Prepared for a manual for change agents under the auspices of the UN Food & Agriculture Organization, this article argues that integrating the strengths of political economy and gender planning into a participatory methodology yields an approach that puts people first, doesn’t isolate or privilege particular sectors for remedial attention, and places subjugation alongside poverty as social evils to be overcome, not simply alleviated. The outcome is an emancipatory practice of development, in which inequalities are addressed directly, not with a view to simply redistribute wealth on a transitory basis, but to reconfigure society to the benefit of the majority of its members, while empowering them to develop themselves.