COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE – Examples
Forum for Sustainable Land Management (SLM) – a Swiss Platform for Discussion
Some history
The initial motives
At the outset there was a wish to link research expertise and the implementation in the field of SLM. On one side there were projects in SLM financed by SDC (Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation) and followed more closely by its agricultural department and on the other side research in SLM was done at the geographical institute of the University of Bern. Both parties met and they felt that in many cases the work in the field was based on old and obsolete ideas. Bringing the stakeholders together both might profit from the sharing of experience. The new insights from research to the implementation side should enrich and reorient their work and the experience from the field should give answers to research about the applicability of their findings. It was then decided to invite representatives of the university and of Swiss NGOs working in the same field.
How it got started
The starting event of the forum was a meeting called by SDC and CDE (Centre for Development and Environment, University of Berne) in 1994 to find out if there was a shared interest regarding the topic of SLM. The initial participants represented SDC, GTZ and several Swiss NGOs (Helvetas, Intercooperation, Swissaid, HEKS, FIBL etc.). At this first meeting the participants listed the topics they were dealing with at the time. They chose the most interesting topics and according to each participant's interest and expertise working groups were formed.
The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation(SDC) mandated CDE to stimulate and to support this network and provided the necessary funding.
Characteristics of its functioning
Organisation
Two representatives of CDE are assuming the role of convenor and administrator of the forum. They share the task to invite the representatives of the other organisations to the annual meetings, to follow the proceedings of the various working groups and to assure the communication among the interested parties. In most cases they also lead the working groups. The additional partners of the forum are involved in the working groups, contribute with inputs and feedback.
Events
Once or twice a year the forum SLM organises a workshop. Two types of meetings are taking place. In a first one the working groups present either their conclusions or intermediate findings on the theme they have been working on. A second one is rallying the partners to hear about and to discuss a special issue related to SLM. Depending on the topic guests are invited and may contribute with their special expertise.
The working groups meet separately according to their specific needs.
Means of communication
Between the yearly meeting the partners keep in contact by e-mail or by calling each other.
The forum has tried other forms of working together like electronic platforms and discussion groups but it was difficult to maintain discipline of and continuity among the partners involved.
Products / outputs
The working groups of the forum have produced several outputs related to its topic. These results all have the form of tools i.e. they are not intended towards an academic discussion, but to summarise the present knowledge and make it available in the form of guidelines and manuals.
Based on the knowledge capitalized through the working groups, selected support to field projects and staff from HQ is offered to organizations working in the field of SLM. In the field of Impact Monitoring & Assessment for instance, this leads then to an improved and field tested version of the manual elaborated by the working group. Thus a complete cycle of knowledge capitalisation and application was carried through.
A quick introduction to the current debate over SLM is offered by the so-called SLM Briefings.
The findings of the forum are also available on the CDE website. The briefings are available in English, French and Spanish and they are distributed by InfoAgrar to approx. 2000 readers.
The present partners of the forum
- Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
- Intercooperation
- Helvetas
- Swissaid
- GTZ
- World Bank
- a number of other NGOs and interested individuals
The present situation of the forum
After a very productive phase the forum is living now a transitional phase. In the past years the funding agency as well as the partner institutions has changed their profile and the agenda of the forum needs to be redefined.
The future of the forum
Since the forum is depending mainly on only one source for its financing (SDC) it depends to a high degree on the donors policy. In 2002 the means for the forum have been drastically reduced. It means that activities, especially the working groups, had to be limited and at the time being very few activities can be maintained.
Within the funding institution there is a continuous fluctuation of staff and frequent reorganisations take place. Therefore the importance that is given to the forum is subject to changes.
Presently CDE is in the process of exploring a renewed agenda, which responds to new and up-coming needs and expectations of partners in the field of sustainable land management.
Lessons learnt
- To achieve substantial outputs and added-value, a CoP can benefit greatly from the support with specific expertise. This can be used to conduct reviews on results from theory and practice and to deliver tangible results in form of tools, manuals, guidelines in a form easy to read and understand.
- One of the major constraints with regard to an ongoing forum consists in being funded by only one institution. This means that the forum depends on the prevailing policy of this institution and on the interest of its staff.
- Even though internet makes communication fast and easy, face to face events help people to get away from their daily activities and to put their focus on the topic brought forward.
- The former and the present state of the forum confirm the fact that CoPs do have their life cycles. Either the forum finds new interesting topics that motivate the partners to contribute actively or it comes (decently) to an end.
