More Community Development Websites
Last Friday I posted about 10 Community Development Websites, Blogs and Forums. Mark Woodhead in a comment to that post, has suggested six more sites. I list them below with a brief description. I’m planning to review some of these sites in later posts and so I have not commented on them here.
Forums and Blogs
This is similar to the Asset Based Community Development Institute, a site I covered in the previous email. This is primarily a forum, similar to the Forum on the ABDCI website. It may be more relevant for UK development workers.
See below for brief description of their website. This is their standalone WordPress blog. It is certainly live; they post once every 1 – 2 weeks.
Websites
United Kingdom
Federation for Community Development Learning
I believe this was formerly the Federation of Community Work Training Groups, which I mention for the benefit of ancient community development workers. They say:
“FCDL is the UK wide membership networking organisation that supports community development through advancing and promoting good quality Community Development learning and practice at local, regional and national levels. FCDL works to provide a network to support the development, evaluation and dissemination of good quality Community Development learning, training and qualification opportunities.”
Locality is a merger between BASSAC (British Association of Settlements and Social Action Centres), an organisation that goes way back, and the Development Trusts Association. They say they are “the leading nationwide network of development trusts, community enterprises, settlements and social action centres.” Mark’s concern about their understanding of assets is possibly because they discuss buildings as assets, when they can just as easily be liabilities. Asset Based Community Development uses assets to refer to the potential in local residents to effect change.
International
This is another site that specialises in asset based community development. They have a call to action to the effect that in communities the professionals need to step back and there should be a community builder in every neighbourhood. In my day a community builder used bricks and mortar, presumably by builder they mean development worker.
“Reflect is an innovative approach to adult learning and social change, which fuses the theories of Brazilian educator Paulo Freire with participatory methodologies.” Perhaps I should add participatory methodologies to this list. I’ll give it some thought and come back with more soon.
Please suggest community development sites I’ve missed and participatory methodology sites. Thanks!