Conducting socio-economic Field Schools with local communities and students: A Field School guideline with experiences from the WoodCluster project in East Africa

Abstract

Based on Socio-economic Field Laboratory concept, we put forward the need to amplify locally-embedded innovation to address nationwide challenges. The WoodCluster project (2017-2021) aimed to seek solutions to close the national wood supply gap based on farm-wood production in East African countries. Towards achieving the objective, one of the project activities is the implementation of Field School. A field school is understood as a practical element of a thematic study course module, supplementing theoretical teaching. It shall provide the opportunity for students to learn and test research methods in a practical manner and get in contact with the local community to exchange knowledge. It serves as a framework that requires adaptation to the local research demand and context, with its cultural, socio-economic, and environmental features. Two field schools within the framework of the project were conducted in Tanzania in 2018 and in Ethiopia in 2019. The focus of the field school was on local-level wood production from smallholder farmers and market dynamics, but the guideline can be adapted to other thematic areas. Based on the experiences within the WoodCluster project in East Africa, this guideline elaborates the theoretical fundaments, steps, methods, and examples in conducting socio-economic field schools with local communities and graduate students.