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Viewing Microcredit Lending through Participatory Mapping: A Case Study


Participatory mapping has been employed for just over two decades as a tool to seek greater social justice through spatial representations from the points of view of historically marginalized populations. Since its rise in the 1990s, applications of participatory mapping have increased dramatically throughout both the Global North and South. While most participatory mapping projects have engaged indigenous issues, such as those involving territorial disputes and access to natural resources, few studies have attempted to apply participatory mapping to enhance “bottom-up” microlending practices in the developing world. This study combines participatory mapping with interviews and geospatial technology to examine the limited participation of younger adults in the financial services offered by a credit union in Tilaco, Mexico. We examine the process, utilities, and limitations of employing participatory mapping to help answer this question.