| How can political
context be mapped?
The challenge of mapping political context
Mapping context is mapping that which matters. Mapping political
context in order to engage more effectively in policy processes
involves identifying and describing those elements of the political
world - power, organisations and rules - that shape the way in which
policy processes work.
The challenge is that context is highly complex and multi-dimensional.
In any one place - whether that place is a country, a region, a
neighbourhood or a household - there are political, social, economic
and other dimensions of context. The range of dimensions that are
relevant depends very much on what it is that one is trying to achieve
(purpose), and what one's existing situation is (position).
In terms of purpose, for a CSO seeking to prevent the construction
of a dam, environmental regulations may be the most important dimension
of context. On the other hand, for a CSO attempting to increase
media freedom, the power dynamics and personalities preventing this
change may be the most important dimension.
In terms of position, it might be useful for an external
organisation to conduct a general mapping of context that reveals
the extent of institutional conflict over a proposal to construct
a dam. But for a local CSO, which understands already the positions
held by various stakeholders in relation to the proposed dam, such
a general mapping might not be a priority.
It is clear that efforts to map context - and to select and use
many of the tools included in this toolkit - must always begin with
clear statements of position and purpose.
 The
possibility of mapping political context
The fact that context is multi-dimensional, and that the relevant
dimensions of context depend very much on the purpose of action,
and the position of the actor, might seem to present an intractable
problem for context mapping. It is certainly a challenge, and one
which may, in some circumstances, make it sensible to employ very
simple and flexible tools for mapping political context (see Box
2).
However, many organisations have developed tools for mapping political
context. In addition, the fact that these tools, designed often
for a particular purpose, embody a range of approaches to mapping
different dimensions of context, makes existing tools a good source
of ideas and inspiration.
Maps, in their everyday usage, provide a useful analogy. For any
one country, the UK for instance, there is a range of maps, which
vary in scale and coverage according to the purpose for which they
were designed. There are maps that cover a very small area and are
suitable for navigation on foot, as well as maps that cover a larger
area and provide information about, for example, the location of
petrol stations. This does not make particular maps, or the practise
of mapping, any less useful. It simply means that when selecting
a map, or a tool for making a map, it is vital to be clear about
what it is that you are intending to do.
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