Representation: who speaks for whom in citizen-driven research?

Growing interest in civil society-based approaches to science (Yankelovich 1991, Fairhead and Leach 2003) suggests a need for broader participation by different interest groups in the production of knowledge for natural resource management. Yet where people manage their resources collectively, questions arise about who should participate in the production and management of knowledge (Munton 2003). Little attention is usually given to the extent to which individuals represent the interests of others not present in the process. Representation in this context has a dual significance that is often not acknowledged. Participants not only help represent the knowledge and interests of a larger group, but also presumably act on behalf of a constituency in a governance sense.