knowledge sharing

UNDP KM Toolkit for the practice of Crisis Prevention and Recovery

KMAadmin — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 01:09:15 -0600

This Knowledge Management Toolkit for the CPR Practice Area was prepared by UNDP’s Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery in response to requests from members of the Crisis Prevention and Recovery Practice Network for guidance on knowledge management tools and techniques. This toolkit aims to explain the theory and outline the tools used in knowledge management for UNDP staff working in crisis and post-crisis situations. It is targeted at both BCPR staff and members of the wider Crisis Prevention and Recovery (CPR) Practice Area within UNDP. However, many of the suggestions given here are not strictly CPR-specific and can be applied to knowledge management in other UNDP Practice Areas.

This toolkit aims to provide ideas and entry points to a wide range of tools and methods that can help us to better share and apply the knowledge that exists within UNDP on crisis prevention and recovery. By working to simplify and standardize knowledge management products and methodologies, we can cut out the time-consuming process of ‘reinventing the wheel’ every time we embark on a knowledge management-related task. This toolkit is one step along the road to advocating for a simplified and standardized approach towards knowledge management in the CPR Practice Area.

KM for Conflict & Change Management

Words of Knowledge - the Ukhamba (Calabash) Metaphor in Southern Africa

Qhakijane — Sun, 24 May 2009 09:07:09 -0600

The word ukhamba is a Zulu word for a huge clay pot. It is commonly used by all African cultures. In Zulu ukhamba consists of two words: ukukhama (which means to squeeze out or compress out as in milking a cow) + bamba (to hold in place so as to receive that which is squeezed out). This meaning clearly explains the metaphor of thinking hard (ukukhama) and receiving the treasures of thinking into human memory (ukubamba). Therefore ukhamba is a container, a reservoir, and a protector of that which is valuable and good for physical and spiritual nourishment. It is a central piece in the rite of social fellowship. The rite itself is treated with respect and studied deference.

As a spiritual concept ukhamba shares the same status as the female womb, which offers protection, sustenance and nurturing to the unborn child. Its contents have the potential of becoming something more greater than itself, like the unborn child who one day gets birthed and grows into an important leader. It may be likened to the eucharistic rite and those who share the contents of the ukhamba to others do so from a squatting or kneeling position.

In the strict Zulu ritual it is never placed on a table or coffee table. It is placed on the floor on a reed mat. The kneeling position symbolises its potency and strength and two messages are conveyed by the kneeling posture: first it is a sign of respect to the fellowship ritual taking place and secondly it is a sign of strength because kneeling symbolises humility in strength by not assuming a proud upright posture yet conserving one’s energy and reflexes to be used with deliberate control.

The place of the ukhamba is the centre. The gathering may sit is a semi-circle or full circle depending on the number of people present. People sit according to their sex and age group. It is then dispensed by a younger member of the gathering who approaches it kneeling and uses a smaller gourd umancitshana or udiyo (literally a stingy measure) and first tastes off a small amount before giving it over to the gathering. Quaffing and swallowing in one gulp are not encouraged. A simple small sip is preferable and the contents may only be finished by those who are wiser or older.

This tasting off is always done in a kneeling position and those who receive the gourd may drink from it from a kneeling or sitting position. The tasting off is euphemistically called ukukhipha ubuthi (the removal of poison) meaning that there is no malice or any hidden grudge in the ritual. More in the spirit of the participants of the holy eucharist making up with one another before partaking the Lord’s emblems.

It is a social offence to behave recklessly or disrespectfully during social drinking. Good public deportment and less talkativeness are the hallmarks of good breeding and manners. The young person must keep quite and speak only if addressed and listen attentively to the elders.

This ritual combines the four elements of Zulu mythology in a dynamic interactive process.

The reed is a very important emblem of Zulu myths. Zulus and many Africans believe that the first humans emerged from a primordial reed. This is not a literal fact but explains the mutual interdependence of human life and plant life. The hollow reed played a very pivotal role in the myths of Osiris, Moses and the Exodus of Jews from Egypt. The common thread to all myths is the emerging of all players in the stories into a better life. Hence Zulus emerge from the reeds. The Sotho’s do even better to validate this point, because when a child is born a reed is transfixed next the hut where the new born is kept. It is no wonder that Zulus eat from a reed mat (isithebe) , sleep on a reed mat, protect the Queen Mother’s hut with a stockade made of reeds; Swazi and Zulu maidens symbolise their virginity by carrying reeds to the Queen Mother’s hut in ceremony of First Fruits, and any gift is placed on a reed mat on the floor.

The clay pot is made out of earth. The earth symbolising the Eternal Mother and Womb from which all emerge and gets buried in order for others to emerge. The clay pot gives shape to its liquid contents and this means the shaping of all human knowledge by a lived life on earth. There is also another dimension of the earth which Zulus believe is necessary for human life: namely the earth is called umhlaba (literally that which stabs or brings about adversity). This resonates very well with Judeo-Christian concept of the Fallen Nature. Zulus conceive the earth as Umhlaba (the stabber) but are also mindful that healing and recovery is also brought about by herbs (therefore inhlaba (the Aloe plant) and man’s duty to strive against adversity and bring out the best of his ingenuity and creativity.

Water is the base substance which forms part of the contents of ukhamba. In Zulu water is amanzi (literally the heaviest substance in Zulu cosmology). If something is heavy or difficult in Zulu it is said inzima. Like all ancient languages Zulu is amenable to anagramatic analysis. Hence Nzima is the word manzi spelled backwards. This heaviness denoted by Manzi is not about weight but is about the magical cleansing properties of water in purification, preservation. While nzima makes heavy and difficult Manzi is the opposite but equal force which unmakes the heaviness by cleansing And restoring balance. This property of water resonates very well with the Hebraic concept of MEM (the water, the nursemaid, the cosmic mother). This has even prompted other researchers to conclude that Zulu is an ancient language because all ancient human languages denote water by the letter M and Zulu is the only surviving ancient language where the M-sound is preserved as a root sound to denote water.

The Fire is not explicitly seen here because it does not refer to physical Fire or the phlogiston but Fire is seen in the vivifying influence of the social gathering as seen in the sharing of beer and knowledge. This fire hides inside the watery beer but imparts a viva force to the drinkers of the beer. This living force stands for the pioneering spirit of all knowledge as a forward driven advancing and groundbreaking power that consolidates human knowledge and creates possibilities for knowing further and more.

The power of our knowledge systems lies within the power and original meaning of the words within our languages. I have demonstrated how the humble drinking of African beer within a Zulu culture can unlock the formidable latent power of African power. It is this power which resides within our subconscious that needs awakening so that it can help reserve the forgotten teachings of our Ancestors called Ubuntu. Ubuntu is more than humanity it is the sum total of all teachings and concepts that Unkulunkulu (not God), but Unkulunkulu, the first to emerge from the reed, as the First Human Prototype was entrusted with to teach those who follow.

Zulu culture, language & traditions

Measuring knowledge impact for improved service delivery

afrocent — Fri, 22 May 2009 11:08:31 -0600

It is always advocated that knowledge sharing is important for improved service delivery. The question is how do you measure the impact? Is it possible to measure knowledge? If we cannot measure the contribution of knowldge sharing to improved service delivery why are we doing it. Programmes such as knowledge sharing and management are initiated to fill a specific gap.

Knowledge sharing and knowledge is not tangible, you cannot count how many products or interventions you have put in place and as a result how many areas of service delivery have improved. Knowlede sharing cannot be measured like coco cola or a number of TV sets sold and the financial returns which are measured after a dedicated advertising campaign. However the principles of advertising and being motivated by profit can be applied to measuring the impact of knowledge produced, its effectiveness and contribution towards solving development challenges. It is clear that when such progress is made, we cannot claim that the success or improvement is the result of the information received and processed by the target group as there are many other factors that can lead to such an improvement.

Having said that knowledge is not the only contributor to improving service delivery, we cannot also neglect the need to monitor and understand how we are contributing. If interventions cannot be assessed what is the point of engaging in such activities. If knowledge is shared to change behaviour and adoption of new ways of thinking or doing things, be it project planning, implementation or designing, then it becomes clear that at some point we need to see the impact of such knowledge. We might not be in a position to say we have reduced the sanitation backlog because of the shared knowledge, but we might discover that the management and planning of sanitation projects has improved or that policy changes are resulting from the shared knowledge among stakeholders at various levels.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Can we measure knowledge sharing? If we can not measure it, why are we investing so much in the concept? If coca cola is able to bring to your attention their latest products and make you develop interest and have the desire to test their product and take action, why is it difficult for knowledge practitioners to create awareness on issues that might impact on achieving sustainable development, why do we think it is not possible to measure if there is interest on our interventions among the receipients of our information, is it also difficult to measure whether there is a desire among the receipients to learn from the presented information, is it impossible to find out from them if the desire created by being exposed to issues raised in the different learning and information sharing initiatives has led to some action on their part, if it has not led to action or led to action, is it difficult for us to find out what that action resulted in? If our interventions are only attracting attention but fail in taking action that can be assessed, then we might need to re-assess the need for our existence.

KM & Governance

Ukhamba - the Calabash as a metaphor for knowledge sharing and teamwork

KMAadmin — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 00:00:01 -0600

Ukhamba is the Nguni word for Calabash. You pronounce it OO-KHAM-BA. The Calabash is a gourd pumpkin that has been used by ancient people throughout Africa as a container in which to brew beer, store medicines, valuable herbs and water. But the concept of Ukhamba is more than this - it is a metaphor for knowledge sharing and teamwork. Here are some key ideas from Ukhamba as provided by Ralph Sibande and Mama Kena, a Sotho Traditional Healer and expert on culture and Nguni languages:

Meanings of Ukhamba - Unity, teamwork, replenishment, knowledge, wisdom, self-sacrifice, experience. No individual may drink alone.
When drinking African beer from the Ukhamba, it it placed in the centre of the room. When drinking your share, you do so in a kneeling position, never standing upright. You never drink and finish it off - that you leave to those who are older and wiser than you.
There are stories of the ukhamba stimulating storytelling - 'when the ukhamba is in the middle of the room, people just start to talk'
Ukhamba has a similar meaning to the Greek 'wassail bowl' - it stands for giving, receiving. An empty calabash is an insult.
The Calabash / Ukhamba is also a metaphor for transformation - the mature calabash is picked when green and then allowed to dry out in the sun. During this process, it reduces in weight by up to 95% and becomes a hollow container for its seeds. You can hear the seeds rattling around in it when you shake it hard.

The KMAfrica.com Web 2.0 KnowledgeHub

KMAadmin — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 02:28:15 -0700

A few people have asked about the architecture and vision of www.KMAfrica.com and so here is a short overview: The system is based on Drupal, a FOSS (Free and Open Source Software) program. The system is described as one of the most popular content management frameworks in the world with a large user community and a wide range of applications from simple websites to complex administration systems being built on the Drupal system.

Drupal can store, share and stream any combination of media types ranging to simple text files through photos to audio and complex video materials. But the really exciting part of the technology is its' ability to facilitate 'making the connection' - to allow users the freedom to create and join in the kinds of conversations that allow know-how to connect with need-to-know. When I was at the KMAfrica2007 conference, it struck me how the unstructured coincidental and synchronistic conversations that happened during the coffee breaks were the most interesting, generative and memorable. They helped me with my growing edges at the time. So we are going to look for means to stimulate these conversations using KMAfrica.com thereby transforming the site into the vision of becoming the African Knowledge Hub. There were a number of presentations at KMAfrica 2007 about how the ability to make the connection within a peer group facilitated great strides in knowledge sharing and understanding. It is our vision at KMAfrica.com that these technologies will provide the communication tools to KM professionals and students throughout Africa to participate, contribute share and benefit from our shared knowledge.

Steve Banhegyi