An Ex-ante Evaluation of Collective Capability Development: A Case Study of an Emergent Indigenous NGO in Southern Chile

ABSTRACT This study sets out to conduct an analysis on the degree to which the collective agency and capabilities of an emergent Mapuche NGO had been developed, prior to the start of the main phase of a participatory research intervention. Participatory Action Research and Grounded Theory approaches were applied in combination with decolonising research principles. This study’s findings inform not only the factors under which collective capabilities had not yet been developed for this NGO, but also the ontological and epistemological grounds on which Mapuche participants built these understandings. These considerations are of central importance for participatory research interventions if the ultimate goal is to promote meaningful and transformative social change among indigenous communities at local levels. This new epistemic production is a promising way forward to promote cross-cultural conversations between the CA and indigenous realities.