Forum Activity for @jay-van-groningen

vangronj
@jay-van-groningen
10/28/16 01:31:33PM
6 posts

Listening as repetitive activity


Open Discussions

I cannot find examples of continuous and repetitive listening over time in a specific neighborhood unless there is an organization that includes it as a core activity in their organizational life. Is there a way to embed listening (that results in a shared community agenda) without an institution playing the lead? 

vangronj
@jay-van-groningen
11/02/12 08:40:08AM
6 posts

Incentives for involvement


ABCD and Community Organizing/Engagement

In Springfield, a colleague (Eric Smith with Springfield Promise) working in the context of a neighborhood grade school, invited parents from a particular neighborhood to apply for community connector roles:

1. They would get $100 to complete a training on how host conversations with their neighbors

2. They would get an additional $150 if they successfully hosted 5 events with neighbors that had 3 or more neighbors participating. And during these events they had would talk about life in the neighborhood, what was good, strong, and what would make it even better.

3. One person from each of the conversations was expected to (and did) participate in a community wide planning event (world cafe style) where the outputs of the conversations were shared with the community. Together they prioritized 6 things they wanted to work on.

4. Residents each walked to the 1 thing (posted around the room) they had most passion to work on with their neighbors. 6 working groups were formed that night and all worked hard and successfully after the meeting with minimal support from my colleague.

Incentives can be a blessing to get things rolling, and it need not cost a lot.

vangronj
@jay-van-groningen
08/24/12 08:40:02AM
6 posts

Incentives for involvement


ABCD and Community Organizing/Engagement

When a program or institution tries to get people to play roles for their program, there are often good reasons why people lose energy. You named some of them. What if you put your energies into discovering what they care about enough to act on it, then connect them to others in the neighborhood who care about the same thing...

Social capital has little value when it sits in the background. It has to be in use to have value... People act on what they care about. Joining neighbors to act on what they care about, gives them a reason to keep on...

vangronj
@jay-van-groningen
08/24/12 08:35:36AM
6 posts

Software for asset mapping?


Tips, Tools, Strategies, and Technology

The best asset mapping software including gifts of individuals (heads, hands, willing to teach), associations, institutions, physical assets, and much more is CCAMP. Go to www.ctassets.org or www.thecommunityconnection.org. Do not be overwhelmed by the costs or the "depth" of this tool kit. You can start at any level in any neighborhood with as many or few collaborating partners as you have.

vangronj
@jay-van-groningen
06/20/12 04:04:15PM
6 posts

What are four fundamental aspects of Community Development?


Open Discussions

When I think about Asset Based Community Development I think about:

Hi Kathrin:

1. Practices of community listening that result in:

a. Discovery of assets

b. An agenda for change that arises from listening to residents.

2. Developing community action teams to act on what they care about

3. Developing indigenous leaders

4. Supplementing resident resources via collaborations, networks, partnerships.

How does this fit?

Jay

vangronj
@jay-van-groningen
08/24/12 08:53:28AM
6 posts

ABCD and Faith Communities


ABCD and Faith Communities

Communities First Association is a national network of Regional Intermediary trainers and coaches who engage churches in their neighborhood transformation story using ABCD approaches. Currently residents (including parishioners from more than 650 churches) are working to transform over 400 neighborhoods nation wide in our network. Please visit www.communitiesfirstassociation.org to learn more. A few interesting tensions from 10 plus years of training and coaching:

1. Churches self-interest (fill the pew) almost always trumps other possibilities in the early stages of involvement. The isolation of churches in a neighborhood form each other is almost always very high at first. When they actually work together for neighborhood benefit, the walls start coming down.

2. There are people in most churches who are willing and eager to participate in a neighborhood redemption story even if the congregation does not own the work

3. The dna of church engagement is almost always stronger and more ABCD compatible when the first energy is from outside the church and the church is invited to bring what ever gifts they want to what needs doing.