Community Development and Participation In 2006, I was appointed to the newly-created post of Participatory Approaches Technical Adviser at the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) with responsibility to provide advice and guidance in areas of participatory approaches and community development to the SPC Land Resources Division and 22 member countries. This included developing participatory M&E guidelines, improving training and capacity-building to enhance community leadership and involvement of youth and women in Land Resources Division activities and providing support in areas of planning, strategy and policy related to participation, community development and decentralization within the division.   I have a strong interest in participatory approaches for sustainable agriculture and rural development including participatory agricultural extension. In 2005, I was on the organizing committee responsible for the first ever Extension Summit in the Pacific region to promote participatory approaches in agricultural extension. One of my areas of research interest is developing approaches that try to measure change and empowerment as a result of participation in agricultural extension and community development