Who’s responsible for strong communities?
And how do organizational missions drive engagement choices? (Reading Time: About 5 minutes) *** Read now on Substack! ***
Who are the Engagement Deciders?
Community engagement is not community building. And, as we discussed last time, the most common engagement practices do not line-up with the best practices for community building. Well, why not? Why don’t so many of our community engagement processes do more community building? Do we not want to? Do we not know how to? Are we not able to? Or…
Community Meetings are Still on Top…For Now?
How we engage matters. While some approaches are efficient at soliciting input, others are better at engendering community. These latter approaches build bridges between people of different identity groups. And they cultivate the lasting connections that underlie strong communities of place. They are socially cohesive. What engagement practices have the most potential for social cohesion? Which of those are most…
Survey Insights: How much Community Building are We Doing?
Community engagement has incredible potential. In our time of deepening social fragmentation, it can bridge differences and build common identity amongst diverse residents. It can foster a sense of belonging and cultivate the lasting connections that comprise a strong social fabric. But here’s the catch: most engagement processes don’t tap this potential. Contemporary community engagement focuses on soliciting input to…
Across the Great Divide: Clark Anderson of Community Builders
For this post we have a special treat from you. You have may have seen Clark Anderson’s name last December in the bright lights of the New York Times and MSNBC. He is the Executive Director of Community Builders, a Colorodo-based non-profit that works with inter-mountain West towns on community planning and development. In Divided by Politics, a Colorado Town…
Beyond Authentic and Equitable: A New Trajectory for Engagement
In the 1970s, a growing environmental awareness fueled a radical transformation of the built-environment disciplines. Landscape architects, planners, and policy makers sprung into action by cross-pollinating with environmental sciences like biology and ecology. Whole new disciplines and paradigms were birthed. These new practices came to be known under the umbrella of “sustainable design.” And after decades of advocacy, research and…
Motivating Communities to Overcome our Civic Blerches
We’re approaching the 2024 calendar page turn, so let’s get a jump start on New Year’s resolutions. The cold, sobering truth is that the vast majority of our New Year’s resolutions don’t succeed. Our brain just isn’t hard-wired to make changes based on a single commitment. We can’t simply will ourselves into new habits or perspectives. The gravitational pull of…
The Neighborhood is the Unit of Change
During a recent ride on my local Metro bus, I noticed an advertisement encouraging me to “Get Involved!” “Take The Survey Today!” it beseeched. Apparently, our County Floodplain Management Agency urgently needed my input. I couldn’t help but wonder why anyone from my city neighborhood would feel motivated to participate in something so abstract and removed as county-wide flood plain…
5 Tips for Powerful Community Meeting Facilitation
The fourth in a four-part series diving into the practical nuts and bolts of community engagement processes vis-à-vis community building and intergroup contact. Introducing Optimal Contact How can community engagement be a counterforce to our increasing social fragmentation, polarization, and loneliness? Taking this challenge to heart will require a shift in community engagement practices. Rather than just soliciting input, we…
Transform your Community Meetings with these Three Easy Techniques
The third in a four-part series diving into the practical nuts and bolts of community engagement processes vis-à-vis community building and intergroup contact. How can community engagement be a counterforce to our increasing social fragmentation, polarization, and loneliness? Taking this challenge to heart will require a shift in community engagement practices. Rather than just soliciting input, we also need to…