Inspired by a post from Jess Oddy, I wanted to reflect on what makes a specific approach decolonial, rather than localised, participatory, inclusive, or any other concepts that are closely linked to it. 

It’s a loaded word, of course, and interpreted differently by organisation, country, and individual. It’s also been co-opted and misappropriated by our sector, being applied to anything from superficial hiring to one-off webinars and social media posts. 

While I think the concept is still niche in our sector (though our algorithms may tell us otherwise!), there’s been an interesting mainstreaming. I see decolonial strategies emerging in INGOs, and conversations around shifting power are being started in online groups for our sector. 

However, it’s also being confused and diluted, and thrown into a mix with localisation and participation. Which prompted me to think about how decolonisation is a distinct approach. 

The easiest way I do this is by looking at whether the approach addresses history, and systems. Does it have a strong backbone of restorative justice, and making amends for past injustices? Does it look beyond the project, organisation, or NGO, to look at systems of oppression, and the wider context in which we work? Does it seek to correct it and make the work more equitable? Then perhaps it can be termed more along the decolonial lines than others. 

If it works to decentralise the methodology, project, or operations of an NGO, and ‘give power back’ to communities, root approaches in local customs and languages, or otherwise works to shift the NGO-fication of our work, it can be seen as more localisation. 

If it works to open up processes, decision-making, activities, M&E, etc, to be inclusive of people who are often marginalised, whether because of history or organisational practice, it can be seen as more participatory than the others. 

The way I see it then, an approach or philosophy can and should involve more than one approach – by being participatory, we may also be addressing historical injustices. But it can’t automatically be a decolonial activity unless you are actively making things better for people. Opening up a grantmaking decision process to include other NGOs doesn’t, by default, make your approach decolonial. Decentering yourself and your team’s role in a decision-making process may likewise primarily make your approach more locally led, rather than necessarily being decolonial.