International community development practice

One of the most significant community development initiatives in Canadian history was sponsored by Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN) from 1960 to 1982. Fieldworkers employed by MUN Extension worked across the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, engaging in strategies of community change that included social action, citizen participation, public advocacy, local services development, and popular education. The fieldworkers were guided by a philosophy of community development that positioned their work as politically neutral, non-directive, and educational in nature. In the latter 1970s, this philosophy—along with the community development practices it supported—was challenged by institutional changes that required fieldworkers to engage in externally directive projects oriented towards natural resource development. This historical case study of the evolution of community development philosophy and practice in Canada has important implications for contemporary scholars and practitioners elsewhere. Those implications include the importance of understanding both the institutional politics of organizations through which community development work occurs and the socio-political realities of the communities served by those organizations. Readers of this article will appreciate its nuanced account of a major community development initiative and will be inspired to reflect upon the institutional and socio-political context of their own work.

List of Tables, Figures and Boxes List of Abbreviations Foreword David Cox Preface I: SOCIAL AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT (SCD) PRACTICE A Social Development Approach Local-level Community Development Values and Principles Dynamics of Community Development Practice II: EDUCATION FOR SOCIAL POLICY AND INTERNATIONAL SCD Social Policy Education for SCD Workers International SCD Curricula for Training Social Workers III: DEVELOPING THE SOCIAL WORK PROFESSION FOR SCD PRACTICE Adapting the Social Work Profession: Some Issues and Prospects SCD Education through Distance Mode: An Unexplored Potential Social Work's Code of Ethics and Ethics-based SCD Practice IV: THE FUTURE OF SCD Social Work and SCD Practice: Reflections and Foreflections Acknowledgements Bibliography Index

This article begins with a discussion of two of the ways in which we can study community development in Indonesia. One way is to begin with the concept of community development and its cognate terms and investigate how these might be used and understood, either in Anglicized versions or any linguistic equivalents in Indonesian development discourse. Another way is to elaborate principles and practices of community development and identify examples of these, regardless of whether such principles and practices are named as community development. We consider both these approaches. We comment on the context in which the western community development discourse has appeared. In regard to an understanding of community development beginning with its principles and practices, we suggest that notwithstanding the limited take-up of the discourse, the principles and practices of community development are clearly discernible in Indonesia. The second part of the article provides examples of how community development practice was evident in the grassroots responses to the devastating tsunami that hit Aceh at the end of 2004.

Increasingly, community development is recognized as an important process for occupational therapy practice. However, occupational therapists working in community development report feeling unprepared. This study aimed to identify the knowledge, skills, and experiences that occupational therapists need for practice in community development. Using the Delphi technique, the researchers developed statements from the Round 1 (n = 8) responses of occupational therapists involved in community development practice or scholarship. Rounds 2 (n = 14) and 3 (n = 12) sought to establish consensus among the occupational therapists on the areas of focus. Participants rated the importance of 64 statements grouped into 11 domains. After three rounds, researchers eliminated six statements by analyzing the median, interquartile range, and percentage of agreement. Participants reached consensus on 58 statements. Many of the competencies identified were relevant to all areas of practice, while others were specific to community development, suggesting a need for specialized education and training in this area. The results provide information that can be used to enhance the preparation of occupational therapists for practice in community development.

A growing body of literature supports the role of occupational therapists in community development. Using a community development approach, occupational therapists respond to community-identified occupational needs. They work to build local resources and capacities and self-sustaining programs that foster change within the community and potentially beyond. The purpose of this paper is to highlight some key issues related to occupational therapy practice in community development. The definitions and classifications of occupation focus primarily on the individual and fail to elaborate on the shared occupations of a community. As well, occupation-based models of practice are not easily applied to occupational therapy practice in community development. In order for occupational therapy to articulate its role in community development, greater heed needs to be given to the definition and categorization of occupation, occupation-based models of practice, and their application to communities.

Both dialogue studies and the field of community development are reasonably well developed ‘communities of practice’, however, there has been little direct interplay between the two whereby a theory of dialogue for community development is articulated. This article then attempts to break new ground, setting up a ‘dialogue’, so to speak, between dialogue studies and community development theory and practice. The article consists of a systematic exploration of some of the crucial work on dialogue that the author has concluded is relevant for community development theory and practice. The perspective taken draws on the work of leading thinkers from different places and disciplines, including Hans-Georg Gadamer, Martin Buber, David Bohm, Paulo Freire and Mikhail Bakhtin. Each contributes insights that enhance an approach to community development that centres dialogue within its theory and practice.

A major concern in community development is the application of various theories, practices, and models that are relevant to the development agenda of the selected community. Participatory theatre practice has been identified as one of such models linking theory and practice in a community development process. Students undergoing training in participatory theatre and community development are introduced to several theories and concepts whose application in the field of work may be quite different from the classroom experience. This paper explores pertinent participatory theatre theories, concepts, and ideals and how they can be effectively put to use at the communal level to achieve an expected outcome. The paper aims to present an easy practical approach to participatory theatre practice in community development.

Communities around the world struggle with weakening social bonds and political, racial, ethnic, economic, and cultural divides. This article argues the arts can be a means of raising public consciousness regarding such concerns by catalyzing conscious, thoughtful dialogue among individuals and groups possessing diverse values and beliefs. Change can only occur when people become aware of and actively reflect on the ontological and epistemic-scale norms and values that so often underpin their divisions, and the arts can help them do precisely that. We examine the dynamics of participatory performing arts and mural-making in diverse contexts to contend that the dialogic character of community art-making can be valuable for practitioners and scholars in a variety of efforts in international community development. We conclude by sharing lessons that we believe will aid artists and practitioners in devising more inclusive and participatory approaches to their international community change or development projects.

Community Development Society (CDS) started in 1970 in response to a need to provide opportunities for practitioners in the newly emerging community development profession to build their skills and advance professionally. unique vision of the founders was to closely link those involved in researching the discipline with those involved in the practice. strong network with local public officials charged with making the policies within which community development (CD) practitioners operate was a desired outcome. In many, if not most, instances, the CD person in the community shapes the climate within which CD activities are conducted. In Vol 1., No. 1., of the Journal, Duane L. Gibson wrote regarding goals for the emerging CDS: Here I would like to learn of new and tested ideas for improving the quality of community life--explicitly and objectively review so that I can determine whether they might work for me. Explorations of how you staff up, put a team together, organize to do a job. Here I would like to have a chance to examine and debate, with my colleagues, new theories of planned change. I want to be exposed to a wide range of ideas and people, a wider range than we may, perhaps, have at this time. Here I would like to consider new and unique approaches to the training of workers to serve community development ends.... It would include, hopefully, a journal to which we would all contribute ... In the same issue, C.B. Ratchford listed several major conditions in society, at that time, including: rapidity of change; urbanization; specialization and its consequences; large-scale social organization; expanding role of the public sector; creative federalism; and the affluent society. While specific topics and issues have changed in the past 40 years, the commitment of the Society to fostering effective community development has not. principles of good practice, updated several times, remain at the core of the Society's efforts to promote community development and will continue in the future. Adherence to these core values is one reason why the CDS has remained strong. In the past 40 years, the Journal has remained a major force in helping to upgrade the knowledge and capacity of CDS members but has also become a major publishing outlet for CD practitioners all over the world. It covers a broad range of issues pertinent to practitioners and scholars alike. recent survey of CDS members listed the Journal as one of the most valued services received. timeless mission and principles set for the Journal have made the broad core topics addressed consistent over the years. For example, the initial issue of the Journal discussed: The Community Development Profession in Today's Society; The Good Community--What Would It Be?; A Dynamic Approach to Participation in Community Development; and Training in Community Development. articles published in any recent issue of Community Development: Journal of the Community Development Society fit well into these topic areas. CDS in the future On the 40th Anniversary of CDS, the need for research and practice on CD topics is as strong, or perhaps even stronger, than in the 1970s. Advancements in knowledge, understanding, and practice of community development, many of which were fostered by the Society, mean that we can now address critical issues in more informed and successful ways. Subtle differences between business development, economic development, and community development are now recognized. While creating jobs is often among the highest priority issues, successful development practitioners understand and appreciate the need for effective community development. Researchers have made major contributions to our understanding of the importance of private-public partnerships, the role of community and private foundations, ways to bring all groups into development discussions, and the need to educate and motivate groups that in the past have not been part of the decisionmaking process. …

The COVID-19 pandemic has occurred against a sobering global backdrop: national data collection programs and the production of core economic statistics have long been under-funded (by national government as well as the international development community), and data gaps are still significant. The pandemic has highlighted the importance of NSOs and the urgent need to strengthen and modernize core data collection programs as the backbone of national data systems. As the severity of this problem and its damaging implications are becoming more salient, members of the international development and national statistics communities have joined forces in an effort to address it. A collective, high-level effort is now being mobilized by senior leadership of the World Bank and the United Nations, in close collaboration with the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data, to join forces to increase global investments in fragile, low-and-middle-income countries’ data priorities and to better put data to work for green, resilient, inclusive development. Specifically, two new complementary funds have recently been launched by the World Bank and United Nations to support countries’ data systems, data capital, and risk analytics in a coordinated way: the World Bank-hosted Global Data Facility and the UN-hosted Complex Risk Analytics Fund (CRAF’d).

ABSTRACTThe lack of an established policy framework by government in Northern Ireland for community development, within the contested objectives of an enforced coalition, mirrors theoretical perspectives that see community development as a contested concept. In contrast, a research programme working with community development organisations in Catholic and Protestant disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Belfast identified that community development practitioners did have a clear understanding of what constituted community development. Successful community development practice in Belfast involved both conflict and collaboration with government. Effective leadership that interpreted meanings between sometimes consensual, sometimes conflictual interpretations of the nature of inequality stood out as a factor in the success of the researched community development organisations. The research findings indicate that ethnographic research in situations of poverty cannot avoid examining the positionality of the researcher and the impact of a reflexive methodology. A framework for planning and evaluation that is rooted in the common values exhibited by community development practitioners is proposed as a method to deliver support to successful community development organisations as independent influencers of government policy. In essence, those values see the primacy of the experience of the individual as a starting point for collective endeavour; of recognising the difference individuals can make for themselves and the greater difference for themselves if they work together. They are values of collaboration through participative democratic means whilst recognising the integrity of the individual.

While it is now often argued that neoliberalism profoundly shapes the context and practice of community development, this is the first major book to investigate the interconnections between populism, democracy and community development. It is undoubtedly overdue, given that the ‘authoritarian turn’—the global rise of right-wing populism and authoritarian politics generally—is one of the most significant, and worrying, developments of the past decade. This is therefore a timely addition to Policy Press’s excellent Rethinking Community Development series, which combines high-quality and thought-provoking chapters by established figures and new voices. It is essential reading for anyone interested in how community development might address the currently challenging circumstances for renewing the appeal of community development and progressive politics. For this reason, it needs to be read widely within community development circles, but also beyond it, as the book shows that progressive community development strategies are central to reinvigorating democracy. As Sue Kenny,...

This study examined the views of Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) with respect to their participation in community development services in Ghana from the perspective of the Adenta Municipality, Greater Accra Region. The study was a mixed method involving 50 PWDs. Researcher-administered survey and focus group discussion methods were used for data collection. Frequencies, percentages and content analysis were used for analysing the data obtained. The study found that though various community development projects had been undertaken in the Municipality most of these projects were not PWD-friendly. It was discovered that the participation of PWDs in planning, implementing, and evaluating development projects in the Municipality was low. Again, the study found that a one-way directional form of communication characterized community development services in the Municipality. Besides, communication challenges faced by PWDs in community development include inadequate information, poor consultation, and poor engagement. Moreover, existing communication strategies used by development actors particularly do not promote the active participation of PWDs in community development. This has resulted in a feeling of exclusion among PWDs in the design, planning and execution of community development initiatives. The study highlights the need for better communication strategies in community development practice that are inclusive of PWDs. The study offered a number of policy recommendations including the need for development actors in the Municipality to devise measures to identify PWDs groups, send them messages about development issues, involve them in community development decisions at all stages, and adopt more proactive and innovative measures to improve communication in community development practice. Keywords: Communication, Community Development, Participation, Persons with Disability

Through the lens of Ubuntu, this study examines the historical development of community development practices in Tanzania's mainland from prehistoric and post-colonial periods to the present. By utilising a literature review technique and secondary data in addition to the author's personal observations, the study provides insights on indigenous community development practices. The analysis explores the contextual understanding of community and community development in relation to post-Arusha Declaration of 1967 through Ujamaa policy and Ubuntu of pre-colonial Tanzania. One of the tenets of Ubuntu, Ujamaa evolved into a human-centered approach to community and national development. According to the study, Tanzanian communities are dynamic and change over time as a result of their experiences, history, environment, conscious efforts, and shared vision. Tanzania's history of community development dates back to the pre-colonial era, when the Ubuntu idea and group support networks were prevalent. On Tanzania's mainland, colonialism brought in Western-style community development. After independence, however, traditional African methods were revived, with an emphasis on community participation in social, political, cultural, and economic spheres. Ubuntu and Ujamaa go hand in hand, but they have also been successful in helping the community's members develop a sense of unity and shared responsibility that has allowed them to work together towards shared objectives and support one another through trying times. This has had a positive effect on the nation's modern community development, and the government is still committed to upholding other Ubuntu values that are essential for fostering an environment that is supportive of community development initiatives. The comparable viewpoint is reflected in the presence of community development officers in every community. Reviewing community development policies, indigenizing training, developing competency-based curricula, and incorporating the African Ubuntu model are among the recommendations made by this study for community development

Objective To evaluate the level of understanding and the practice of community development among Health and Social Service professionals in Northern Ireland and to assess the potential need for formal training in community development. Design A survey using questionnaires among a representative sample of health and social service professionals in Northern Ireland. Qualitative data was obtained from separate focus groups. Setting Questionnaires were self-completed by subjects contacted at their place of work. Focus groups were carried out by experienced interviewers in workplace settings. Method Ten Health and Social Services Community Trusts were selected to be representative of Trusts in Northern Ireland. Questionnaires were distributed to all 502 Health and Social Service professionals working in these Trusts. A focus group session was carried out in each of four Health and Social Services Community Trusts across the Province. Results The overall response rate was 57 per cent. Two hundred and eighty-seven questionnaires were returned from a total of 502. High response rates were obtained among health visitors, community psychiatric nurses, and social workers for disability, but groups such as community midwives may have been less well represented in our study sample (response rate 21 per cent). Over 28 per cent of subjects, particularly social workers, said they were unfamiliar with the concept of community development. Thirty- nine per cent described their knowledge as adequate and 4 per cent as good. Almost 40 per cent of the subjects said that they never used a document which had been widely distributed in Northern Ireland on a strategy for community development. Seventy-two per cent of subjects had not used the Voluntary Activity Unit's Handbook for Practitioners which had also been widely distributed in the Province. Questions on training required by professionals suggested that the majority of professionals required training in methods and techniques, values and principles, definition and clarification of professional roles, and knowledge of practice elsewhere. Focus groups reported that a high level of commitment and out- of-hours involvement was required to further enhance community development. Conclusions The majority of professional groups were positive about community development, but were unable to find or provide examples. Training needs were identified among all professional groups in this study.