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    What works best when : the role of collaboration in environmental policy and planning : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Resource and Environmental Planning at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2014) Berkett, Natasha Maree
    Conflicting views about the use of natural resources create challenges for environmental management. Scholarly theory suggests that there are different types of policy problem, and these can be identified within a framework that considers the degree of certainty over relevant knowledge, and the degree of consensus on norms and values. By determining and understanding the nature of a policy problem, planning practitioners can choose a problem-solving strategy that is appropriate for different policy problem types. In New Zealand, one policy strategy, collaboration, is increasingly being promoted to resolve conflicts, as collaboration is seen as having more effective outcomes than existing adversarial planning processes. The aim of this research is to explore how collaboration can offer better outcomes for stakeholders involved in environmental resource conflicts, compared to conventional planning processes. This study used Q methodology to examine and explore the scope for collaboration to address a policy problem that arose in New Zealand in 2012, namely how to reconcile the divergent views about the expansion of finfish farm development in the Marlborough Sounds. The study showed that there was a high degree of uncertainty over relevant knowledge and a lack of consensus on norms and values between stakeholders, indicating that finfish farm development in the Marlborough Sounds is an unstructured, or ‘wicked’ problem. The policy strategy best suited to solving this type of problem is a collaborative process that involves learning because it enables participants to identify, confront and integrate divergent viewpoints and knowledge. In doing this, participants reframe the policy problem and discover new opportunities for solving it. In this study, the greatest degree of diversity between viewpoints on finfish farm development was between industry stakeholders and others (iwi, non- government organisations, community members and governance and regulation representatives). The study highlights the need for the finfish farming industry to improve public understanding and gain support for its activities in order to achieve its growth and development goals. It also shows that, depending on the nature of the policy problems being addressed, collaborative planning processes could be adopted to manage conflicts about environmental resource use in settings other than freshwater in New Zealand.
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    The successful integration of smallholders in vertical coordination arrangements : experiences of the KASCOL model in Zambia : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of AgriCommerce at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2011) Mungandi, Sepiso
    Agribusiness firms have been increasingly engaging in closer vertical coordination arrangements in order to better meet their customer‟s changing needs. On the other hand, as the fight against poverty in developing countries continues, policy makers seek ways in which they can reduce this poverty. One such way has been to integrate smallholders in vertical coordination arrangements. However, reports show that this has been with little success. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine a successful experience of smallholder inclusion in a vertical coordination chain, in order to determine the reasons underpinning such a success. The case under investigation was the Kaleya Smallholders Company Limited, a model operating within the Zambian sugar industry. The research design was qualitative in nature, with 20 in-depth interviews being conducted with representatives of the four main stakeholder groups to the model: Kaleya Smallholders Trust; Kaleya Smallholders Company Ltd; Zambia Sugar Company; and the smallholders. The results show that the model, which had been in existence for 30 years, was able to increase the smallholders‟ participation over time. The variables explaining the success of this model are classified as follows: (1) the context that created an enabling environment for profit and healthy interdependency; (2) the governance structure that allowed balance of power relationships; (3) the managerial skills, which were instrumental in operational efficiencies; and (4) the growth of social capital. The conclusion is that, although context, governance structures and managerial competence were necessary factors for the sustainability of the model, the variables related to social capital were determinant for the long-term successful integration of the smallholders. The results obtained in this study cannot be generalised to other contexts, due to the nature of the research design, but they have led to some useful implications, among them being: the need for managers to not only correctly establish their governance and management, but also to correctly establish their social capital; and the need for the government to become involved in the initial stages of developmental projects involving smallholders, in order to help reduce the power imbalance between smallholders and firms.
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    Adult literacy and women's empowerment : exploring the contribution of a non-formal adult literacy programme to women's empowerment in Aileu, Timor Leste : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Development Studies at Massey University, Albany, Manawatu [i.e. Manawatu], New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2010) Kotsapas, Alicia
    While the majority of studies concerning education in Timor Leste have focused on formal schooling, this thesis seeks to explore the contribution of non-formal adult literacy programmes (NFALP) to rural women’s empowerment in Aileu, Timor Leste by examining the challenges that rural women face in their daily lives, whether their participation in the NFALP and literacy acquisition has assisted them with overcoming these challenges and brought benefits to their lives, and if this has led to their empowerment. The study adopts a gender perspective and focuses on the individual voices of rural adult women in considering how NFALPs are impacting on rural women’s lives, and provides a space for their voice, one which has been marginalised in the literature so far, to be heard. The study examines three important empowerment frameworks presented by Rowlands (1995), Kabeer (1999) and Stromquist (1993) which are relevant to research concerning women and education. The study employs a qualitative feminist methodology in seeking an in-depth understanding of the reality and lived experience of rural women participating in the programme through semi-structured interviews with literacy programme participants and key informants during a period of fieldwork in Timor Leste The research findings reveal that the motivation behind women’s participation in a NFALP is directly related to addressing their practical gender needs, rather than their strategic gender needs, which revolve around reproductive tasks and unpaid productive work. The study found that NFALP offers rural women who missed out on formal schooling another opportunity to achieve an education, however, yet the heavy burden of women’s traditional reproductive roles severely restricts their ability to regularly attend NFALP. Finally, the research found that rural women did experience empowerment through their participation in the NFALP, the most common empowerment dimension experienced being the personal (Rowlands, 1995) or psychological dimension (Stromquist, 1993) of empowerment.
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    Participation of women in grassroots development interventions: reflections on the experiences of development projects in Sudan
    (2009-07-22T23:04:48Z) El-Gack, Nawal
    This paper is based on an empirical study, conducted in 2005/06. It provides reflections on gender and development approaches employed in development projects in Sudan and identifies the challenges that development providers need to address when they plan for future interventions. It argues that addressing gender issues requires an in depth understanding of local values, and women’s needs and interests.
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    Tāniko : public participation, young Māori women, & whānau health : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Māori Studies at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2006) Gray, Katarina Ani Putepute
    Recent Māori, sexual, and primary health developments have been influenced by the principle of participation. For example, the use of a whānau-centred approach, of community development, and of Primary Health Organisations allows participation in decision-making. However, none of the abovenamed strategies adequately explain how young Māori women can participate in decision-making in one common area: Māori, sexual, primary health policy. This thesis explores how Primary Health Organisations can work with young Māori women to promote sexual health to whānau by focusing on policymaking processes and effective participation mechanisms. Māori health development from colonial Contact to 2005 is reviewed before the broad health framework (the New Zealand Health Strategy and the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000) is defined. A critique of relevant policy, in particular He Korowai Oranga (2002), the Sexual and Reproductive Health Strategy (2001), and The Primary Health Care Strategy (2001), reveals scope for participation and whānau-centredness. Primary Health Organisations pose challenges to whānau sexual health promotion. However, with public participation from young Māori women, like the thesis participants, new opportunities can be realised. The research was conducted in accordance with a Mana Wāhine-based methodology called Tāniko The four parts (Mana Wāhine, Te Ao Tawhito, Te Ao Hou, and Te Ao Mārama) defined the research aim and objectives. A qualitative strategy employing semi-structured interviews with three young Māori women was followed by a confirmatory stage of content analysis utilising a deductive public participation evaluation tool: the Tāniko instrument. The instrument analysed four policymaking decisions and two mechanisms: organised peer groups and the wāhine-centred approach. The research concluded that when defining how, by whom, and to whom information is presented, organised peer groups can be utilised at the coordination and evaluation policymaking stages. The wāhine-centred approach can share or manage participation through problem definition, consultation, decision, and implementation.