Awareness Trainings - Draft #1

PART 2 : HOW TO ENGAGE WITH CCR
II/I Cultural Mapping for Corporate
Definition
Cultural mapping is used to describe the use of research methods, tools, and techniques to
identify, describe, portray, promote, and analyze particular regions or places and their cultures in
order to engage future actions. Cultural mapping underlines the local stories, practices,
relationships, memories, and rituals which are relevant for the stakeholders in question.
Its purpose is investigating, highlighting, promoting, preserving or creating an identity profile of a
group of people: the process of mapping by itself draws attention to the existence and importance
of cultural resources. The results point out problems to be solved or strengths to build upon.
Objectives
The main objective of cultural mapping is to objectively define the culture of the stakeholders, by
listing relevant factors of, and for, the people in question.
This way, cultural mapping is about creating an efficient methodology when dealing with intangible
specificities.
Even if pre-established toolkits for CIA can be irrelevant when dealing with intangible issues, it’s
still better to have a full set of general Cultural Mapping Guidelines based on the kind of
stakeholders, of cultures, of business sector and of context.
Usual Process
1: screening, scoping and notifying the affected people and area about the proposed development.
2: collection of data in order to identify and describe the cultural resources, practices and beliefs
located within the relevant area (the historical period to be studied in a CIA is recommended as
being the initial presence in the area of the particular group whose cultural practices and features
are being assessed).
3: study the specific ways of life and thinking of the stakeholders and the places.
4: based on the studies’ conclusions, develop a list of relevant cultural components, goals and
indicators for the company.