing CBCRM as effectively and efficiently employed by field practitioners in the Philippines, Indonesia, India and other Asian countries. The main section of the sourcebook is the step by step description of various participatory methods field tested by the authors and their organizations. A simple outline was devised for most of the topics to include the definition, purpose, materials, suggested approach, outputs, strengths, weaknesses and variations. The sourcebook is designed for use by people working directly with coastal communities to help strengthen their capability to manage, protect and develop their local resources.

 

The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Royal Netherlands Embassy, Small Islands Agricultural Support Services Programme (SMISLE) and the Western Samar Agricultural Resources Development Programme were the funding partners for this publication. Collaborating organizations were IDRC, International Center for Living Aquatic Resources and Management (ICLARM), Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO), SEAMEO Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), SMISLE and Coastal Resource Management Project (CRMP).

 

Top of Page

Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation: Experiences and Lessons. Workshop Proceedings. 1998.

 

This publication represents the experiences and lessons learned from the International Workshop on Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation at IIRR. The workshop brought together field practitioners who came to share experiences, identify trends, gaps, issues and priority action points to enhance PM&E practice. The publication includes regional overviews and mapping exercises, sectoral and institutional perspectives, concepts and methods and planning future steps.

 

The workshop was funded by International Development Research Center (IDRC), Department for International Development (DFID), Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC), United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).

 

Top of Page

Resource Management in Rainfed Drylands: An Information Kit. 1997.

This publication was produced in an effort to compile farmer-tested dryland technologies and practices based on rich and extensive Indian experiences. However, the publication could also be of use to others involved in dryland agriculture development outside India. This technical information material was designed for middle level development program managers, agriculture technicians, specialists, field extension personnel of government and non-government organizations working with dryland development projects with a focus on natural resources management. The information kit is divided into seven chapters, each containing several interrelated topics. Where necessary, specific examples such as brief case studies were added to help clarify certain concepts. Different ways of doing certain operations are in some instances presented.

 

The publication was produced in collaboration with MYRADA and funding support from the Department for International Development (DFID), Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC), the German Agro Action and the Ford Foundation.

 

Top of Page

Environmentally Sound Technologies for Women in Agriculture. 1996.

Simple, science-based resource materials geared at increasing the efficiency of women in the home and in the farm while helping sustain the environment, are the main contents of this publication. The topics include animal husbandry and dairying, vegetables and post-harvest technologies, organic farming, seed production and storage, pests and pesticides, drudgery reduction, water management for farm and home and fish production. This publication contains 60 illustrated environmentally sound technologies useful to both female and male extension agents.

 

The publication was produced in collaboration with the International Federation for Women in Agriculture (IFWA) based in India. Funding support was provided by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Citibank and UNESCO.

 

Top of Page

Recording and Using Indigenous Knowledge: A Manual. 1996.

IK manual, as this book is popularly called, provides rural development workers with information and tools needed to integrate indigenous knowledge (IK) into development work. It contains an overview of IK-related issues, describes more than 30 methods of recording and assessing IK, discusses issues and methods for assessing the usefulness of IK in development, contains more than 20 question guides that outline content areas to be considered when recording IK and lists further resources that can be used when exploring the use of IK.

 

The publication was supported by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Heifer Project International.

 

Top of Page

Resource Management for Upland Areas in Southeast Asia. 1995.

Second printing: October 1998

 

Upland issues and approaches, integrated upland systems management, soil and water conservation, diagnostic methods and tools, extension and linkage strategies and evaluation techniques are the major contents of this publication. It provides a set of easy-to-understand guidelines on sustainable upland management technologies and participatory approaches for development and promotion. The book is intended for use by agriculture and forestry trainers, natural resources management specialists, extension personnel and non-government organizations promoting upland community development.

 

The publication was produced in collaboration with the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (FAO) and the Asia Pacific Agroforestry Network (APAN-FAO). Funding support was provided by the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, AGSP, Farmer-centered Agricultural Resource Management Programme (FAO), Forest Trees and People Programme (FAO), Asia Soil Conservation Network, Cornell International Institute of Food, Agriculture and Development and the UK Freedom from Hunger Campaign.

 

Top of Page

Ethnoveterinary Medicine in Kenya. A field manual of traditional animal healthcare practices. 1996

This field guide is the first practical manual of traditional animal heath care practices in Kenya, and probably in all of Africa.

 

Compiled by a team of 40 veterinarians and traditional healers, the manual includes information on the indigenous livestock health care practices of many of Kenya's pastoral and farming communities. It covers more than 60 of the most important diseases and problems faced by livestock holders in camels, cattle, chickens, dogs, donkeys, goats and sheep.

 

For each disease or problem, the manual gives the signs, causes, prevention measures and a range of traditional treatments. The treatments are in recipe format to enable readers prepare and use the remedy themselves. The text is written in clear, simple language, and is amply illustrated with line drawings.

 

This manual will be invaluable for livestock health practitioners, veterinarians and development professionals throughout Africa.

 

Top of Page

Agroforestry Technology Information Kit. 1992

Second printing: 1996

Third printing: April 1998

 

Described by Agroforestry Today magazine as an "extremely valuable resource", this kit contains more than 60 brief, clear, illustrated Ieaflets on different strategies for integrating food production and planting of multipurpose trees. Among the general subjects covered are soil and water conservation, cropping systems, seeds and plant propagation, tree management and livestock production. This very popular material was revised and updated in 1992. The second edition presents the material in a set of six topic-specified pocket booklets.

 

The Ford Foundation, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the University of the Philippines at Los Baños (Agroforestry Program and the Agronomy Department) were the collaborating partners in the production of this publication. The Ford Foundation provided the funding support.

 

Top of Page

 

  Home | FAQs | Contact Us