Working with farming communities and a wide range of partner organisations over the past ten years, LI-BIRD has generated a number of innovative methods and tools for participatory research and development and technologies for resource-poor farmers. Some of these include: Participatory Plant Breeding; Participatory Variety Selection; Community-based Seed Production; Conservation technologies for sloping and shifting land production environments; good practices for community based on-farm conservation of agricultural biodiversity; a wide range of social analysis methods and tools; and so on. LI-BIRD is regarded as a Centre of Excellence for participatory crop improvement and community-based on-farm biodiversity management. The goal of the programme is to generate wider and inclusive impacts through sharing knowledge and innovative approaches to capacity development.

The focus areas of the programme are as follows:

• Documentation, publication and sharing through multiple media
• Knowledge Management System
• Training and capacity building
• Community resource and learning centres