Experiential Learning Tools for Sustainable Water Management (Энэтхэг)

Сул тал/ дутагдал / эрсдэл: газар ашиглагчийн бодлоордаван туулах боломжууд

• Community members need to mobilize own resources and may feel overtrained in implementing own solutions. Local level partners and government can assist in supporting communities in the process of implementing solutions. Linking communities to permanent support structures such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) may be essential.
• Improving sustainable water use can create short-term trade-offs with food production. The approach intends to support solutions which do not create long-term trade-offs with food production. Facilitators can create awareness for such trade-offs. Learning tools can make such trade-offs more explicit and identifyable.
• Swelling but hidden conflicts related to resource distribution and free-riding behaviour may break open. It is important to note that the approach would not create conflict but only make conflicts visible. The games allow to discuss behaviour which is the source of conflict in a setting where it can be played in a symbolic way without pointing at any specific person. Firmly embedded community organisations such as the panchayat having a mandate to coordinate community issues is essential. Facilitators should be sensitized for signs of open conflicts and act sensitively. If necessary, they can support finding an adequate moderator.

Сул тал/ дутагдал / эрсдэл: эмхэтгэгч эсвэл бусад мэдээлэл өгсөн хүмүүсийн бодлоордаван туулах боломжууд

• Facilitators use inappropriate tools leading to inappropriate solutions. Decision support tools were developed to guide facilitators appropriately. Taking the approach to new geographies requires a good idea of the management challenges. There may be need to adapt tools to new contexts.
• Facilitators are impatient and fall back into a teaching mode. Emphasizing the value of experiential learning and creating trust in the creative potential of communities needs to be a priority in facilitator trainings.
• Communities think only within the space of existing knowledge The approach can be combined with the sharing information on innovative technologies.
• Policy and market dynamics override local level initiatives Local level experiential learning needs to be embedded into a system level multi-stakeholder process. For instance, in our case, government officials needed to be aware of the problematic incentives created by energy subsidies, current minimal support price mechanisms and other farmer support systems. Building coalitions, multi-actor platforms and bilateral interactions need to part of the intervention strategy.
• Unintended gender dynamics may appear Great care needs to be taken on decisions such as whether to conduct mixed-sex sessions or sessions with women only. A good understanding and consideration of specific dynamics is essential.
• A once-off intervention may be too weak to create a lasting effect. If this is observed, the experiential learning interventions should be repeated. Important is to apply the combination of tools not only because they build on each other but also to sustained interaction with the community.
• In the presence of elite groups, members of marginalized groups will not interact The facilitator can navigate the discussion so that all groups are adequately represented. The facilitators are to be trained so to be more sensitive in the facilitation. If this is insufficient to ensure equal participation, conducting separate sessions with marginalised groups may be required, at least as a preparatory step.