Much has been said in recent years about relief vs. development in global health missions, and missions in general. We know that it is often harmful to engage in relief when what is needed is development. Yet, the vast majority of global health missions are relief oriented with little understanding of development processes. This session will review participatory approaches for community engagement that facilitate community response to their own problems. We will review key concepts such as: community ownership, community participation ladder, stakeholder analysis, and building cross cultural partnerships that escape the trap of paternalism and dependency. These principles apply broadly to both short and long-term global health missions.