"Do poor people need western ways to develop?Are these communities aware of their surroundings? Can they take risks?" Whenever we mention rural communities, the discussion focuses on how backward they may be and the need for infrastructure that would make their lives better. At the Tropentag this year, the discussions in the parallel session on rural development focussed on Risks and investments on the rural communities. Are these rural communities aware that they face certain risks? Are they risk averse? Are they well prepared in times of stress, shocks and crises that their systems face?

Studies conducted in Burkina Faso by Lucrezia Ticani indicate that these communities are much more aware of their environment and have devised different strategies to survive the wet and dry seasons while still being able to take some risk and minimise the risk.

Intricate social networks and support systems exist in these communities that enable the common sharing of roles and contribution to the food basket. They are able to diversify their food sources which varies throughout the seasons and maximize their food security. In their adaptive cycles these community’s rhythms and responses are shaped by the seasonal planting/harvesting periods, within these periods the people are. It is because of these rhythms and trends of the day to day life one realises that opportunity creates risk and in order for them to be resilient, they combine prudence guided by social norms and active learning.

These people expect change and their survival patterns are dynamic ;Yes, they are aware of the risks and opportunities in their daily activities making them active managers of their systems. From the presentations the main conclusion was, there is no need to create awareness but focus on creating more opportunities for these communities.