Local Development and Participatory Practices: Between Disappointed Expectations and Unexpected Territorial Innovations.

This communication is a summary proposal of how the author of this abstract has learned to work on the field. The goal isnot a mere excursus, but questioning an initial formation that lacks some conceptual and methodological elements relatedto the whole field of the humanities and social sciences. In particular, to be highlighted: 1) the need to question oneselfat the beginning of field research, using the “classical” ethnographic method, research-action or participatory methods; 2)learning about the ethical role of the researcher, the “Cinderella” of field research; 3) the need to “detach oneself” from“official” research teams unable to open up to other ways of investigating the territory; 4) how university experience enablesnon-university courses to be set up and be funded by local or supra-local authorities.

Keywords: action and participatory research, égogéographies, local development.