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Report of the 2nd training in psycho-socio-cultural methodology for development in Cameroon

Mengang City Hall: May 6th to July 2nd 2013

The present report gives you an insight into the activities of the PODC in Spring 2013 in Mengang, Central Cameroon. Community development and sustainability are one of the major concerns in our time, especially in Africa and for those Cameroonian who are living in tremendous poverty and isolation, vulnerable to unsustainable resource exploitation from out-siders since centuries. Since 2009, Greenpeace together with different local and international partners, has launched the PODC/Climate Caravan in order to catalyze significant change by empowering those communities to take their destiny in their own hands: Organiza-tional development is the backbone of the humanistic approach, called psycho-socio-cultural methodology (PSCM). Since 2009 several trainings on energy have been conducted, hundreds of people have been trained and a core team of train-ees has taken over the project. The concrete results, hundreds of self-financed solar installations bringing light and better life conditions into these places, has triggered a huge demand of neighbour-ing villages. Therefore the project team needed to be reinforced, in order to scale up the project. The following story tells about the 2nd Methodology Training, in which 45 commu-nity organizers have been trained, empowering them for respectful, systemic inter-ventions in communities. 1. Community Organizing - an empowerment strategy The aim of the used organizing method, the psycho-socio-cultural methodology, is to enable vulnerable communities to organize themselves in order to live sustaina-bly on their land. To reach this goal, there is a proceeding with different phases. Very important are trainings that prepare the project team for the field work and their tasks, as well as trainings for communities. It is maybe not the best method, but different from the existing widespread approach. First objective of the training: to form the students - 41 people from all regions, in Cameroon, Togo and Congo (18 women and 23 men) - according to the PSC methodology so as to equip the individuals who aspire to do development work in the communities. This humanistic approach also teaches values and principles that help the participants to take actions to improve the living conditions while putting the people of the communities at the center of their attention.

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2. Preparation Very important step regarding the organization of the training. Establish a organizing committee which then denominates different commissions (technical, logistics, media, en-ergy, transport...).

PODC staff with the traditional authorities. A suitable location (the townhall of Mengang) and the right candidates according to the criteria for the training have been found.

Finally, installing solar panels (and then e.g. The committee then explored the 24 comm- solar powered fridges and water disinfection) unities they intend to work with. in the location of the training, integrating new technologies and habits as part of the training. 3. Opening Ceremony

• Get to know the influent people and the local authorities as well as the representa-tives of the respective partners. Invite the local media as well!

• Explain the two main stages of the training: the theoretical and the practical stage

respectively. • Present the partner organizations, students and the trainer.

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4. Theoretical Phase (in three parts) The students learn different concepts re-lating to the history of mankind by review-ing the philosophy, knowledge, sectors of the economy, science, the enlightenment, fetishism, polytheism, monotheism and mythology. This helps them to work with the commu-nities and be free of any prejudice or judgment.

Field groups are built consisting of experienced as well as inexperienced people, re-specting gender, ethnic and age balance. After practical field work, they come back to class to reflect the experience and prepare the next step. Basic points of the psycho-socio-cultural methodology (among others): - Starting from the necessities of the communities - it's their needs that define the pro-ject. - Enabling communities to organize themselves and use their capacities in order to de-velop and realize solutions for their needs, while developing practical solutions. - While developing practical solutions, integrating both traditional local and scientific uni-versal know-how and technologies. 5. Practical Phase (in two parts)

First visit of the communities: Starting with a first contact and informal exchange with the residents of the communities, going from house to house. At least 10 intensive days of fieldwork The 8 to 10 students are led by a former student, as group leader, who will organize the work and the group consisting of the students. The group leaders themselves are supervised and trained by the project coor-dination.

The second practical stage (=diagnostic stage) consists of interviews within all households (2250) of the 24 communities about the influ-ences and the potentials.

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6. Multiple expectations by partner organizations and local stakeholders can make planning and financials a real challenge. 7. Lessons Learnt • The PSCM allows to involve the population in a bottom-up approach: By supporting

communities to implement wished solutions, the PSCM strengthens the capacities of communities step-by-step and enables them, on the long run, to solve their prob-lems themselves.

• The scientifically based hands-on approach, deeply digging in and affecting the hu-man psyche, is capable to social divisions for the benefit of the humans. This is felt by the communities and even sensitive, sincere politicians, and has great potentials for systemic change.

• Empowering partner organi-zations for dealing with all the administrative challeng-es of a large project must not be neglected. Careful assessment, clear control, partner contracts and a well adapted organizational structure are helpful to fa-cilitate local ownership and keeping Greenpeace in the role of catalyzer for change.

For further information there is a link to a short PODC documentary about this topic: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3o1jBh2KzI. There are explanations by beneficiaries of the project, by the mayor of the Mengang Mu-nicipality, by the Cameroonian project coordinator, as well as by the international part-ners CABEPEC and Greenpeace. At the end, you find figures and facts of the project re-sults that have been achieved until now. For some more reading, visit www.greenpeace.ch/caravane. Credits Greenpeace: International Non-Governmental Environmental Organization. In Africa they engage mainly in forest protection and promotion of alternative energy. AJVC: Green Youth Association Cameroon for the promotion of youth development and sustainable resource management. Its action is aimed primarily at young people and women. CABEPEC: The Afro-Brazilian Center of Studies and Cultural Research promotes sus-tainable and durable community development. Accen-DC: Organization supporting community development. Mainly active in Northern Cameroon working for the development of orphans, abandoned children and women in difficulty. Solafrica.ch: Non-Governmental Organization with the aim of promoting solar energy and efficiency in Africa. CSS: The Cameroon Solar Solutions is a Climate Caravane spin-off that promotes solar solutions and sustainable energy.