This review provides an overview of the most relevant policy, practice, literature and research concerning the participation of disaster affected communities in humanitarian action. It identifies key case studies and examples of best practice from a range of organisations and scenarios. The review also includes an analysis of donor funding policies and approaches, as well as the impact of ‘lessons learnt’ on future actions. This includes the way ‘participation’ is formulated in terms of policy and how it is carried out in practice in multiple contexts. The report provides a set of conclusions and specific recommendations for DG ECHO with the aim of further integration of participatory approaches in future humanitarian interventions. These recommendations are made in anticipation of a full scale review to be carried out by DG ECHO at a future date.
