Revisiting the Issue of Elite Capture of Participatory Initiatives

Based on case studies of two communities implementing participatory forestry in Tanzania and India, we revisit the issue of elite capture of participatory initiatives. Our cases illustrate how initial elite capture of the participatory initiatives is circumvented over time through various forms of resistance orchestrated by initially disadvantaged groups. Based on the cases we argue that studies of elite capture should be based on in-depth and longitudinal empirical investigations that carefully characterize forms and outcomes of elite capture and consider both the changing dynamics of social settings and the perceptions held by the people under study.