Participation and *development in Mexico

People\u27s participation has been a problem in Mexican society since Colonial times (1521–1810). This has precluded the country from achieving real development. The concept of development subscribed in this dissertation is not so much associated with the acquisition of goods but with the capability and desire of doing more with whatever one has, to improve one\u27s quality of life and that of others. This concept refers to a deeper internal conviction of continuous progress never achieving a final stage. No matter how limited in resources an individual may be, he or she can always make better his/her life condition and that of others, as long as the desire for improvement remains. Development, is not a condition or a state defined by the amount of wealth a person has. Development in this context is defined as the ability and desire to use what is available to continuously improve the quality of life. From a systemic view, any community is a purposeful system capable of collectively making decisions, capable of selecting both goals and means to approach an idealized future, capable of displaying will. Therefore, if a community is allowed to plan for itself it will be able to produce and implement plans that will continuously lead it to practice and enhance development, both individually and collectively. It is shown that participation of a social system in the design and implementation of their own future enhances development. A modified version of the Search Conference (SC), a powerful method of participative strategic planning, has been used in the intervention of three Mexican organizations. One is a provincial university, other is a rural community, and the third one is a university school. The new version of the SC is called Reflection and Design Conference (RDC) and is adapted to fit the Mexican organizational culture. The conclusion is that indeed participation enhances development. The RDC produces continuing participation, for how long?, it depends on both internal and external conditions, and participation induced by the RDC produces development in the three case studies discussed.* *This dissertation is a compound document (contains both a paper copy and a CD as part of the dissertation)