Community Development, Capacity Building and Planned Change-MSSW:671 (7 ECTS)

Sessions 1-3: A historical and Organizational Contexts of Community Development

The diverse meanings of community development What is community development?• Two key concepts: community and development• Community has a multitude of meanings-from a geographically bounded physical place with

people living together and meeting their livelihood and social interaction needs to groups of people whose interaction is based not on physical proximity but on common interest

• Development has several meanings, including modernization, urbanization, industrialization, social or political transformation, technological improvement and economic growth

• Development involves change directed toward some particular social or economic goals• Community development is “a group of people in a locality initiating a social action process, i.e.,

a planned intervention, to change their economic, social, cultural, and or environmental situation” (Robinson and Green, p. 13).

• Essentially, community development is planned change • The planned change is the basis for progress or an enhanced quality of life• Community development can be described as:1 As a process : method of implementing change2 As a program : specified activities such as housing construction, adoption of agricultural innovation3 As an outcome : the desired end result of change such as more employment4 As an ideology of action : such as restructuring the social, normative and economic order for

desired ends • The knowledge base of CD• The CD knowledge base is grounded in research on the nature of community process and social

change• To understand the history of CD it is important to understand rural sociology• Research is a factor to understand the history of CD

– RESEARCH PROVIDES THE INTELLECTUAL UNDERPINNING for the focus of CD program

– Research draws our attention to a particular community life that may shape the design and implementation of CD

• Differing views of Community Developmenta) Reform versus revolution: modification or replacement of existing system to bring about

developmentb) Populist versus elitist: focus on who should decide the path and method of planned change; the

people or experts such as scientistc) Structural Versus individualistic: focus to be given to institutions or individual behaviors for

planned changed) Outcome versus process: whether change should be directed towards immediate improvement in

material well-being or toward developing new social, economic and political process• Core approaches in CD• There are three basic approaches of CD1) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE: the use of technical knowledge to design and implement a targeted

program of change2) SELF-HELP: people in a community coming together and learning how to address their problems3) CONFLICT: local people working together to identify their own needs, nurture their own leadership

skills, and knowledge and organize their own action strategies

• What is community Practice• Community practice encompasses

– The processes– The methods– The practice skills of :

• Organizing• Planning• Development• change

– The Evolution of CD• The progressive era

– Characterized by resistance to individualistic explanation for poverty and social disorganization

• The new deal: – decentralization of development programs– Effective program in America to address the needs of the depressed people during the

economic recession • Urban renewal and area development:

– Address joblessness affected by economic development• The war on poverty:

– Mainly focuses on a “community action program-CAP”– Focus on the poor to assume power

• The process of community development• The process of a community development is difficult and time consuming and a costly job • Community residents are often more concerned with their daily tasks than thinking about and

coming up with vision about the future of their community• The process of CD IS AS IMPORTANT AS ITS OUTCOMES

COMPONENTS OF THE PROCESS OF CD• Community organizing

• New policies• New organizations

• Visioning– New organization– Vision statement

• Planning– Create an action plan to the simplest– Create a comprehensive plan to the most ambitious

• Implementation and evaluation– Do projects– Create benchmarks and indicators

Organizing:• Organizing relates to bringing people together for the betterment of social conditions and for social

justicePlanning: • Planning involves a range of processes and technical methods from neighborhood service planning

through inter-organizational planningDevelopment:

• Development refers to the social, economic and sustainable development efforts to improve the condition of life and protect the environment particularly for vulnerable communities

Change:• Change refers to social action and social change strategies ranging from educational campaigns to

coalitions focused on strengthening services or changing policy, to social movement to redress social injustice

• Community organization has been used almost exclusively to connote community level social planning and service integration

• In other periods it has principally signified grassroots organizing and social action • Organizing, planning development and change processes are all integral parts of community

practice and provide a framework to clarify and elaborate models of practice• Community practice is a recent term that has the advantage of providing a conceptual umbrella for

a range of practice approaches, orientations and models that have emerged in this arena since 1890s

• Conceptual models for practice are major tools for analyzing as well as for teaching • Model would be mixed and phased to be most effective in the current situation and stage of

organizational or community development • Evolution of Development Models• The evolution of development models is demarcated by the following emphases and periods

1. The Proto-models of “ Taproots” era-1890s-1910s2. Definition and practice method development-1920s-1930s3. Practice method specification-1940s-1950s4. Articulation of basic models-1960s-1970s5. Expansion and specification of models-1980s-1990s

Proto Models:• Emergence of:

– Settlements– Charity organizations societies– Rural development

• The work Jane Addams and the staff of the Hull house in Chicago are used as exemplar of settlement practice in and with communities

• Gurteen, 1894 and his handbook of Charity Organizations provided the blueprint for the development of CSOs

• Rural community development can be traced deep in American history• The original rural community development were agricultural extension agent workers• The social work research model developed at Hull-House is very different from the sociological

community studies which viewed the community or city as a laboratoryDefinition and practice method:• Focuses were not only given to teaching theory but also practice theory• Literature and teaching methods about community development has emerged in 1920s-1930s • The roles of the organizer as trainer of individuals, groups, and communities to solve their own

problems was recognized • During the great depression of the 1930s, community organization began to receive greater local

and considerable national attention and recognition• Practice method specifications• Emphasis was placed on continuing development of health and welfare councils, community

planning and grassroots organization development • During this period four basic concepts of community organization were identified

1. Group development2. Intergroup relations3. Integration4. Adjustment between resources and needs

Articulation of basic models• The period marked by the second rediscovery of poverty• The civil rights movement• The war on poverty • In 1967 Jack Rothman defined and redefined three community development models

– Locality development model: self-help and community capacity building, focuses on small community with citizens participation

– Social planning model: problem solving focused on substantive community problems utilizing basic change strategies of fact gathering and rational decision making for total community

– Social action model: include both task and process goals geared towards changing power relationships and basic institutions

Five models framework:1 Program development and coordination: focuses primarily on the implementation that may

be carried out in the public sector, private sector, agencies serving a geographical area, or in a functional community of interest

2 Planning: stress process skills, managing organizational process, exerting influence. Conducting interpersonal relations, technical or task oriented skills, designing, expediting and implementing

3 Community liaison: consists of community work functions carried by administrative and line staff human service agencies

4 Community development: strong emphasis on enabling, leadership development, self-help, mutual aid and locally based community study and problem solving

5 Political empowerment: the intended outcome is citizen participationFeminist analysis of community practice model:• The emphasis is that in feminist practice:

1 Goal will always relate to the elimination of oppression2 Power will be conceptualized as facilitative, enabling, and shared within and among groups3 Strategies for change will stress the need for congruence of means and ends and will be

grounded in egalitarianism • Eight models of community practice for social work1 Neighborhood and community organizing2 Organizing functional communities3 Community, social and economic development4 Social planning5 Program development and community liaison6 Political and social action7 Coalitions8 Social movementsSessions 4: A Framework for Community Development

A framework for community development • Most practitioners think of community development as an outcome – physical, social, and

economic improvement in a community

• while most academicians think of community development as a process – the ability of communities to act collectively and enhancing the ability to do so.

• Unlike mathematics or physics where terms are scientifically derived and rigorously defined, community development has evolved with many different connotations.

• Many scholars trace the origin of modern community development as a discipline to post- World War II reconstruction efforts to improve less developed countries

• A major contribution of community development was the recognition that a city or neighborhood is not just a collection of buildings but a “community” of people facing common problems with untapped capacities for self-improvement.

• Community development has evolved into a recognized discipline drawing from a wide variety of academic fields including sociology, economics, political science, planning, geography, and many others.

• Community development takes on the mantle of developing stronger “communities” of people and the social and psychological ties they share.

• Community development should be considered as both a process and an outcome• A working definition of community development in simple but broad terms is:

– A process: developing and enhancing the ability to act collectively, and an outcome: (1) Taking collective action and (2) the result of that action for improvement in a community in any or all realms: physical, environmental, cultural, social, political, economic, etc.• The community development generally refers to as social capital or social capacity, which

describes the abilities of residents to organize and mobilize their resources for the accomplishment of consensual defined goals

• Or the resources embedded in social relationships among persons and organizations that facilitate cooperation and collaboration in communities

• There are five forms of community capital– 1 bonding capital and bridging capital

• Bonding capital refers to ties within homogeneous groups• bridging capital refers to ties among different groups.

– 2 Human capital: labor supply, skills, capabilities and experience, etc.– 3 Physical capital: buildings, streets, infrastructure, etc.– 4 Financial capital: community financial institutions, micro loan funds, community

development banks, etc.– 5 Environmental capital: natural resources, weather, recreational opportunities

• Capacity Building• Social capital building or capacity building is an ongoing comprehensive effort to strengthen the

norms, supports, and problem-solving resources of the community• Growth versus development• Growth by itself could be either an improvement or a detriment to a community• Since growth does not always equate with a better standard of living, a higher order concept of

economic development is needed that better reflects the actual well-being of residents. • Comprehensive economic development efforts, therefore, should be directed toward improving the

standard of living through higher per capita income, better quality and quantity of employment opportunities, and enhanced quality of life

• Development has a very different connotation than growth• Development implies structural change and improvements within community systems

encompassing both economic change and the functioning of institutions and organizations• Development is deliberate action taken to elicit desired structural changes.

• Growth, on the other hand, focuses on the quantitative aspects of more jobs, facilities construction, and so on – within the context that more is better.

• One should carefully distinguish, then, between indicators that measure growth versus development

• A community can have growth without development and vice versa. • The important point to note, however, is that development not only facilitates growth but also

influences the kind and amount of growth a community experiences. • Development guides and direct growth outcomes.• The purpose of community development is to produce assets that may be used to improve the

community, and the purpose of economic development is to mobilize these assets to benefit the community.

• The process of community development also contributes to success in economic development• The process of community development leads to the outcome of community development and a

development-ready community• Economic development, like community development, is also a process• Most communities that are successful in economic development have strong support (financial and

otherwise) from both the public and private sectors• Community development and economic development are frequently used interchangeably• Some authors, use “community economic development” to refer to “local economic development”

encompassing growth (economic), structural change (development), and relationships (community).

• Who practices communityand economic development?

• The short answer to this question is that all citizens who are interested in moving their communities forward should consider themselves practitioners of community and economic development.

• In practice, community and economic developers can broadly be classified into two basic groups: paid professionals and volunteers.

• A more practical definition of a community development professional would be anyone working in a government, nonprofit or other organization whose job definition involves improving certain aspects of a community for benefit of the community itself

• Seven theories for sevencommunity developers

• Community developers need theories to help guide and frame the complexity of their work• Why seven theories?• In Western cultures, seven implies a sense of near-completeness

– There are seven days in a week, – seven seas, – seven climate zones, and seven ancient and modern wonders of the world.– Rome was built on seven hills

• While seven may or may not be a lucky number, seven theories are offered as a theoretical core for those who approach community development from at least seven contextual perspectives:– organizations; – power relationships; – shared meanings; – relationship building; – Choice making; – conflicts; and – integration of the paradoxes that pervade the field

• Why theory • Theories are explanations that can provide help in understanding people’s behavior and a

framework from which community developers can explain and comprehend events• Theory is the major guide to understanding the complexity of community life and social and

economic changeSeven key concerns in the community development field

(1) relationships, (2) structure,(3) power, (4) shared meaning, (5) communication for change, (6) motivations for decision making, and (7) integration of these disparate concerns and paradoxes• Relationships are linked to a sense of solidarity• Power refers to relationships with those who control resources, such as land, labor, capital, and

knowledge, or those who have greater access to those resources than other• Communication for change is linked to the concept of full participation, a consistent value in the

community development literature• The integration of paradox and disparate macro and micro concerns are part of community

development practice. How does one reconcile concerns about relationships, power, structure, shared meaning, communication for change, and motivational decision making?

• Is there a theory that ties some of these economic, political, and sociological concerns together?• These seven concerns form the basis for essential community development theory: (1) social capital theory,(2) functionalism, (3) conflict theory, (4) Symbolic interactionism, (5) communicative action theory, (6) Rational choice theory, and (7) Giddens’s structuration theory • Concerns and related theories

Sessions 5-7: Models of Community Development• Community Development Defined• Definitions of community development, in the context of assets characterizes the following

– “Community building consists of actions to strengthen the capacity of communities to identify priorities and opportunities and to foster and sustain positive neighborhood

– Community development is asset building that improve the quality of life of among residents

• Community development is a planned effort to produce assets that increase the capacity of residents to improve their quality of life

• Community development is also a place-based approach• Development of a community and development in a community• Development in a community entails a more outside driven modernized approach that works to

improve local communities and institutions• Development of community focuses on the cultivation of social and cultural connections as well as

positive relationships and networks among residents in order to build the community• There are different models of community development.

• Two of these Models are:– Asset-based– Need-based

• Assets-based community development (ABCD)• Assets are the stock of wealth in a household or other unit (Sherraden 1991: 96). • Another definition is that assets are “a useful or valuable quality, person or thing; an advantage or

resource”• The two proponents of assets-based community development are Kretzmann and McKnight from

the North-Western University and the Coady International Institute in Canada• ABCD draws attention to social assets: the gifts and talents of individuals • ABCD also gives attention to social relationships that fuel local associations and informal networks• One could argue that ABCD as an approach is the reverse of the conventional approach, which is

needs-based• Asset-based approach is focused on a community’s capacity rather than on its deficits.• For instance, rather than focusing on missing small businesses, this approach would focus on

existing small businesses and their success.• The focus of ABCD is on unrealized/unrecognized resources such as personal skills, attributes,

relationships and social capital • ABCD is a step by step community building strategy • For economically challenged communities, there are two paths to respond to the problem• The first one begins by focusing on the needs, deficiencies, and problems• The second path begins with clear commitment to discover a community’s capacities and assets• Five basic characteristics of ABCD1. ABCD is an appreciative inquiry that draws on the strength and success of a given community2. ABCD puts much emphasis on social relationships 3. ABCD uses participatory approach that enhances the empowerment of citizens4. ABCD is a community driven economic and social development5. ABCD fosters active citizens’ engagement • There are other two qualities of ABCD

a) Focusing on the assets of the lower income communitiesb) Acknowledge and embrace particularly the strong neighborhood rooted traditions of

community organizing, community economic development and neighborhood planning• ABCD relates itself to different types of theories and models as points of reference

a) For example appreciative inquiry is one of such models utilized by community developers sing ABCD

• ABCD as a change model in the life of community includea) Study of social capitalb) Study of participatory approachc) Study of community economic developmentd) Study of civil societiese) ABCD is a practical application of the concept of social capital

• There are different forms of social capitala) Bonding and bridging

a) Bonding enables people to “get by”b) Bridging enables them to “head ahead”

• As other forms of capital, the stock of social capital can fluctuate in different times depending on the circumstances that the community members experience

• Social Capital Theory

Community psychology:• It is an important theory to reframe social capital • Social capital was originally developed from sociology of education • Social capital is defined and measured both at interpersonal, community, institutional or societal

levels in terms of both bridging and bonding social connections• Social capital should be analyzed in terms of both individual and network levels• Social capital is fundamentally an ecological characteristic• Social capital hosts different constructs

– Social trust reciprocity– Social cohesion– Sense of community– Social participation– If individuals do not participate in the community, the amount of social capital diminishes

• Thus far social capital has not been interpreted in psychological terms• ABCD Characteristics• Characteristics

– Assets– Relationships– Inside out

• Elements of a community for ABCD– INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILIES– ASSOCIATIONS AND CONGREGATIONS– INSTITUTIONS– PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT– ECONOMY– CULTURE, COMMUNICATION AND VISION– MOTIVATION TO ACT

• BUIDLING THE BRIDGE FROM CLIENT TO CITIZEN• All people have gifts• Know your community• Likes and enjoys people• Build relationships very well• Influence people and detrmined• Analytical• Creative, problem solver• Twelve guiding principles for community engagement ABCD in action• Everyone has gifts• Relationships build a community• Citizens at the centre • Leaders involve others as active members of the community• People care about something• Motivation to act• Listening conversation• Ask, ask, ask• Asking question rather than giving answers invites stronger participation• A citizen centered, inside out • Institutions have reached their limits in problem solving

• Institutions as servants• Challenges of ABCD• SEVERAL WEAKNESSES ARE IDENTIFIED IN THE APPROACH

– At the initial stage, it is hard to avoid dependency – Some groups may be marginalized and ABCD does not confront directly the issue of

inequality– Handling the fluidity of association is essential but which is still a challenge– ABCD fails clearly explain the role of external agencies and institutions in the community

development process– ABCD fails to deal with unequal power issues within the disadvantaged community itself– Needs based approach

• Needs based approach start by external evaluation of what is deficient in a community• The charity framework is an example a need-based approach • Most community developments start with a need-based approach• In this approach communities are seen as problematic, needy, and deficient places• Community Development, Capacity Building and Planned Change-MSSW:671 (7 ECTS)• Sessions 8-9

Approaches to Community Development•

The community Perspectives of ABCD• In Ethiopia different community groups were studied to learn about their engagements of self-

initiated development activities• These communities include:

– Ilu Aga, Oromia– Bereh, Oromia– Gedam Sefer in Addis Ababa– Zatto Shodara, Durame– Kebele 12, Kulkual Meda and ?Negede Woyto community of Bahir Dar– Awramba in South Gondar– Iddirs, Senbetes and Jemiyas union in Gondar– Mersa Woreda

• Some major conceptualizations of ABCD among these communities include the following• Some indicators of the use of ABCD include:

– Participatory leadership– Productive use of skills– Knowledge of effective network– democratic practice of leadership among members of the community

• In Bekkate village ABCD is integrated with the traditional support system/practice called Dabare• Abdi Boru community applied a modified form of ABCD by the name of right-based approach• In Kambatta Menti Gezmi ABCD was informed by the principle of Gezma- a traditional form of self-

help support system common to Kambatta• Unlike the Kambatta, Guraghe and Awramba communities, the involvement of NGOs is very high

in introducing ABCD to the local communities• Awramba community has its own philosophy of community development, which they call the pillars

of community life/human rights– Child rights– Gender equality

– Care and support for the elderly– Critically addressing issues of theft, robbery and homicide– Concepts of Community-based development from the community perspective-Ethiopia

• Among the Oromo community, there are concepts such as:– Dabare– Eeba Ogdi– Jige-Dabo– Iddir

• All these are referred to community support system– Among the Kambatta community:– Gezma– Hera– Hera dana

• In Sidama community, the concept of:– Afini

For further reference read (Wassie, Melesse and Desalegn, 2011) on page 25 • Community Development Approaches-Agency perspectives• Conceptualizing community development• Some agencies relate the concept of community development to the origin of the idea of itself • Others relate to the prioritization of the needs or assets• Others relate the idea to the ownership of resources allocated for development• Others also relate the concept to that of strategies and principles applied for the purpose of

developing community• Some cite the leadership role in conceptualizing development• Approaches in Community Development• There are three approaches in community development1. Technical assistance approach2. Self-help approach3. Interactional approach • The technical assistant approach• The technical assistance is intended to help communities define their problems, needs and

potential solutions• Technical assistance provides need to guard against maintaining the power structure in

communities and undermining the capacities of communities to solve their own problems• In the technical assistance approach, technical know-how is assumed to be good because

efficiency is a valued end• Comparisons of technical assistance, self-help, and conflict approaches• The three approaches parallel planned change

– Self-help perspective: countercultural– The technical assistance perspective: professional-technical– The conflict perspective: political

• In the discussion community organization in social work, Rothman (1974b) identified three approaches– Locality development: self-help

a) Social planning: technical assistanceb) Social action: conflict

According to Chine and Benne (1976), there are three strategies of planned change

1) The normative re-educative: self-help2) The empirical-rational: technical assistance3) The power coercive: conflict• The three approaches/perspectives differ in a number of fundamental areas• The three approaches differ in their responses to a very basic, value-laden questions such as:1. what are their general images of society?2. What are their general images of individual?3. What are their diagnosis of contemporary society?4. What are their priorities with regard to change? • Comparative analysis of planned change approaches• The difference between the technical assistance, self-help and conflict approaches are often more

than superficial• Types of technical assistance• It is possible to classify technical assistance by typea) Use of power actors to achieve goalsb) Strategy used by consultants or volunteer leaders as developmental activity• The power source under which technical assistance is provided can be categorized as:

a) Legislation-having the powers to create legislate and appropriateb) Administration-having the power to manupilate

c) education- having the knowledge, skills and process of specialized nature associated with educational and research institutions

d) Collaborators-creating mechanisms, for the specific purpose of providing technical assistance The basic assumptions of technical assistance• Someone knows something about the issues that another does not know• Someone decides that the potential recipient needs assistance• A provider-recipient relationship can be established • The provider provides and the receiver receives • Technical assistance, although can be considered as an approach for planned change may not be

considered as a theme of community development • Christenson and Robinson (1980) describes, community development as the shared decision by

community residents to initiate a planned change process• Basic difference between technical assistance as a non-developmental and developmental

approach to planned change rests with values1. Whose values are to be served by the intervention?2. To what extent do the recipients have the opportunity to participate in the choice of the goal?3. To what extent does the process enhance the power of the target population to solve problems4. To what extent is the provider engaging in a self-serving activity?5. Whose problems are primarily addressed in the technical assistance episode?6. Is a reasonable set of alternatives available to the recipient? 7. Does the recipient has the power of choice?8. Does the provider assist the recipient to make informed choice? 9. Will assistance create dependency relationship?• Factors that change agents should consider when designing and implementing planned change

projects is abbreviated as A-V-I-C-T-O-R-Y1 Ability: the ability of members of the target system to understand and evaluate the assistance

being evaluated2 Value: the degree of fit b/n the assistance party and the target system’s philosophy3 Information: the adequacy of the target system’s knowledge and understand of the assistance

4 circumstances: the extent to which those offering assistance understand the target system’s socio-cultural context

5 Timing: the ability of the party offering assistance to consider the optimal timing for structuring the change process

6 Obligation: the need for the assistance party to consider the change from the target system’s point of view

7 Resistance: the assistance party should understand and appreciate the myriad of forces that may lead to change resistance

8. Yield: the benefits and payoffs to the end of the change is implemented• Sessions 10-11

Forms of Community Capital• Human capital• Physical capital• Financial capital• Environmental capital• Social capital• Human capital• Human capital includes:• Leadership skills• labor market skills, • general education background• Artistic development and appreciation • Health and other skills and experience• Neighborhood face several interrelated challenges regarding workforce development issues• The following issues are a few that might be addressed1. What are the sources of persistent unemployment and underemployment2. Do workers have sufficient information about the location and skill requirements of jobs

3. Is on job training offered by employers?4. What is the current level of job turnover among employers 5. How many new jobs will be created in the coming few years6. What are the current levels of wages and benefits available to workers

Key concepts and debates• Workforce development is a frequently misunderstood term; many people think of it as only job

training• Workforce development is a constellation of activities from orientation to the work world, recruiting,

placement, and mentoring to follow-up counseling and crises intervention • Human capital theories argue that variation in earnings are consequences of differences in

workers’ abilities and skills• Theories about how labor markets operate tend to fall into one of three broad categories

– Supply oriented– Demand oriented– Institutionally oriented theories

• Supply oriented theories emphasize the importance of the number of workers with specific skills at wage level

• Demand side theorists emphasize how changes in the structure of occupations, industries, skills and the location of work shape local opportunities

• Institutional theorists of the labor market recognize the importance of supply and demand factors but emphasize the importance of the organization of work as a mediating factor

• Social capital• Community development practitioners have long recognized the importance of social relationships

to the success of projects• Social scientists consider these social relationships and ties as a form of capital that facilitates

collective action in communities• Social capital can be considered an asset that contributes to the development of other forms of

community capital-human, financial, physical, political and environmentalCommunity of place vs. community of interest• Community of place refers to social relationships based on residence in a particular locality• Community of interest refers to social relationships based on a common set of interests • Social relationships and networks serve as a form of capital because they require investments in

time and energy, with the anticipation that individuals can be taped into these resources when necessary

• There are several reasons for the decline of social capital:• Increased time pressure• Residential mobility• Increased labor force participation of women• The growth of the welfare state• Erosion of the civic culture• The growth of suburbs• Generational effects• Television • Questions related to social capital in the community development field1. Can social relationships and networks affect community development?2. Are social relationships and networks a form of social capital or resources that can serve as assets

in developing a community?3. Do these social ties facilitate or impede development4. Can communities build social networks ad ties to enhance their chances of development • Physical capital• People’s sense of a place is dominated by that place’s physical capital: its roads, buildings, etc.• Housing as an important physical capital for the following reasons:1. Housing is where people live2. It is the private space for families3. A place we share sense of communalities with friends• Housing problem can be divided into four general issues1. Housing affordability2. Housing adequacy3. Housing availability4. Housing accessibility • Financial capital• There is strong relationship between financial capital and other forms of capital• Financial capital markets deny credit for minorities and low income groups1. Incomplete information2. Transaction costs3. Regulation4. Bias/discrimination5. competition • Environmental capital

• What is environmental capital?• Environmental capital includes several aspects of a community’s base of natural resources air,

water, land, flora and fauna• Natural environmental is in the background of communities

Sessions 19: Community Asset Mapping• There are important questions to respond when dealing with the activities of community asset

mapping1. What like such a process look like?2. What are the basic building blocks when fully mapped?3. How might these building blocks be combined into strong and dynamic community

building strategy?4. Who might be appropriate conveners for the process?

First Steps towards whole community mobilization 1. Mapping completely the capacities and assets of individuals, citizens’ associations and

local institutions2. Building relationships among local assets for mutually beneficial problem-solving within

community3. Mobilizing the community’s assets fully for economic development and information sharing

purposes4. Convening as broadly representative a group as possible for the purpose of building a

community vision and plan 5. Leveraging activities, investment and resources from outside the community to support

asset-based locality-defined development• Mapping assets• The commitment to mapping an entire community’s assets is where asset-based community

development path begins• Once it begins mapping and locating of the gifts and capacities of individual citizens, associations

and of local institutions should be an ongoing process• An important question to answer is “what resources do we have to solve the problem at hand by

our selves?”• Community asset checklist • The capacities of individuals• The gifts of strangers• The association of citizens• Local private, public and non-profit institutions• The communities physical assets• The capacity finders and developers• You can map the following assets • Businesses• Churches• Parks• Income• Elderly• Hospitals• Local institutions• Citizen’s associations• Gift of individuals

• Youth• Cultural groups• Schools• Block clubs• Libraries • Artists• Labeled people• Community colleges• etc• Gifts of individuals • Gifts of the head

– Knowledge– Information

• Gifts of the hand– Practical skills

• Gifts of the heart– Passion– Listening

• Mapping relationships • Intimacy• Close relationship• Participation• Economic exchange • Harmonizing the four things worth doing1. Dream2. Places3. People4. Resources5. Next step??• ABCD mapping• Four key questions

1. Who is doing it?2. What is the purpose?3. How will you collect and analyze the data?4. How will you use the data to make connections for contribution?

• Mapping is a guide for relationship building-not just data!• To use a map effectively; you need ‘an organizational vehicle’ capable of going down the road • Types of asset mapping• Individual asset inventories

1. Gifts, talents, dreams, hopes, fears• Associational mapping

1. Associations you know2. Associations you do not know3. What do they currently do4. What have they talked about doing but have not done yet5. What might they do if they were asked

• Institutional mapping1. Gifts of employees and volunteers

2. Physical space and equipment3. How money is spent4. Current relationship

• Physical space mapping 1. What is in the neighborhood2. What happens where

• Neighborhood economy mapping1. How many flows in and out the neighborhood2. Neighborhood business development

“There is no power for change like a community discovering what it cares about” • When people discover what they hve, they find power• When people join together in new connections and relationships they build power• When people become more productive together, they exercise their power to address problems

and realize dreams

Session 20 : Community Development Issues in Ethiopia• The Community Experience in ABCD• Five communities experienced in applying ABVD

– The Ilu Aga (Hundee) Oromia region– Adis Alem (REST) in Tigray– Three communities in the Hobicheqaof SNNPRS

• The Ilu Aga Community Experience• Hundee-meaning root has been operating in Ilu Aga community

– Cereal banks– Seeding nursery– Civic education programs

• Hundees philosophical approach to development is to start with the culture of the community• The ABCD process in Ilu Aga• . Teshome began the ABCD process by asking to held a meeting with cereal bank association• Teshome gathered a number of community stories

– Tale of the construction of paths– River diversion– Irrigation of community land – Many people were encouraged to work on potato growing farms after they were motivated

to revitalize their cooperative culture • Teshome helped facilitate a process to uncover community assets • Community groups worked over a period of three days to:

– Identify the skills of individuals – List formal and informal association describe relationships the community had developed

with government and non-government institutions– Identify physical assets and natural resources– The informal institutions included:– More than 45 burial associations– Several traditional rotational savings and credit schemes– Traditional religious and marriage festivals – Mutual cooperative associations

• Detail works mapping community assets was part of the process in identifying community assets

• In this community economic analysis tool called “the leaky bucket“ was used• Ilu Aga Leaky Bucket• The Ilu Aga sources of income

– Daily wages– Handicrafts– Construction pole sales– Fruit and vegetable sales– Livestock and dairy sales– Cereal crop sales– Petty trading– Government staff salaries

• The Ilu Aga Community source of expenditure (the leaky bucket)– Transportation costs– Products for use by local institutions– Animal fodder– Alcohol consumption– chemical fertilizers– Education expenses– household consumables– Land use tax and social payments– Health related expenses– Social festivities– Perspectives of community members on process of ABCD

• Community identified three significant changes– Increased tendency for people to work together– Improved income management in households– Perception that Ilu Aga leading other communities– Perspectives of outsiders

• Hundee staff members felt there are three significant changes– Community develop clear vision of what kind of changes they wanted to achieve– Associational leadership had initiated– The local government had become much less suspicious of both associational leadership

and NGO field workers• The government staff felt that:

– The community gets more organized and better to carry out development activities– The changes is attributed to the efforts by the NGO and woreda workers – Adis Alem Tigray

• Adis Alem is located in central Tigray• REST is a well positioned development leading NGO due to its role during the fight against Derg

The ABCD process in Adis Alem• REST’s field worker facilitated a process of discovery for a core group of community members-

beginning with appreciative interviewing • A subsequent stage of asset identification involved making inventories of:

– Individual skills– Formal and informal associations – Relationships among local and non-0local institutions– Community’s physical assets and natural resources

• The leaky bucket economic analysis tool informed the community that:– There is huge expenditure for agricultural inputs, coffee and liquor– High losses of soil and young people who leave the community looking for better job– Perspectives of community members on process of ABCD

• Attitudinal change in a way community members looked at local economy• People start to focus on economic inflows• Began to examine household income and expenditure• Increased openness to new ideas both from inside and outside• Change of attitude towards working together• Perspectives of outsiders• Change in behavior and attitude• Become more receptive of only selected programs• Emergence of sense of responsibility with regard to helping neighborhood• Increased motivation to change the communities circumstances

The community and local development approaches • In one way or another, local communities in Ethiopia have the sense of cooperation, internally

driven development agenda and are willing to draw their own resources for their development purposes

• There are differences among communities which initiated own development and those whose development is initiated by outsiders

• Among those who initiated their own development, there is:– Strong relationship (network)– Communal use of resources– Shared use of skills and knowledge for common purpose

• Among communities whose development is initiated by outsiders:– Only registered active members have shared knowldge – Project membership is more important than community membership

• To draw internal resources• To share common knowledge• To develop skills• To establish strong networks• To actively participate in the development agenda

• Common features of community initiated and NGO induced development• Utilization of existing community knowledge, wisdom and social networks• The introduction of community development models help to revitalize the long existed community

support systems• Both initiatives helped to transform communities from need-based to strength/asset based • Some remarks about community development in Ethiopia• Understanding community development concepts are variable in Ethiopia among:

– The community groups– The development agencies– Learning institutions

• NGO-supported and community-based higher learning institution projects rare in Ethiopia• NGO-driven development initiatives are more specialized, client oriented and project bound• Community oriented development initiatives, on the other hand are more inclusive of different

community groups, value laden, process-oriented , long-term and highly visionary

• Rural communities are more successful in exercising asset-based development approach than communities found in cities and towns