The WoodCluster project (2017-2021) focused on national bio-economies based on farm wood production in East African Countries. The project consortium was a South-South-North network with partners from Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda and Germany. In the project, the dynamics and resulting problems of an increasing wood supply gap, and possible solutions were investigated. The project had two main components: research and teaching. As an output of the teaching component, this trainer manual was developed for wood-based value chain actors in Ethiopia. This trainer manual aims to combine the theory of value chain development with participatory teaching methods and integrate this approach into extensions services linked to wood-based value chain actors in Ethiopia, thereby supporting their sustainable development. It especially intends to provide these trainers with insights into value chain development (VCD) tools and participatory knowledge transfer methods. The focus will be on participatory VCD approaches relevant to wood-based value chain actors. With the trainer manual, officers and trainers will be able to apply participatory VCD trainings to wood-based value chain actors in a Training of Trainers (ToT) session. Since these value chains and actors can vary depending on the regional setting, the raw material or end-product of interest, the defined scope, or the value chain development goals, the ToT will teach several approaches on the basis of which the officers and trainers can design suitable participatory VCD workshops. The trainer manual serves as a reference guide for trainers, who conduct participatory trainings, and extension agents linked to wood-based value chains in Ethiopia. The manual is constructed and arranged in such a way, so that a wide range of trainers with different skill levels and capacities may apply the participatory training in different conditions. Rather than presenting one appropriate teaching method, the manual presents several that allows the trainer to adapt the overall training approach based on the target group and conditions of the training.

No abstract

Based on Socio-economic Field Laboratory concept, we put forward the need to amplify locally-embedded innovation to address nationwide challenges. The WoodCluster project (2017-2021) aimed to seek solutions to close the national wood supply gap based on farm-wood production in East African countries. Towards achieving the objective, one of the project activities is the implementation of Field School. A field school is understood as a practical element of a thematic study course module, supplementing theoretical teaching. It shall provide the opportunity for students to learn and test research methods in a practical manner and get in contact with the local community to exchange knowledge. It serves as a framework that requires adaptation to the local research demand and context, with its cultural, socio-economic, and environmental features. Two field schools within the framework of the project were conducted in Tanzania in 2018 and in Ethiopia in 2019. The focus of the field school was on local-level wood production from smallholder farmers and market dynamics, but the guideline can be adapted to other thematic areas. Based on the experiences within the WoodCluster project in East Africa, this guideline elaborates the theoretical fundaments, steps, methods, and examples in conducting socio-economic field schools with local communities and graduate students.