Mediated participation: Using filmed narratives in complex multi-stakeholder settings

Mediated participation aims to bring `distanced¿ or `overlooked¿ stakeholders in a mediated way to the doorstep of decision makers. It promotes inclusion of their stories, concerns and proposals in decision-making processes because it allows policy and decision makers to `learn¿ in mediated interaction with distant stakeholders. Visual Problem Appraisal (VPA) is a film-based methodology for analysis and social learning, which is produced and used in settings of complex problems and sustainable rural development. The core of a VPA consists of filmed narratives in which stakeholders express their concerns and issues and tell their stories. This form of `mediated participation¿ was explored by studying vulnerable and distanced stakeholders in the production and use of the VPA AIDS & Rural Development in Sub-Saharan Africa (A&RD) in workshops in Congo DRC, Ghana, Tanzania, the Netherlands and Zambia. The qualitative assessment indicates that mediated participation is not just a second-best option to live participation. The VPA-methodology offers an alternative to learning through face-to-face interactions. Quality and legitimacy of policymaking and decision-making might be enhanced in situations where live encounters between decision makers and overlooked primary stakeholders are not feasible or realistic