Working with local communities and gaining an intimate knowledge of a community life can make significantly improve the efficacy and appropriateness in the research and design of interactive systems. However, it is not always easy to substantially engage a community in research and design, due to constraints and barriers both within and without the project’s domain. Common constraints and barriers include navigating cultural, socio-economic and political issues, power relations and trust; poor or unfamiliar technical infrastructure; time and funding constraints; and, organizational requirements and expectations of funding agencies and different project partners. Five panelists will share their experiences in engaging underserved communities in Africa and India in community-based participatory designs and research. Their discussion seeks to enrich our understanding and practices in collaboration by addressing the following themes: Effective approaches to and guidelines for collaborating with underserved communities Strategies to overcome barriers in community-based co-design and coresearch Stakeholder roles Ways that theoretical concepts in African philosophy can assist in configuring collaboration Issues raised in a workshop on community participation, to be held at INTERACT 2013 preceding the panel Panelists will be: Anupama Saxena, Gereon Kapuire, Bongiwe Dlutu-Siya, Dan Orwa Ochieng, Nicola J. Bidwell, Darelle van Greunen (Moderator).