Community-Based Participatory Research: A way to the Heart of Bebnine

In 2005, a multidisciplinary research team from the American University of Beirut initiated a community-based participatory research (CBPR) project in Bebnine, an underserved community in northern Lebanon. Over previous decades, Bebnine has attracted numerous development agencies and programs. This attention and, perhaps, lack of progress has bred suspicion among community members about the intentions of outsiders. Upon entering the community, the team met with local stakeholders and established an advisory committee made up of women representing local NGOs, healthcare professionals, and prominent community members. This advisory committee played an integral role in determining the direction of the research project, even choosing the project's overall objectives: determining the linkage between people, water quality, and health. The research team undertook numerous activities, including three household surveys, regular water quality monitoring, town meetings, workshops, and focus groups. The advisory committee collaborated at all stages of the project, identifying culturally sensitive issues, modifying survey questions to fit local contexts, making decisions on short-term interventions, and dealing with the eruption of armed conflicts in the neighborhood. Findings from our efforts lead to the installation of a water disinfection unit and the dissemination of relevant health messages at schools. We learned that the CBPR approach offered Bebnine residents a way to communicate their desires for change, while building trust between the research group and the community. The contributions of the advisory committee in particular allowed traditionally marginalized groups—members of women's community organizations—to participate in a viable action for change.