In this article I explore insights gained from participating in an exploratory, small-scale study led by the Enabling Education Network (EENET) in 17 schools in northern Zambia and five schools in Tanzania. Facilitating South-based research, while based in a Northern university, raises complex ethical issues about voice and control which are discussed in the article. The main aim of the study was to explore understandings of inclusive education at school and community level in northern Zambia and Tanzania in the light of government efforts to promote Education for All. Reflective writing, photo elicitation and participatory photography were some of the methods used to generate locally relevant knowledge about marginalisation from the educational process, although the focus here is primarily on the issue of disability as a cause of educational exclusion. (Contains 3 notes and 4 figures.)