The times are changing: understanding past, current and future resource use in rural Papua New Guinea using participatory photography

Abstract

There is a need to include local people’s voices in research and planning processes to better understand what they see as opportunities and challenges for their future. This is necessary because of the intrinsic importance of public participation, and because it can help produce more useful and implementable adaptation plans. We apply participatory photography in a Papua New Guinean smallholder farming community to explore local perspectives on resource management, drivers of change and adaptive strategies. Twenty-four farmers of different clans, genders and ages took photos of items important to their livelihoods, focusing separately on the past, present and future. We discussed the photos and their meanings in individual and group interviews, encouraging farmers to lead the conversations. Results show that farmers are shifting from relying mainly on natural capitals to using financial, social and physical capitals, and that this causes changes in people’s well-being. Villagers see cash crop diseases, land shortages and lack of training as their main challenges. So far, people have adapted to changes by shifting to crop species that still yield well, and setting up small businesses and projects to have additional sources of income. Farmers see education as key to their future as it would allow for better land management and diversification of livelihoods. The participatory photography process provided triangulation of scientific studies, gave insights into farmers’ perceptions, and highlighted adaptive strategies and the complexities of realising them. Overall, the results can be used in future research and planning processes in Papua New Guinea.