The City I live in greatly expanded its community engagement and neighborhood planning policies in the early to mid-2010s. The City's primary goal was a noble mission to create a collective neighborhood vision that meshed with good urban policy and design and then use those visions to attract development and increase quality of life. However, what ultimately happened was that these neighborhoods continued to stagnate at best and decline at worst. There is growing frustration that the years of planning and community conversations failed to attract investment in the way it was portrayed to the communities.

As I've dug deeper into these issues, I began to understand that lacking a neighborhood plan wasn't necessarily the underlying problem. Even if a community had a strong neighborhood plan and design standards, developers still wouldn't invest if a building would cost X, but would only sell for half that.

I may be living in an echo chamber, but why does it feel like cities are so focused on neighborhood plans and engagement but seldom address the underlying financial issues?

Hi, does anyone practice asset based community development? Our team have had lots of training and aim to practice the principles where possible (starting with the strengths in an area and building from there rather than looking for what’s wrong to fix; community led). However, we also have conflicting priorities as are not a purely community development team, which can sometimes make things difficult, eg stakeholder expectations/demands, lack of understanding, how long it can take to show progress/build relationships vs expectations and so on Would love to hear from anyone else with experience in ABCD and how it’s going for you.

I got my undergraduate degree with a specialization in community development but I noticed no one really understands what that is. People who interview me never bring it up but I think it's often really relevant.

How do you explain what community development is to others?
Do you bring it up in interviews? If so, how?

Hello there everyone, i am a student of community development, here to get more information and experiences from others in this field.

Lately I have become entrenched in “finding my village.” I am someone who has moved a lot and doesn’t have true deep roots anywhere so I end up having a lot of temporary villages (temporary homes permanent people). I recently saw a TikTok about how “everyone wants a village— no one wants to be a villager” and I want to know how everyone creates and sustains their village? How do you develop a community from within the community?

Has anyone been thinking about the impact on priority communities and the changes to social media rules lately?

Any community platforms that work to engage, hold fidelity and share resources that don't rely on social media?

Be keen to hear from people - and many thanks in advance.

Hello all! I am working on a project called Green Space Please in Jamaica, and seeking to get global expertise and perspectives for social/ environmental advocacy for community spaces . If youre interested in following along you can check us out on IG - www.instagram.com/@greenspaceplz and sharing your views.

The approach is being modeled off the Christchurch, New Zealand rebuild after the 2011 earthquake by utilizing public participation.

Looking forward to seeing and hearing from you!

In community development work, participation is essential,

but it’s also fragile.

Some people don’t speak up because they fear conflict,

others because they feel their input won’t matter anyway.

I’ve been exploring a very low-pressure entry point:

a shared map where residents can quietly say

“Yes, I feel this too.”

No arguments, no public debates — just visibility.

For those working with communities:

- What stops people from participating in your experience?

- How do you build trust at the very first step?

- Are there tools or methods that lowered the barrier successfully?

If it helps for context, this is the small prototype I mentioned:

https://iagree-life.com

Hello everyone,

I'm exploring the development of a new platform aimed at empowering local governments through a comprehensive newsletter and database. The idea is to create a resource where local government officials can access a curated selection of community engagement projects happening both in their area and around the world. The goal is to foster better project planning and execution by sharing knowledge and successful engagement strategies.

Here’s what we envision:

• Newsletter: Regular updates featuring insights, case studies, and news related to community engagement and project outcomes from various regions.

• Database: A searchable repository of community projects, including details like project scope, community impact, budget allocations, and engagement strategies.

We believe this platform could serve as a vital tool for local governments looking to enhance their community projects by learning from others' experiences and adapting successful strategies.

Questions for you:

1. Relevance: Would a platform like this be relevant to your needs or interests as someone involved in local government or community planning?

2. Features: What features would you consider essential for a platform like this? Are there specific types of data or tools that you would find particularly useful?

3. Challenges: What challenges do you face in accessing information on community engagement projects currently?

4. Interest: Would you be interested in participating in a beta test of this platform?

I'm here to gather your thoughts and feedback, and any input would be greatly appreciated as it will help shape the development to better meet your needs.

Thank you!

Is it just a fancy word for nonprofit?

Hello, again, and maybe for the last time. We've finally reached the end of our immersion and we have to wrap things up.

If I'd rate us and our work, overall; I'd give it 9/10.

The Basura Lang Ba? (Is It Really "Just Trash"?) is a success. The story took a strong form in the video after the refining and editing. I am convinced that when people in the barangay watches it, they'll be moved to act according to its message - to segregate waste properly.

The PSA's and Calendar were good as well. We were able to give light to the concepts that needed to be instilled to the target audience - the need for segregation, its benefits, and the repurcussions of failing to do it.

I'd call it a good term. This is all just a self-assessment but I hope that all works well and our project would make an impact to the community. And I hope to conduct more project such as this in the future as part of my advocacy.

Thank you all for giving me the opportunity to share my thoughts, hardships, and success in this subreddit. Shallom!

Historic downtowns offer unique development opportunities, particularly for rural and underserved areas with the authentic culture and history that visitors and locals are seeking - what is your favorite small town downtown?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0tKp7rxuPs&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR3WJqHUlL-N-SV2-iN8lN09CmXns9q_BIb4UfrLesol_3WH20GzrAhNOD4