ABSTRACT
Knowledge is a central idea in twenty-first-century development practice. It is a key resource and a key capability for organizations and for communities. Policy makers often talk about the need for communities and the individuals in them to build their knowledge and learning capacities in order to survive and prosper in a rapidly changing economy and society. Development knowledge can be defined as the knowledge that is needed to name and address development challenges. Competency knowledge, by contrast, is easier to acquire but less influential. Local knowledge is different. Because it is 'local' and not universally applicable, it is generally not influential outside the local area. Nevertheless, local knowledge has particular advantages in local development work. Development practitioners working closely with local communities soon develop an awareness of the extent and diversity of local knowledge. Farmers' participatory research is one practical example in which development practitioners have brought local, contextualized knowledge together with 'expert' scientific knowledge to generate new solutions.
