Why Community Capacity?
love. COMMUNITY.
Community capacity involves the collective
response of individuals to share responsibility
for the welfare of the community and its
members; to demonstrate collective
competence in seizing opportunities to address
community needs; and, to confront situations
that threaten community members’ well-being.
Benefits of community capacity. Communities that not only possess these
qualities, but also take action on behalf of
their community members, will produce results
linked to resilient communities. A valuable
asset embedded in the outcome of actions is
housed in the relational networks community
members have established, particularly
informal network (e.g., family, spouse,
extended family, friends, neighbors, faith-
based groups, etc) relationships.
Research suggests that the effects of
community capacity for members of a
community have far-reaching benefits, that
otherwise would not come about with the joint
efforts of formal systems and informal
networks pooling together to achieve a
desired outcome. Outcomes from such capacity
building include increased adaptation to life’s
demands, greater satisfaction with work life,
increased commitment to work, increased work
productivity, reduced work-life conflicts, and
increased overall well-being.
What is the purpose of this project? The completion of this project will result in
tools and training along with technical support
that will assist communities in supporting their
military personnel and families. More
specifically, community leaders will be able to
more effectively identify significant challenges
faced by military personnel and families, to
more effectively support communities to meet
the needs of, and to activate the assets of,
military personnel and families, and to
provide services through a partnership with
formal and informal community supports to
build a resilient community.
today live away from extended family so
alternative sources of support can be effective substitutes—e.g., the Guard/Reserve family’s
local community.
Everyone can do something! In order to inform program development, our team of researchers are conducting site visits to observe the practices of current, on-the-ground ISFAC partnerships. We want to hear your stories of how you have uniquely brought people together (e.g., community capacity building) in support of (to make a difference in) military families’ and
communities’ lives.
inspire. COMMUNITY.
There are about 143,000 troops deployed in
Iraq and Afghanistan. Many left families who worry
about them and/or struggle to maintain a house-
hold without them. These families could be in need
of emotional, financial or practical support. Military
children of deployed Soldiers are particularly vul-
nerable because they, too, worry about the safety
of their deployed parent. That stress could manifest
itself in the form of behavioral/emotional problems,
or decreased academic achievement. Many families
How You Can Be Involved
Who We Are
October 17, 2011
Building Community Capacity U n i v e r s i t y o f G e o r g i a
Family & Community Resilience Laboratory ♦ 261 Dawson Hall ♦ Athens, GA 30602 ♦ (706) 542-2305 ♦ [email protected]
It is through formal systems
and informal networks that
shared responsibility and
collective competence towards individuals and
community members build
community capacity.
and U n i v e r s i t y o f N o r t h C a r o l i n a C h a p e l H i l l
This project is funded by
The Department of
Defense and The U.S.
Department of Agricul-
ture to enable The
University of Georgia
and The University of
North Carolina at Chapel
Hill to better understand
how to support military
families, specifically
members of the Guard
and Reserve, within their
communities by focusing
on factors necessary to
build community capaci-
ty in such communities.
Revolution.
“No individual can live alone, no nation can live alone, and anyone who feels that he can live alone is sleeping through a revolution.” --Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
