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Discuss with community leaders or representatives the most appropriate way to record information
in different contexts. Some events or topics will be confidential or too sensitive to record.
At the beginning of an activity that you plan to record in some way, provide an opportunity for
participants to comment on and agree to the planned mode of documentation.
If you are using audio or video equipment to record workshops or interviews, seek permission from
participants beforehand. If some people do not want to be photographed or taped, it is their choice
and they should not feel obliged to do so.
Workshops and community meetings do not need to be recorded verbatim, though detailed notes
will prove useful. Consider ahead of time how to best organize the notes such as with headings and
sub-headings, according to the meeting agenda, or using different colours.
Seek the assistance of ‘community rapporteurs’ ahead of time to take notes of broad discussions,
working groups, and reporting back sessions. Youth in particular may respond well to this sense of
responsibility. Make sure they understand that the notes will be transcribed later, so they need to
be accurate, clear, and legible. Having more than one rapporteur during key discussions will enable
you to cross-reference the notes and fill in any gaps.
Transcribe small group or workshop notes such as flip charts into a central file. Before leaving the
workshop, find out where the community would like to store the original notes. Ensure that they are
kept in a safe place that is accessible to other community members involved in the workshop.
Workshops and other major meetings should have a report produced within a reasonable
timeframe and circulated to all participants. The report could focus on key topics and outcomes and
include annexes such as the final agenda and list of participants with contact details.
If you are working only with handwritten files, make at least two sets of photocopies and keep
them in separate safe places. Consider potential factors such as floods or roof leaks, fires, and theft.
If you are working on a computer, give the files descriptive filenames and organize them into
labeled folders. Avoid eating or drinking near the computer in case of spills. Back up the files
regularly on an external hard drive or a free online storage site such as Dropbox.
Box 18: Suggestions for managing information
Keep an ongoing overview or timeline of activities relating to the protocol, including workshops,
meetings, and interviews. You may wish to use headings or a legend to divide the timeline into clear
stages such as “Preliminary discussions”, “Documenting and developing the protocol”, “Using the
protocol”, “Reporting back to the community”, and “Revising the protocol”.
Create a well-organized document such as a spreadsheet with details of each activity, for example,
the date, location, contact details, critical points or insights, key outcomes, and issues to follow up
on.
If you have a question or clarification to seek, try to find the answer at an appropriate time during
or as soon as possible after the activity. It may be difficult to contact some people afterwards if
they live far away or have irregular access to phone or internet.
If you identify any key outcomes or insights outside of a community meeting (for example, when
going through your notes or simply thinking about the process to date), verify its accuracy with
community leaders or other representatives before including it as fact in any documentation.
Box 19: Suggestions for documenting the protocol process
Safeguarding sensitive information
Certain kinds of information that play an important role in a biocultural community protocol may be
considered sensitive or restricted to certain people or conditions. Examples include the locations and
names of sacred natural sites, places of worship, or key natural resources, insights into internal dynamics
and codes of conduct, and cultural heritage or knowledge held by elders or specific people such as
traditional healers. There may be different ways of discussing and sharing this information both within the