Abstract
Developing the necessary capabilities that enable people with physical disabilities to establish sustainable livelihoods is a long-term project which requires the participation and collaboration of local government organizations, non-government organizations, and the private sector. This paper discusses research that is currently being undertaken with the Samutprakan community. The disabled members of this community have various skills that can allow them to make a living. However, despite this many of the community members choose to sell lottery tickets in their community as there is a lot of demand in the market and it requires little skill to do so. Recently, the Government Lottery Office of Thailand introduced electronic tickets across Thai society thereby ceasing the need for the traditional methods of sale Consequently the livelihoods of disabled people in Thailand were threatened by the introduction of this new technology. The objective of this research was to investigate how participatory communication design enhances the capabilities of disabled people to achieve sustainable livelihoods and not be bound to external forces such as changes in government support. The methodology of this research was Participatory Action Research using Sustainable Livelihoods Framework. The participants had active roles and full participation in developing their own capabilities. This research was undertaken through design intervention in a particular community in Thailand. As a result, participatory communication design made ideas visible, and complex situations easier to understand. Moreover, it enabled the participants to analyze their own situations, make their own decisions, set their own goals, and take their own actions based on their capabilities. Developing capabilities requires full participation of the people whose livelihoods are affected by this process.
Keywords: participatory communication design, people with physical disabilities, capability development, sustainable livelihoods, Participatory Action Research.
This is the abstract for the Subjectivity, Creativity and the Institution conference. The conference was held at the John Curtin Gallery in Perth on the 9th and 10th of February 2009.
