This section is based on materials developed by UNDP in the Human Development Resource Toolkit and the Training for Transformation Handbooks for Community Workers written by Anne Hope and Sally Timmel.

Facilitating a meeting

Things to arrange:

• Room layout. Research has shown that the arrangement of a room has a strong effect on the participation in a meeting. Those who can see all the other faces are at an advantage. Every effort should be made to enable participants to sit in one circle where everyone can see everyone else’s face.
• Size of the group. The majority of people find it difficult to speak to big groups of strangers. Also there is usually not enough time for everyone to speak. Therefore if everyone is to participate, smaller groups (maximum of 30 people) are better. If you have a bigger group, use smaller breakaway groups as much as possible.
• Agenda. Every meeting needs a clear agenda. You need to allow for bringing everyone on board and the outcome of the meeting needs to be clear to everyone.
• Facilitator. The person who leads the discussion needs to be carefully selected. The person needs to be someone who can step back from the discussion and facilitate everyone else’s participation. They need to be a good listener. This is often not the leader of the campaign or group.
• Ice-breakers. Most of us are a little unsure of ourselves, especially in a group of strangers. People need help to get to know the others quickly or to relax with the other participants. Ice-breakers are exercises that help to do just this, for example, asking people to introduce themselves and indicate what their favourite breakfast is.
• Breaks. People cannot concentrate indefinitely. Meetings with regular breaks every 1.5–2 hours produce much better results.
• Evaluation. It is important to evaluate the meeting and learn from your mistakes.

Listen actively. Explain well. Encourage participation. Ask individuals how they feel or what they would suggest. Keep focused. Ask for clarification. Say if you don’t understand something or think others may not. Make links between the topic and people’s own experiences and inputs. Ask for examples that expand on the inputs. Paraphrase to check if you understand. Summarise. Do a quick survey if you are not sure how people are feeling, using a show of hands. Test for consensus by checking with the group if there is agreement on an issue. Be supportive. Initiate action and push for plans and commitments.

Techniques

Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a central consensus-building skill for participatory processes. It is a technique to gather as many ideas as possible, before deciding which ones to discuss in depth. Brainstorming allows participants to throw out ideas without censorship. It also avoids the frequent mistake of spending too much time discussing the first suggestions, so that not enough time is left to discuss other ideas.

There are four primary components to brainstorming:

• Collect ideas. This involves getting ideas out on the table rather than telling or selling a particular set of ideas. Use a flip chart.
• Clarify and discuss. Once you have all the ideas, you need to clarify and check that everyone understands them.
• Cluster and eliminate. As the group considers the ideas, cluster similar concepts and eliminate duplications.
• Decide using agreed criteria. Decisions must be based on agreed criteria.

Use of newsprint / whiteboards

Recording the discussion accurately on a whiteboard, or on newsprint paper on a flipchart is another important skill. It helps remind people where you are, where you are going and what has been discussed. Also, when people see their suggestions written down they get a sense that their contributions are taken seriously and this fosters participation, trust and ownership.

Things to remember when recording a discussion:

• Summarise each contribution in a few words.
• Where possible, use key words used by the participants themselves.
• If the point is repeated by numerous participants, place a mark at the point that reflects the support
• Avoid slowing the process by checking what you write or taking too long.
• If possible, cluster ideas.

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