A sset B ased C ommunity D evelopment

1. A Special PowerPoint Reproduction for Attendees of Our Charlotte, NC event on October 3, 2006 Asset Based Community Development Todd Wellman 2006 The Leadership Practice Public Allies, Inc. 633 West Wisconsin Avenue Suite 610 Milwaukee, WI 53203 Phone 414.273.0533 Fax 414.273.0543 Emailmichelled@publicallies.org Public Allies www.publicallies.org ABCD Institute www.northwestern.edu/ipr/abcd.html Corporation for National & Community Service www.nationalservice.org

2. The Leadership Practice • Who We Are • The Leadership Practice is a collaboration between Public Allies and the Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) Institute at Northwestern University. • We are a national consulting network that works to strengthen communities by discovering and mobilizing the full range of local community assets. As the official training and technical assistance provider of Community Strengthening for the Corporation for National and Community Service, we are convinced that the active involvement of local citizens in the life of a community is a powerful force for the common good.

3. What is this ABCD? • Asset Based Community Development • Needs to Assets • Assets & Use • Gifts & Talents • Associations & Social Capital • Transforming Institutions • How We Serve

4. Personal Assets HAND HEAD Make a list of all those things you are good at with your brain Make a list of all those things you can do with your hands HEART HUMAN Make a list of important relationships in your neighborhood, community, and beyond – people you can ask to get things done Make a list of all those things you are passionate about

5. Needs Map :: Community Unemployment Housing Projects Crime Child Abuse Gang Members Teen Mothers Illiteracy Poverty School Dropouts Mentally Ill Homeless Truancy Addiction Uninsured Delinquency

6. Needs Map Functions • Internalized labels • Destroyed relationships • Foundation funding decisions • Foundation funding categories • Power gained by pointing out needs • Failure rewarded therefore dependency • Hopelessness created

7. The Two Approaches • Needs • Services • Consumers • Programs • Assets • Connect & Contribute • Citizens • People

8. ABCD Principles & Goals • Everyone has gifts • For ABCD to work, everyone must give gifts • Identifies and mobilizes the assets of individuals, especially those who are marginalized • Builds relationships among community members, especially those that are mutually supportive • Gives community members more roles and power in local institutions; citizens lead efforts

9. Asset Map :: Community Local Institutions Businesses School Citizens’ Associations Churches Block Clubs Gifts of Individuals Income Artists Parks Labeled People Libraries Youth Elderly Culture Groups Hospitals Community Colleges

10. Community Wheel Individuals Associations Physical Community Institutions Stories Economy

11. Wheel :: Associations • Associations • Animal Care Groups • Veterans’ Groups • Block Clubs • Business Organizations • Charitable Groups • Environmental Groups • Health Advocacy Groups

12. Wheel :: Institutions • Institutions • Schools • Police Departments • Hospitals • Libraries • Social Service Groups • Nonprofits • Museums

13. Wheel :: Economy • Economy • For Profits • Chamber of Commerce • Banks • Foundations • Corporations • Merchants • Development Corporations

14. Wheel :: Stories • Stories • Background & Personal History • Like to Do • Realizing & Engaging Skills • Community Development • Economic Growth • Addressing Racism • Including Those Who Are Marginalized

15. Wheel :: Physical • Physical • Gardens • Parks • Playgrounds • Bike Paths • Forests • Housing • Vacant Land & Buildings • Streets

16. Wheel :: Individuals • Individual Capacities • Youth • Older Adults • Artists • Welfare Recipients • People with Disabilities • Activists • Ex-Offenders • Parents

17. Social Capital Belief • The more relationships someone has in their community, more likely to: • Be Employed • Volunteer • Participate in Political and Civic Activities • Join Clubs • Participate in Child’s School Life • Be Honest & Trusting

18. Social Capital Questions • How does your work foster communication and relationship-building among the people you serve and residents in your community? • What are the associations in your communities? What might they be able or willing to do to improve the community? • How could you increase the associational life of your community and the people you serve?

19. Engaging Institutions • Their Nature – legal / fiscal / political • Who controls the Institutions? • Institutional assets in your community • How can community gain more influence with these institutions? • How can these institutions’ resources be put to use to strengthen the community?

20. Engaging Institutions (con’t) • What is your organization’s relationship to community residents? How accountable is your organization to the people and community it serves? • How does your service define and engage constituents? What power do they have? • How does your service strengthen community relationships and social capital? • What can you do to make your service more asset-based?

21. Engaging Institutions (con’t 2) • Who do you hire from the neighborhood? • Who do you do business with from the neighborhood? • What neighborhood groups do you belong to or meet with regularly? • How do you relate to schools, churches, and CBOs in your neighborhood? • What do you feel you contribute to the neighborhood and what else might you contribute? • Are neighborhood people on your board of directors, advisory groups, or committees?

22. The Transformation • Needs • Focus on deficits • Problem response • Individual responses • Focus: Individual • Fix people • See people as “clients” • Programs are the answer • Assets • Focus on assets • Opportunity identification • Collective responses • Focus: community • Develop potential • See people as “citizens” • People are the answer

23. Steps to Transformation • Rediscover and mobilize the capacities of individuals and associations • Put decision making power in the hands of those affected • Practice ABCD internally and encourage, evaluate, and reward learning inside your organization • Develop leadership inside and outside your organization

24. Steps to Transformation (con’t) • Be a team player inside and outside your organization • Learn about and build relationships with other community stakeholders • Think systemically about issues and with whom you can collaborate to impact that issue • Put the community first

25. Organization Capacity Window

26. Organization Capacity Window(con’t)

27. ABCD & Your Work • How will you utilize ABCD in your work? • In your life?

28. Asset Based Community Development Todd Wellman 2006 The Leadership Practice Public Allies, Inc. 633 West Wisconsin Avenue Suite 610 Milwaukee, WI 53203 Phone 414.273.0533 Fax 414.273.0543 Emailmichelled@publicallies.org Public Allies www.publicallies.org ABCD Institute www.northwestern.edu/ipr/abcd.html Corporation for National & Community Service www.nationalservice.org