Much has been said and written in recent years about the need to document the experiences of the many different development initiatives taking place all over the world, and thus learn from the successes and failures. Unfortunately, it is rare that time and effort is put into organising, analysing and documenting experiences, for various reasons. ILEIA, the Centre for Information on Low External Input and Sustainable Agriculture, has over the past 23 years contributed to the exchange of field based information about the experiences of small scale farmers trying to improve their production in an environmentally sound manner. One of the major difficulties related to this aim has been, and remains, the lack of documentation of practical field activities taking place at community level. If achievements, difficulties overcome and learnings are not documented in some form, it is very difficult to share them. It is probable therefore that a lot of interesting information that could contribute to the further development of knowledge on ecologically sound agriculture has been lost, is in a format or language that is not accessible to all, or has not been fully reflected upon and presented.

With this new section, ILEIA wants to build on the results of issue 22.1, "Documentation for change", and encourage more documentation efforts.

To really understand how to carry out a documentation process, it is best just to try it out. Many things which may seem complicated in this manual are straightforward when you actually do them. It is a case of learning by doing. Do not be afraid to have a go, learn a new method, and then you will also be equipped to learn from your experiences. Then you will be able to share them with others and enjoy all the benefits this can bring. And do not forget to send us your completed article, for publication in the LEISA magazine. 

Please send you comments or questions to the editors at ILEIA, at
j.chavez-tafur@ileia.nl