Curacao, our nation: An Appreciative Inquiry on the future of Curacao

Abstract

This study examines the working of Appreciative Inquiry in the context of the newly constituted country of Curaçao. Previous research identified a call for a mentality change on Curaçao in relation to the new autonomous status. People were said to have a lack of an own identity, a lack of self-respect and a passive and indifferent attitude towards the future of the island. In this study I worked with an Appreciative Inquiry approach rooted in a relational constructionist thought style. This approach opens up possibilities for change by locating change agency in ongoing processes that facilitate non subject-object ways of relating. A cooperative project was organised in the field, wherein fifty youngsters from Curaçao entered into conversations with their fellow inhabitants about the strengths and future of Curaçao. In this thesis I give an in-depth description of the Appreciative Inquiry process. This case study shows that Appreciative Inquiry can be a valuable method for community development. People reacted to the invitation to engage in a positive conversation about Curaçao and participating in this project has handed people new hopeful and appreciative vocabularies and ways of talking about their island and themselves. A vocabulary wherein deficits, blaming and helplessness have given way to feelings of trust, hope, helpfulness and connectedness.