Opportunities and limitations to social learning for sustainability: empirical insights from a participatory approach to community-based resource management in the Philippines

ABSTRACT

Social learning is increasingly identified as a valuable tool in the pursuit of sustainable development agenda in the same manner that participatory processes are seen as important avenues for creating social learning situations. Through an empirical case study of participatory processes undertaken to rehabilitate a community-based irrigation system in the Philippines, this study explores two interrelated questions: what feature of the participatory irrigation management approach implemented in the Philippines facilitates social learning, and what were the limiting factors for its long-term success? One of the most prominent features of participatory approaches elucidated in this case study is the integration of traditional institutions into more contemporary formalized farmer associations. While this approach helped legitimize intervention and enhanced local cooperation for a successful project implementation, our findings underscores the need for carefully designed participatory processes that are specifically aimed at creating long term learning outcomes. Further study is recommended to further explore how social learning can be facilitated beyond the intervention phase of project-based participatory approaches.

KEYWORDS:

• Participatory approach; social learning; sustainability; community-based irrigation management; institutions; collective action; conflict resolution

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Doreen Ingosan Allasiw

Doreen Ingosan Allasiw is a faculty member of the Department of Development Communication, Benguet State University and an affiliate faculty of the College of Business Administration, University of the Cordilleras. She earned her masters and PhD in Sustainability Science from the University of Tokyo.

Toshinori Tanaka

Toshinori Tanaka is an Associate Professor at the Department of Research and Promotion, Institute for Asian and Oceanian Studies, Kyushu University. He received his Bachelor Degree in history (2006) from Osaka University, and his Master (2008) and PhD in environmental policy (2011) from Kyoto University.

Shogo Kudo

Shogo Kudo is a faculty member of the International Liberal Arts, Akita International University (Japan) and research fellow in the Department of Geography, University of the Free State (South Africa). He earned his masters and PhD in Sustainability Science from the University of Tokyo.

Takashi Mino

Takashi Mino is Project Professor at Tokyo College, the University of Tokyo. He received his Bachelor's, Master's and PhD Degrees in Engineering from The University of Tokyo in 1978, 1980 and 1983, respectively.