This revised edition offers updated information and an expanded range of tools to support ADB staff and stakeholders to implement participatory approaches effectively. The updated content reflects ADB's new business processes and highlights key opportunities for participation in policy dialogue and throughout the project cycle, and advises on methods and approaches, as well as pitfalls to avoid. In this edition, special attention is given to safeguards, gender, governance, HIV/AIDS and infrastructure, and water and sanitation. A wealth of participation resources developed by a wide range of organizations exists online; this guide includes an inventory of references for those seeking further information.

With their unique strengths and specialized knowledge of their communities and constituencies, civil society organizations (CSOs) have an essential role to play in creating a more prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific. This publication provides guidance on how CSOs can be more effectively engaged in Asian Development Bank (ADB) operations to maximize the benefits for its developing member countries. It provides advice, templates, and tips for ADB staff and country officials to use when designing, implementing, and monitoring ADB-financed operations.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has been supporting meaningful engagement with civil society organizations (CSOs) in delivering better development results. Partnerships with these CSOs help promote community participation and social inclusion throughout the project cycle of ADB-financed operations. In light of its enhanced commitment to CSO engagement, ADB approved in 2020 a new indicator for assessing civil society engagement. This report provides insights on ADB’s cooperation with CSOs in 2020 in terms of generating knowledge, tapping expertise, sharing good practices, and improving policy dialogues. It also features lessons and success stories of CSO contributions in Asia and the Pacific.

Education plays a vital role in the positive development of communities at both a local and global level. By becoming more informed, citizens can make better contributions to society. Open and Distance Learning Initiatives for Sustainable Development is a critical reference source for emerging academic perspectives on the role of higher education programs in contemporary society. Including a range of pertinent topics such as mobile learning, environmental education, and community building, this book is ideally designed for educators, researchers, students, and professionals interested in the intersection between sustainable development and education.

Urbanization will become one of the defining trends of Asia's transformation in the coming decades. Investments in urban areas have a strong potential to contribute to inclusive growth, reduce urban poverty, and strengthen social resilience. The Guidance Note on Poverty and Social Dimensions in Urban Projects aims to assist Asian Development Bank (ADB) staff, including practitioners and specialists working on their behalf, to effectively address the poverty and social dimensions of ADB's urban operations. It provides practical guidance in strengthening the link between urban investments and poverty reduction by making better use of poverty and social analysis as a resource for successful projects. The guide complements the Handbook on Poverty and Social Analysis (2012) which provides general guidance on incorporating poverty and social dimensions in ADB operations.

In A Procedural Framework for Transboundary Water Management in the Mekong River Basin: Shared Mekong for a Common Future, Qi Gao explores procedural implications of integrated water resources management and its application in the Mekong River Basin. As a problem-based study, enlightening conclusions are made based on the increasingly polycentric nature of transboundary cooperation in the Mekong region. The procedural requirements in the Mekong context, both the ideal and practical scenarios are considered, combined with selected case studies. Qi Gao convincingly asserts the necessity to enhance decision-making processes and suggests procedural legal mechanisms to institutionalize sustainability concepts in transboundary cooperation.

Since the inception of the Climate Investment Funds (CIF), the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has participated in the preparation of 15 investment plans covering the two main CIF funds, the Clean Technology Fund (CTF) and the Strategic Climate Fund (SCF). The SCF comprises three separate programs—the Pilot Program for Climate Resilience (PPCR), the Scaling Up Renewable Energy Program (SREP), and the Forest Investment Program (FIP). This study, which is part of a wider review of CIF experiences in ADB, uses a case study approach to examine how stakeholder engagement was carried out in the preparation of investment plans in Cambodia, Nepal, and the Philippines, with reference to the guidance provided by ADB and CIF in stakeholder participation.