INTERACTIVE
LEARNING IN RURAL
PARTNERSHIPS
LIGA PAULA
IDARI PhD Programme
Workshop 10-14 November, 2003,
Galway, Ireland
PARTNERSHIP:

is an institutional arrangement in which objectives are
shared and a common agenda is developed between
the different actors in pursuit of a common goal (Slee,
Snowdon)

promotes integration both vertically (between different
tiers of government) and horizontally (between
different spheres of society) (Benington, Geddes)

is a possibility for collaboration between different
stakeholders with potentially competing or conflicting
interests (Benington, Geddes)
PARTNERSHIPS &
RURAL DEVELOPMENT IN LATVIA

New discourse of public participation in rural
development - partnerships as an institutional
arrangements that involves local governments,
NGOs, individuals, citizen action groups, state and
municipal institutions, private sector organizations

Preparing and implementation of local development
strategies and projects

Access to significant EU structural funds (e.g.
SAPARD)

Reduction of socio-economic problems (e.g. social
exclusion, unemployment)
PARTNERSHIPS IN OPERATION:
MAIN OBSTACLES

Incomplete communication

Passivity and indifference

Insufficient technical infrastructure

Former experience of co-operation in soviet farms

Weakness of informal horizontal social structures
(e.g. low level of social capital, lack of trust)

Lessening of importance of mutual learning
RESEARCH QUESTIONS

What is the role of interactive learning in building
social capital in rural partnerships?
Is the learning a key factor?
How learning takes place?
What is the role of social networks in successful
operation of partnerships?
How to strengthen existing networks and how to build
new ones?
Why good ideas sometimes fail?

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Theoretical studies on integrated rural development,
learning processes in partnerships, social capital
and social networks

Snowball sampling

In-depth interviews
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Moving from ‘knowledge-based economy’ to
‘learning economy’ (Lundvall,2002)

Partnership approach: new discourse for
integrated rural development in Latvia

Partnerships as communities of practice /
learning communities (Lave, Wenger, 1991)

Social capital and more developed social
networks as a result of interactive/mutual
learning (Kilpatrick,1998; Falk,1999)
WHY LEARNING IS IMPORTANT?

Actors improve local knowledge about local area and
its development

Through adoption and change actors develop new
skills, knowledge and values (e.g. communication,
collaboration, mutual trust, sense of membership to
community)

Sharing of skills between partners leads to greater
efficiency and cost saving

‘Learning by doing’
PROPOSED RESEARCH AREA
THANK YOU!