Contribution short abstract:

We bring a contrast between community-based knowledge and top-down technocratic discourses of risk, to show how structuring a knowledge framework may benefit coordinated resistance and open realistic options to orient community-academic-municipal-international coordination efforts

Contribution long abstract:

In the peri-urban communities of Bogotá, a technocratic logic administered through municipal authorities is threatening to displace residents from lands deemed "non-mitigable high-risk zones." Since 1998, approximately 48,000 people have been enlisted in the government’s relocation process, and yet by 2015, more than half were still waiting for a relocation option, while new families continue to move into the vacated plots. Community resistance to this situation reveals not only a skepticism about the government’s technocratic assessment of risk and its inability to implement its own policy, but also a deeper analysis of the failure to understand the historical and social drivers of risk, which remain concealed at the root of the problem.

In coordination with the NATURA Network (Nature-Based Solutions for Urban Resilience in the Anthropocene) and the Thematic Working Group on Urban Informality and Innovation for Resilience, we have been developing a "Local Labs strategy" based on converging citizen activism, research, and international cooperation to support the development of coalitions and counter-hegemonic narratives challenging the contradictions and violence of dominant technocratic approaches.

As our contribution to the panel, we present a theoretical framework incorporating community claims and knowledge about the production, distribution, and attribution of risk, offering an epistemology of risk capable of opening new pathways towards epistemic justice, adaptation trends, and alternative resilient urban futures.

Contribution short abstract:

Community-based research in informal settlements raises ethical concerns about exploitation and wasteful research. This paper spotlights an emancipatory co-creation process of reframing ethical research in marginalized communities to discourage extractive research practices and research waste.

Contribution long abstract:

Urban informal settlements are sites of advanced marginality owing to high levels of impoverishment, deplorable living conditions, multiple precarities, and sustainability challenges. They have increasingly drawn substantial research attention, which is yet to yield commensurate impact. This has raised critical ethical concerns about how they are over-researched, with little to no apparent physical and socio-economic transformation. Typically, ‘scientific’ researchers enter these spaces with predetermined research agenda, extract knowledge and depart, with little to no reciprocal value to the communities, who remain feeling fatigued, exploited, misrepresented, and disgruntled by pervasive failure of research translation into positive development outcomes.

Community based participatory research approaches have been hailed for democratizing research and arguably redressing unethical community research practices. On the contrary, these models are rather tokenistic and fall short of deconstructing knowledge hierarchies prevalent in scientific research. The ensuing knowledge dispossession has perpetuated community patronization by dominant theoretical and empirical authority wielded by scientific researchers. Communities are thus frequently relegated to supporting research roles with minimal to no interactions with research findings and much lesser input in research uptake.

This paper spotlights community agency in heavily researched Mathare informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya. Through a series of co-creation workshops, the community under the banner Mathare Special Planning Area Research Collective (MSPARC), has collaborated with researchers from Leiden-Delft-Erasmus Universities to co-develop guidelines for ethical research in the community. Dubbed the ‘ten commandments’, these guidelines reflect pressing community concerns, which have triggered collective advocacy for symbiotic research engagement amidst ethical ambiguities in community-based research practices.

Contribution short abstract:

As a PhD student who conducted fieldwork using a Participatory Action Research framework, I hope to share its challenges as well as learnings, and explore whether using participatory methods in PhDs can be viable in academia while retaining their potential for epistemic responsibility and justice.

Contribution long abstract:

I am a PhD student at SOAS and my research explores the linkages between the concepts of education, development, and progress, reimaging them with and for rural girls in India. I carried out my PhD fieldwork using the Participatory Action Research (PAR) methodology. Given its commitment to collaboration, shared knowledge production, and epistemic justice, PAR appeared to be the best methodology to undertake a research that aimed to challenge dominant modes of thinking about education and development, incorporated a feminist re-visioning of education, and most importantly, hoped to discursively challenge the boundaries of who could produce knowledge in academia. Using PAR in my fieldwork centred the voices of marginalised rural girls in India who have been rendered silent within the discourses of education and development, and enabled the girls to bring their unique perspectives and cultural capital accrued by being located on the margins of intersecting systems of power, in a collaborative effort to produce knowledge about girlhood, education, development ,and progress.

Opting for such an unconventional (but not unheard of) methodology for a PhD raised several ethical questions as well as practical challenges during fieldwork, which I hope to share along with the strategies I used to deal with them. I also hope to invite feedback, reflections and insights towards developing a participatory methodological framework for PhDs. Finally, considering the ‘messiness’ of doing participatory research, I explore how it can serve a transformative purpose and the questions it raises for further dialogue on feminist knowledge production and epistemic justice.

Contribution short abstract:

The paper explores how preparatory institutions based on identity and community help disadvantaged students access higher education in India. We use qualitative methods to understand their experiences, practices, and identities. We also discuss our role as researchers and allies.

Contribution long abstract:

Literature establishes that educational participation is socially determined (Chanana, 1993; Filmer et. al.,1998; Hasan and Mehta, 2006). Our paper explores how identity and community-based preparatory institutions facilitate higher education access for students from marginalised backgrounds – along class and caste lines. These institutions have been overlooked(Stevenson and Baker, 1992; Bray, 1999) despite being part of India’s higher education sector. They can also worsen social inequalities by serving only those who can afford them(Majumdar, 2014). However, some of these institutions have enabled access for students with fewer resources and from marginalised groups, by leveraging their community and identity ties. The study proposes to examine how such select preparatory spaces shape its students’ experiences, and everyday emergent practices, and how such practice intersects with identity negotiations.

In our presentation, we especially focus on the methodological imperatives that allow us to enable an emancipatory practice of research intervention. In particular, we look at emergent challenges of site access and the use of methods like narrative storytelling. In doing so we will raise provocations and provide insights into the role of researchers, and the process of co-production of knowledge, as evidenced through our interactions with stakeholders in our field sites. Further, we will provide recommendations for higher education spaces both at the level of a phenomenon like equitable access to higher education and contribute to the overall conceptual understanding of epistemic justice. We also reflect on our role as researchers and responsible allies to these groups, and how we can share their stories authentically.

Contribution short abstract:

Our objective is to showcase a 3 year collaborative research endeavor between a research academy and an RLO, emphasizing the mutually beneficial relationship between scholars and practitioners, while also disseminating successful strategies, challenges encountered, and valuable lessons learned.

Contribution long abstract:

Title: Forging Epistemic Equity: A Case Study of Collaborative Research and Empowerment Strategies in Host and Refugee Communities.

This submission proposes an exploration of collaborative research and knowledge co-production within the framework of seeking epistemic justice, with a particular focus on emancipatory research practices. The study centers on a case, involving an RLO ( refugee-led -Organization) in Lebanon and an academic institute from the UK , where innovative approaches have been employed to meaningfully engage low-income and marginalized communities. Through a multidimensional analysis, we aim to shed light on the transformative potential of collaborative research in addressing issues of knowledge inequality and fostering inclusivity in the research process.

Our presentation will delve into the methodology employed, emphasizing the strategies implemented to ensure the active participation and empowerment of marginalized groups. By sharing insights into successful practices, challenges encountered, and lessons learned, this submission contributes to the broader conversation on ethical and socially responsible research. It aligns with the panel's objective of advancing epistemic justice and seeks to inspire further discussions on best practices for creating a more equitable and inclusive research landscape.

We present this abstract with enthusiasm with a power point presentation , aspiring to offer valuable perspectives and practical insights derived from our experience in collaborative research betweeen academics and low-income and marginalized communities.

Contribution short abstract:

Climate science needs to integrate the traditional knowledge of local communities in Africa. These communities have over time developed intricate systems of conservation and ways of forecasting weather conditions to mitigate natural disasters. Scientists should tap into this time-tested resource

Contribution long abstract:

Africa contributes least to, but suffers the most from the negative impacts of climate change. The industrialized countries sometime unjustly blame the poor countries of the Global South for using natural resources in an unsustainable way; but most traditional Africa societies have deeply entrenched ideas and practices about conservation and the sustainable use of natural resources because their livelihood depends largely on the land and the sustainability of the ecosystem. They have over the years developed intricate systems of forecasting weather systems in order to mitigate natural disasters; traditional techniques of soil management, pest and disease control, adopting suitable crop and animal varieties, etc. The unprecedented scale of climate change today may have undermined the reliability of many traditional indicators for predicting the pattern of climate variability, and techniques for preventing and adapting to climate induced disasters. There is therefore a need for those who hold and use traditional knowledge to partner with scientists and other stakeholders in order to co-produce updated knowledge for better climate risk management. The paper argues that while Africa stands to gain from global science and international best practices, the continent should search within its own knowledge systems for appropriate ideas and approaches to many of its development challenges, and that indigenous knowledge may provide leads in rethinking and decolonizing climate science. Researchers and the development community should tap into indigenous knowledge for locally appropriate and culture-sensitive ways to engage with the environment, and adapt to the negative impacts of climate change

Contribution short abstract:

This paper examines the evolving relationship between academia and communities in collaborative research processes. Drawing on over two years of experience from the ACRC, it analyzes factors driving increased legitimacy, scale, and sophistication in communities’ modalities of collective action.

Contribution long abstract:

This paper examines the evolving relationship between academia and marginalized communities in collaborative research processes. Drawing on over two years of experience from the African Cities Research Consortium, it analyzes contextual factors driving increased legitimacy, scale, and sophistication in communities’ modalities of collective action.

Hegemonic knowledge production centered in the global North-West has long marginalized alternative knowledge systems. However, networked communities leverage decades of struggle into sophisticated strategies. As important knowledge creators, their legitimacy grows alongside attitudinal shifts by their collaborators and policy changes globally and within their contexts.

Specifically, national and local policy frameworks now acknowledge and create opportunities for marginalized communities to participate and make claims. Discourses on global platforms together with networks that these communities have established have also elevated and conferred legitimacy to their knowledge systems. Communities navigate legal and political openings while also drawing on their networks to advance their epistemic project. This enables them to scale their initiatives and to further sophisticate their modalities for collective action.

By analyzing these together with other contextual drivers and reflecting on the challenges that have been faced and overcome, this paper aims to elucidate new pathways for amplifying and supporting collective action for social justice in general, and epistemic justice in particular. It does this, by recognizing the drivers behind marginalised communities’ increased and sophisticated repertoires of engagement, and exploring how these can be nurtured further in their collaborations with academic and other partners.

Contribution short abstract:

This presentation will delve into the realm of participatory video, examining whether its objectives represent a mirage or an achievable range of possibilities in various contexts.

Contribution long abstract:

This presentation will delve into the realm of participatory video, examining whether its objectives represent a mirage or an achievable range of possibilities in various contexts. Participatory video, as a methodology that involves communities in creating and using video as a tool for self-representation and advocacy, has garnered attention for its potential to empower marginalized voices. However, the practical challenges, ethical considerations, and power dynamics inherent in participatory processes raise questions about the feasibility and impact of this approach.

Through a comprehensive review of literature and case study of work done in Nairobi, Kenya, this presentation explores the tensions between the ideals of participatory video and the realities on the ground. It assesses the extent to which participatory video fulfills its promise as a transformative tool for community engagement and social change, considering factors such as access to technology, cultural nuances, and power relations. By critically examining both successes and limitations, this research aims to contribute to a nuanced understanding of knowledges co-production, Community construction of stories as well as shedding light on whether it represents a mirage or a tangible and achievable range of possibilities in empowering communities through visual storytelling.

Contribution short abstract:

A short presentation that reflects on the process of using participatory visual arts to better understand marginalised aspirations of persons with disability, particularly Deaf youth, and calls for inclusive knowledge co-production that challenges the current epistemic structure in city-making.

Contribution long abstract:

This contribution looks at the process and explores the reflection from an action research initiative with Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing (HoH) youths in Surakarta, Indonesia, that aims to articulate their aspirations of an inclusive, ideal city through participatory visual arts as methodology. The initiative bases its intervention on a critical question of how the current urban development process overlooks the experiences of marginalised communities such as persons with disabilities, particularly Deaf communities—and how visual tools could facilitate more meaningful participation and further strengthen their agency and foster a more empowered community. This co-learning process facilitated a more democratic approach where participants can express their 'voice' through visuals, i.e. photographs, collage art, and illustrations, in response to prompts of imagining an ideal city according to their collective experiences. This process acknowledges how visuals have been important in the Deaf culture and proposes the potential of exploring visual tools as an inclusive method of capturing more nuanced knowledge that should be included in city-making. This short presentation will walk through the initiative. It starts with an introduction about the process, followed by a quick showcase of the Deaf participants' artworks, and will conclude with a discussion of takeaways from this project. This would bring an important reflection on what it means to use visual art as a medium of participation—calling for more knowledge co-production that challenges the meaning of an inclusive urban development within the current epistemic structure.

Contribution short abstract:

The piece draws on vignettes of dialogical work on entrepreneurship in the informal economy and its relationalities with knowledge co-production. These relationalities help to recognise the politics of resistance, refusals and reflexivity and their implications for social change.

Contribution long abstract:

I asked Sita Devi, a women entrepreneur in a small peri-urban town in Uttar Pradesh, about her aspirations. She responded, saying that dreams and aspirations are not for us. I don’t dream. I do the work.

Sita Devi is part of a network of women entrepreneurs receiving support from a non-profit programme on social innovation in India. Her ideas on entrepreneurship are distanced from the programmatic language, emphasising universalised entrepreneurship concepts. As a researcher, I encountered similar distances across India and South Africa, with narratives highlighting ambivalence. In this piece, I will illuminate such distances, including my own from the field, through vignettes of dialogical work of knowledge co-production, focussing on the hierarchies between researchers, practitioners, and communities. I draw from my work on micro and social entrepreneurship to show the power dynamics in dialogue and how this challenges our capacities for knowledge co-production. Further, I aim to open spaces to recognise how power in knowledge production is challenged and subverted in the field. The relationalities between power, dialogue and knowledge production allow us to recognise the politics of resistance, refusals and reflexivity based on what is being said, what is not being said, and why. Put simply, Sita Devi, in the lines above, was not conveying her deprivation or lack. She was conveying something profound and mundane – that, for her, entrepreneurship means her work and her life.