Tools & Guides
In this page, using the filters on your left, you can find toolkits, handbooks and guides on the following topics:
- community-led development and community mobilization/organizing
- legal and accountability mechanisms
- Indigenous Peoples and free, prior and informed consent
- monitoring and impact assessment
- extractive industries; forests and dams; forced displacement
- gender and development finance
- human rights defenders
- advocacy guides on specific DFIs, such as ADB, AfDB, IFC, World Bank, EBRD, EIB, Chinese finance
- communications and campaigns strategies
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Community Guide to the ADB Involuntary Resettlement Safeguards (2011)
Bridges Across Borders Cambodia and Inclusive Development International – This guide seeks to make the ADB’s Involuntary Resettlement Safeguard Policy understandable and accessible to affected communities, so that people can monitor the projects that affect them.
The Guide explains local grievance processes, the ADB Accountability Mechanism and other forms of advocacy that local communities can use to defend their rights and hold the ADB accountable if the policy is violated. An accompanying Facilitators’ Edition includes interactive activities and instructions for facilitators to run training sessions on each topic.
Avoiding Forced Displacement: A Community Guide to Negotiation and Advocacy (2017)
Inclusive Development International, Equitable Cambodia – Developed for the Southeast Asian context, this four-day training curriculum helps communities think strategically about how to negotiate with private companies and government authorities seeking to take their land.
Dams, Rivers and Rights: An Action Guide for Communities Affected by Dams (2007)
International Rivers – Dams, Rivers and Rights is the perfect tool for anyone threatened by dam construction. It tells the stories of people affected by dams and outlines success stories of people who fight for their rights and their rivers. The guide shares lessons and ideas from the growing international movement against destructive dams. It tells stories of people all over the world who say no to dams and who demand “Don’t DAMage our lives.”
Women’s Rights Campaigning: Info-Activism Toolkit (2014)
Tactical Tech – This online toolkit advises women rights defenders and community based organisations who want to use technology tools and practices in their campaigning. It includes tips and guidance on communications strategies to grab attention, tell a story and inspire action; an overview of communication tools and digital security strategies; and examples of successful campaigns led by women activists around the world.
Witness – Video Advocacy Toolkit
Witness – Visit the WITNESS Library to download free resources for video activists, trainers and their allies. Includes video and PDF downloads of core WITNESS training materials and how-to guides, on topics such as: video production, video advocacy, storytelling for change, video distribution, safety and security, digital security, filming protests and forced evictions.
Visit also Witness’website in Arabic, French, Portuguese and Spanish for translated materials.
Making Maps that Make a Difference (2007)
International Rivers – The guide “Making Maps that Make a Difference: A Citizens Guide to Making and Using Maps for Advocacy Work” introduces the power and process of mapping for communities facing destructive development project, including the benefits of mapping, ideas for types of information a community might usefully map, step-by-step instructions for creating basic maps, important sources of data, low and high-tech methods for collecting data, and tips and checklists for strategically incorporating maps in a campaign.
Forest Peoples Programme Toolkits for Indigenous Peoples and local communities
Forest Peoples Programme has developed a series of toolkits for Indigenous Peoples and local communities in different countries, that provide useful information on FPIC and the international, regional and national mechanisms they can use in order to claim their rights and protect their lands, territories and natural resources.
- Toolkits and guides on free, prior and informed consent (English, French, Spanish, Bahasa, Nepali, Arabic) + FPIC Posters (French, Kikongo, Lingala or Swahili)
- Participatory Mapping: guidelines for communities and organisations (English, French)
- Liberia FPIC Training Materials: ‘Communities in the Driving Seat’ (English)
- Toolkit on the Inter-American human rights system for indigenous women (English, Spanish)
- Toolkit on Indigenous women’s rights in Africa (English, French)
- Realizing Indigenous Women’s Rights: CEDAW and Indigenous Women – published by the Asian Indigenous Women’s Network (AIWN), Tebtebba Foundation and the Forest Peoples Programme (English)
- Indigenous Women of the Americas – Methodological and conceptual guidelines to confront situations of multiple discrimination (English, Spanish)
- Cameroun: Guide sur la gestion des ressources naturelles (French)
- Cameroun matériels de formation sur le CLIP : « les communautés aux commandes » (French)
- Guide du parajuriste communautaire environnemental Congolais (French)
- Protection of the right to land, territory and natural resources in regional and international law in Africa: A Toolkit for NGOs in the Democratic Republic of Congo (French)
The Accountability Resource Guide (2015)
Accountability Counsel – This guide offers tools for redressing human rights and environmental violations by international financial institutions, export promotion agencies and private corporate actors. The guide is intended to assist community leaders, lawyers, NGOs, and individuals in determining what rights they have and how to file a complaint when those rights have been, or may be, violated. The guide also discusses information disclosure rules at the international financial institutions.
Housing and Land Rights Monitoring Toolkit (2015)
Habitat International Coalition – This toolkit covering the following topics: legal security of tenure; freedom from dispossession; public goods & services; environmental goods & services (natural resources, land & water); affordability, finance; habitability; accessibility (physical); location; cultural appropriateness; information, education, capacity and capacity building; participation and self-expression; movement resettlement, nonrefoulement, return & restitution; security (physical) and privacy.
Follow the Money
Inclusive Development International – This resource is for advocates working to support communities who have been affected by harmful investment projects. It will help you follow the money to identify and analyze the companies, investors and other actors behind these projects. It also explains how to collect evidence and develop tailored advocacy strategies to hold these actors accountable and defend land, housing and resource rights. It includes the following sections: what is an investment chain; how to map an investment chain; identifying pressure points; collecting evidence; getting organized; accountability mechanism; complementary advocacy.
Indigenous Women and the Inter-American Human Rights System: A Toolkit on Mechanisms (2015)
Forest People’s Programme – This toolkit , which contains a series of information notes explaining different aspects of the Inter-American system, is designed to help indigenous women and their advocates to use the system effectively. It is the result of a collective effort by indigenous women from Argentina, Costa Rica, Chile, Canada, Colombia, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama and Paraguay, among other countries. They have worked together for many years to raise awareness about the opportunities offered by the Inter-American human rights system with regard to the rights of indigenous women.
Indigenous Peoples and World Bank Projects: A Community Guide to the World Bank’s Indigenous Peoples Policy (2007)
Forest Peoples Programme – This guide explains the rules that World Bank projects must obey and explains the rights of indigenous peoples to be consulted fairly and honestly about World Bank projects and to refuse a project if it does not respect their rights and needs.
Training Manual on Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) in REDD+ for Indigenous Peoples (2012)
Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP) and IWGIA – This training manual was developed to build the capacities of the indigenous peoples, networks and organizations to advocate and work for the effective implementation of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) for indigenous peoples in the activities and projects relating to REDD+.
What is REDD+? A Guide for Indigenous Communities (2012)
Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP), Forest Peoples Programme (FPP), International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA) & Tebtebba – This book is designed to provide indigenous peoples and their organizations with information on REDD+, an understanding climate change, and the implications for the collective rights of indigenous peoples
Natural Resource Contracts: A Practical Guide (2013)
Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide – This toolkit aims to help advocates understand natural resource contracts by using contract excerpts and information from case studies. The guide also explains topics that are commonly addressed in natural resource contracts and provides suggestions for improving vague or unfavorable contracts.