Building on strengths, describing successes, analyzing options and then creating positive plans based in reality--can this innovative approach called appreciative inquiry work for communities as well as corporations? First developed by David Cooperrider and S. Srivatava at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio as a corporate planning tool, appreciative inquiry is now being used by communities to chart their own development.

Unlike problem-focused planning and development approaches, appreciative inquiry builds on past achievements. But, it goes beyond the power of positive thinking to provide both the necessary tools and techniques for increased self-reliance and the local initiatives to see it through.

Through storytelling, people talk about their achievements and strengths, tapping into what Dr. Charles Elliott in Locating the Energy for Change, terms the energy that comes from both the heart and the head, to build a positive present. This process creates a sense of confidence and pride in the group's abilities, and results in new ideas and visions for the future.

Regardless of the organization, its culture or size, appreciative inquiry usually moves through the same four stages:

1. Discovery: through interviews and storytelling, participants remember significant past achievements and identify what happened to make those periods of excellence possible.
2. Dreaming: a positive vision of what might be or what can be achieved based on past achievements is created so that future plans are rooted in reality.
3. Design: concrete short- and long-term goals that will achieve the dream are developed through consensus.
4. Delivery: roles and responsibilities, strategies and needed resources to achieve the dream are established.

Development organizations in particular are finding that this method enriches the information collected about communities. For example, this tool brought out a wealth of information about three Mauritanian villages that were forced to abandon their traditional livelihood of camel herding as a result of desertification, that had been missed during a previous participatory rural appraisal. In addition, it created greater participation, and the villagers built on highly valued aspects of their culture and community to develop a vision and strategy to secure their future-improved water supply, health care and education and the development of food and handicraft production. Another recent project in Nepal included training 100 staff people who then used appreciative inquiry in over 1,000 villages to develop ecotourism in their region.

Even though community-level experience with appreciative inquiry is still evolving, its early application does show great promise across a range of situations because participants do not need to be literate. Furthermore, an appreciative inquiry can be easily adopted and replicated by local villagers and staff members. This process has so far proved successful not just because it directly involves the people it affects, but also because it gives them an opportunity to appreciate and acknowledge who they are and build on their achievements. [appreciative inquiry builds on group strengths]

Return to Top

Word Watch
	positive present n. the process of identifying strengths and achievements in the current situation of a company or community, so that those accomplishments can be used to chart a future course. More in Word Watch Glossary
In Depth
	Elliott, Charles. Locating the energy for change: An introduction to appreciative inquiry. Winnipeg: International Institute for Sustainable Development, 1999. 288 p.
Virtual Ideas
	Papers by Dr. Gervase Bushe on appreciative inquiry

Return to Top

IISDnet / DI Digest Home / Community Voices

© 1999 International Institute for Sustainable Development