1. Introduction: PV for social action
Participatory action research (PAR), along with visual method- ologies such as participatory video (PV), offers an innovative vehicle for marginalised groups to engage in public policy discussions and take action concerning social issues that impact their lives. PV provides individuals and communities the oppor- tunity to play a leading role in researching and developing ways to create awareness, reflect on their own practices and take action. Increasingly, PAR is becoming the default methodology in a number of contexts, especially in deconstructing traditional research relationships between academics and marginalised com- munities (Evans and Foster, 2009). PV is a key tool, under the guidance of PAR, in combining process and action in ways that provide avenues for communities to engage in both critical self-analysis and political action. In this way, participants are equal partners alongside government authorities to provide a collaborative approach to problem solving (Stringer, 1996). In their article entitled Community-based participatory research as a tool for policy change, Peterson et al. (2006) document that this approach can ‘produce credible research, build commu- nity capacity, and help bring about contributions to policy changes’ (Peterson et al., 2006: p. 352). Enabling community members to identify issues in need of investigation, collaborate