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This manual draws on the experience and practice of the UNDP Community Capacity Enhancement programme, known as CCE. The programme addresses the underlying causes of HIV/AIDS, including power relations, gender issues, stigma or discrimination. The programme makes extensive use of the Community Conversations methodology - an interactive and systematic dialogue with the community - as a means to policy making participation and action. This manual is designed for CCE trainers who will train others in the Community Conversations methodology, in addition to practising it themselves. Community Conversations provide a platform for people to think through all the repercussions of a situation, and the way their individual values and behaviours, and those of their family and neighbors, affect people's lives. Community Conversations create a space for mutual learning and result in new perspectives. They help reshape relationships in line with transformed values. They are inclusive processes for enhancing the capacity of all. If successfully facilitated, Community Conversations result in a series of decisions and agreements on ways to move a community forward. The development of skilled facilitators is therefore critical to successful implementation. This is a comprehensive resource, written in a very accessible language. The methodology can be easily adapted and applied to a variety of contexts
