Community development approach to solving community issues

Community development approach to solving community issues

Real solutions in citizen centered government can come from engagement processes such as Study Circles. Study circles bring together small groups of people to learn about an issue affecting a community, discuss the issue, deliberate and develop options and preferences concerning a certain community issue. According to the report “Learning to Engage: Experiences with Civic Engagement in Canada”, the report states in regards to study circles, “They require participants to think through trade-offs and choices and work toward finding common ground.” Study circles can take place over a period of weeks or months. According to the report “Talking to Canadians: Citizen engagement and the Social Union(1998), prepared for the Canadian Council on Social Development, study circles generally progress through a three step dialogue process. Initially, participants reflect on how an issue affects them individually, listen to how it affects others within the group, and then identify actions for the issue. Study circles provide an opportunity for learning, education, dialogue, exchange, formation of informed opinion, and individual participation.
Town hall meetings generally involve open dialogue between political leaders, decision makers and members of the public. Most town hall meetings are issue based and provide an opportunity to hear informed opinion. Town hall meetings can many times only attract those that are in opposition to an issue and the most vocal residents are many times the only ones heard. The discussion process throughout the meeting is most often structured and can be manipulated. Sometimes participation in town hall meetings are pre-selected which leads to poor attendance.
Community development is more successful in communities that are part of a larger network- Synergy and a broader perspective is created in communities that are part of such a network. By gathering knowledge and skills from partner organizations, positive improvement and enhancement in a community can become a reality.

From my graduate studies and work in the not for profit sector and smaller communities, I have discovered by working with residents to develop solutions and programs, it is the first step in tackling community issues.


Thomas wants to move on crime
MIKE CARSON Transcontinental Media
SUMMERSIDE – City residents may soon have the opportunity to publicly air their concerns about crime within Summerside.Coun. Cory Thomas, chairman of the city’s police committee, says he will be making a presentation to city council behind closed doors next month, to bring the contentious issue of municipal crime to the public forum.“I will be proposing to council some things that we could do,” he said. “I think it’s a good idea to get a group of related people with related interests together to discuss. I think it’s a good idea and I’d be willing to participate in it.”Thomas declined to make public his plans at this time saying he wanted to give city councillors a chance to discuss his ideas before putting them out in the public forum.Thomas said the issue of a public meeting into crime within Summerside is an issue that is very much alive and that “any amount of crime is too much crime.”He said the increasing incidents of crime are a priority with civic officials and the city continues to lobby the Province for a Safer Community Act.“What this does is it empowers a new provincial police unit which could use civil law to evict people ... that are committing crimes in the neighbourhood,” Thomas said. Thomas has presented copies of the Nova Scotia act to members of council and to Attorney General Gerard Greenan. He hopes to meet with Greenan in the near future to discuss implementing a similar act on the Island.Thomas said once mayor and council have had a chance to review his recommendations, work will begin in arranging the public forum.