A presentation made on 15 May 2014 at the Congresso Internacional EDO 2014 concerning communities of practice in international development, highlighting examples for other sectors. Presented examples of Dgroups and KM4Dev.

1. Knowledge sharing in
communities of practice in
international development
Lessons for other sectors?
Sarah Cummings, Knowledge Ecologist
EDO International Conference III
15 May 2014

3. International development…

4. Introduce myself
Development is important and challenging field
Development is embracing communities of practice
One case
Evidence
Lessons for others sectors?
The story…

5. ‘Development’ field since 1983
Practitioner-researcher with focus on information and knowledge with
consultancies, research and other activities
Two of the communities of practice: I’m a active member
Paper and presentation are based on two papers but also on practice experience
Own research: academic journals dominated by key institutions in UK, USA and a
few other countries
Editor of the Knowledge Management for Development Journal
Introducing myself…

7. Knowledge Ecologist…
Ecology, not an economy
Holistic: collaboration, cooperation and coordination
‘Social’ not biological ecology
Relationships and connection

8. www.dgroups.info
2,415 communities
191,318 registered users
460,000 email messages each day
50% exchanged with and within African countries
Shared values
Dgroups

9. Dgroups
www.dgroups.info

10. Measured as Official Development Assistance (ODA)
USD 125,600 million in 2012
Equivalent to global wine sales/China’s IT exports
0.29 of combined Gross National Income (GNI) of OECD
countries
Spain: USD 4000 million in 2011
Excludes non-OECD countries: China
Excludes ‘new’ actors: Gates Foundation
Development is important because…

11. Development is important because…

12. Development is important…
Slide 3

13. Challenges facing development…
Professional diversity

14. Challenges facing development…
Cultural diversity

15. Linguistic diversity: English, Spanish, French, but also
vast number of languages are the ‘grassroots’
Technological diversity
Multiple knowledges
Challenges facing development
Other diversity

16. … development efforts often transcend
organizations, professional constituencies, and
geographical boundaries, making knowledge
management increasingly relevant because of its power
to cross these divides.
Challenges facing development

17. No longer a heuristic but now a ‘tool’ to promote
learning (Johnson 2007)
Intentional communities and non-intentional
(spontaneous) communities
Acting as effective bridges between diverse
professional domains: policy and practice (Hearn and
White 2009)
CoPs in development

18. Communities of ideas
Formal knowledge networks
Virtual teams
Virtual knowledge communities
Thematic groups
Thematic networks
Communities in development

19. Communities of
practice
• Groups of people who interact
regularly and who share a practice
(and a passion)
The domain
The community
The practice
… Governance
….Technology

20. Knowledge Management for Development
Community
Started in 2000
Information and knowledge professionals, academics,
and consultants
Intentional and non-intentional phases
Approx. 2000 members
Case: KM4Dev

22. KM4Dev: The domain
International development
Knowledge management
Health – agriculture – gender – human rights
Grassroots to ministries
Kemly Camacho, Costa Rica

23. Professionals over the world
Online and face to face
Sub-communities
KM4Dev: the community

26. I feel so moved by all the positive reactions
I received every day since I posted my
request. Just as if I have numerous secret
hidden friends ready to give a hand !
It's a feeling not easy to express; the kind of
strength you sense when you're not alone
and that makes you dare and never afraid of
taking new challenges... merci beaucoup.
Yennenga Kompaoré,
Burkina Faso

27. Knowledge management
Knowledge sharing
Communities of practice
Organizational KM
Indigenous knowledge processes
KM4Dev: The practice

28. Voluntary basis
Voluntary core group
Wiki which details all meetings and process
Efforts to be transparent
KM4Dev: Governance

29. A Dgroups with 1932 members
Ning website
Open Journal Systems
Wiki
KM4Dev: Technology

30. …a global network of development agents who share the idea that
knowledge can contribute to the development of poor countries and
groups in a disadvantaged situation.
…a cognitive bridge for development agents worldwide..
… KM4Dev has shaped the flow of knowledge among the members of
the net.
…a high level of efficiency, providing reliable answers to development
agents at a daily basis almost in real time, and at very low costs.
Sebastiao Ferreira , Peru

31. International development is an important area of
work
Faces many challenges
Communities of practice are seen as the solution to
many of these challenges
But what is the evidence….
The story so far…

32. Facilitate exchange of information and knowledge
Creation of new knowledge
Improve collaboration, coordination and cooperation
Facilitate contact across North-South divides
Bridging development divides in terms of profession
between practitioners, researchers and policymakers
Crossing the digital divides
Impact at the level of project and programmes, and
organizational change
Evidence

33. Yes, [communities of practice] really have broadened the
way people perceive and understand their own
organization. Now staff members don’t just refer to their
own experience but have a more regional perspective .
They have also facilitated the development of SNV as a
horizontal organization and in reducing hierarchy. It has
also facilitated SNV as a matrix organization.
Robin van Kippersluis,
The Netherlands

34. Not able to cross linguistic divides
Not able to include beneficiaries
Often under the radar
But…

35. Think about joint platforms with other organizations
Be ambitious but not too ambitious
Attention for governance and power issues
Attention for politics
Lessons for other sectors?

36. Development is important and challenging field
Development is embracing communities of practice
Evidence
Lessons for others sectors?
…the story

37. In general, there is a trend to associate communities
of practice with [social media] which means that the
sociological and cultural aspects are left aside.
Camilo Villa, Colombia, 15 May 2014

38. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWxIcuGIn1A&feat
ure=youtu.be
An example of work on indigenous knowledge with the
Mapuche people in Chile