Facilitate Peer to Peer Learning

There is power in learning from peers outside of the traditional classroom setting. This is true no matter your age, and it has been key to allow communities to learn from one another because it fosters collaboration instead of competition. When learning this way, participants can build on each other's strengths and connect their lived reality locally to the broader context. Mr. Nhuong and farmers from Thanh Dong Organic Garden in central Vietnam, pictured here, have shown us the potential of peer-to-peer learning, as they work to teach other communities about asset-based community development, livelihoods and watershed conservation. Instead of taking years to build local trust and overcome the challenges left behind by failed development projects, the process is accelerated, and participants take ownership of their future vision. In the end, communities create a network for collaboration, which can profoundly benefit local livelihoods and environmental conservation.