Curaçao, our nation. An Appreciative Inquiry about the future of Curaçao

This study examines the working of Appreciative Inquiry in the context of the newly constituted country Curaçao. People on Curaçao were said to have a lack of an own identity, a lack of self-respect and an indifferent attitude towards the future of the island. In this study an Appreciative Inquiry approach rooted in a relational constructionist thought style was put to work, which opens up possibilities for change by locating change agency in ongoing processes that facilitate non subject-object ways of relating. A cooperative project was organized in the field, wherein fifty youngsters from Curaçao entered into conversations with their fellow inhabitants about the strengths and future of Curaçao. This case study shows that AI can be a valuable method for community development. People reacted to the invitation to engage in a positive conversation about Curaçao and became used to hopeful and appreciative ways of talking about their island and themselves.