Delivering community-based social work: The role of participatory action research in supporting community harm prevention in rural Cambodia

Abstract

Community-based harm reduction workshops are delivered to reduce a range of community-based risks. In this instance, a community-based non-government organisation (NGO) delivered workshops to 18 villages in a rural setting in Cambodia. This article presents the approach to the delivery of these workshops. The article explores a journey of learning for the community, local authorities and delivering NGO when moving from a more traditional approach to that of a participatory one and the impact on the organisation, community and local authorities as this journey took place. The methods and approaches are explained, findings are presented and discussed, and recommendations for future community-based harm prevention work are made.