Research solidarity? Navigating feminist ethics in participatory action-research in Kathmandu, Nepal

This article looks reflexively at the experience of PhD fieldwork-undertaken internationally, in partnership with a locally-based organization, and with informal settlement residents- which was shaped both by a feminist research ethic, as well as by the principles of participatory action-research. I...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Gender, place and culture : a journal of feminist geography place and culture : a journal of feminist geography, 2021-04, Vol.28 (4), p.497-518
Main Author: Butcher, Stephanie
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Action
Action orientation
Advocacy
Ambiguity
Community organizations
Community structure
Community work
Ethics
Feminism
feminist ethics
Feminist theory
Field study
Fieldwork
informal settlements
Neighborhoods
Participatory action research
partnership
Psychological safety
Reflexivity
Research ethics
Research methodology
Social cohesion
solidarity
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Summary:This article looks reflexively at the experience of PhD fieldwork-undertaken internationally, in partnership with a locally-based organization, and with informal settlement residents- which was shaped both by a feminist research ethic, as well as by the principles of participatory action-research. It examines the notion of 'solidarity', seeking to understand the contradictions and challenges of embedding research into action. To do so, it examines three sets of relationships within the fieldwork that challenged solidarity: with the city-wide organization; with the neighbourhood-based grassroots group; and with residents that were 'excluded' from the community organization. By reflecting on the particular challenges of each set of relations, it explores how solidarity was negotiated through three different strategies: embedding the research methods in a wider advocacy strategy, adopting framings which foregrounded structural constraints, and in exploring safe spaces and silence when reflecting on risky issues. In outlining these strategies (and the sometimes-ambiguous outcomes), this article presents an account of a research process that was uncertain, power-laden, and negotiated-reflecting on the opportunities and challenges of undertaking collaborative, action-oriented research.
ISSN:0966-369X
1360-0524
DOI:10.1080/0966369X.2020.1751087