Participatory Analysis of Poverty, Livelihoods and Environmental Dynamics (PAPOLD)

Abstract

Poverty, people's livelihood strategies, and the natural environment are inter-linked in both space and time. Some of those inter-linkages are distinctly spatial phenomena, which can be measured using household surveys and remote sensing technologies and mapped using geographic information systems, while other inter-linkages are more context-specific and difficult to observe. The method of Participatory Analysis of Poverty, Livelihoods and Environment Dynamics (PAPOLD) was developed to capture local specific issues of these inter-linkages. The method is asserted to be more comparative than other methods because it is participatory, dynamic and comparable . It is a refinement of the Stages of Progress (SoP) developed by Anirudh Krishna of Duke University in the USA . In Vietnam, it was modified by ICRAF team in collaboration with Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and Vietnam Institute of Economics in 2007 to better address links between poverty and environment in Vietnam. By integrating PAPOLD with sustainable livelihood approach, Poverty and Environmental linkages are seen in a comprehensive way