Participatory video can be used as an interactive tool to promote more inclusive and sustainable forms of development, mirroring local realities and sharing people’s values, cultures and perceptions. By adopting a Communication for Development (ComDev) approach, farmer organizations, rural institutions and practitioners can use participatory video to drive development. Thanks to digital tools, participatory video can be applied extensively to domains as diverse as innovation systems, digital marketing, policy dialogue, accountability and informed consent, among many others.

This field practitioner’s guide provides step-by-step guidance for creating and using participatory video within a ComDev process. The guide is part of a modular training series, but can be used as a stand-alone resource for self-learning. It is intended for use by communication practitioners, farmer and civil society organizations, field workers, extension services, farmer field schools and innovation brokers.

This guide helps to identify the purpose, content and context for using participatory video as well as the advantages of using video for development, and presents tips about how to use and share participatory video.

The guide will enable users to understand how to produce and share participatory video and how to use it to promote change in rural environments by engaging and giving voice to family farmers and smallholders. It explains how to use video to promote dialogue and engagement and to share knowledge and information, using the right e-platforms, tools, methods and practices to display video content and incorporate it in development processes and initiatives.

The guide also touches upon the technicalities of video production, including framing shots, devising sequences, following shooting protocols and applying editing techniques.