A topic that has come up often is how do we do good community building work that is citizen driven and builds on the assets when we are working within a system. There are often rules, procedures, and limitations that get in our way. Many of these may be real, ...

It was  inspiring to host a day of conversation on community building. We invited 5 community organizers and innovators to share their story with us. We looked at what drives us in our work, partnerships we can build, challenges we face, and next steps we can...

For over 125 years, a church has stood at the corner of York and Court Streets in Newport, Kentucky. I was traveling through this neighbourhood and noticed the massive structure entirely made of stone. Driven by my insatiable curiosity, I opened the front door...

As a City Councillor, Matthew Green’s commitment to Asset Base Community Development practices while in office has made a meaningful difference for residents. His constituency, has 4 of the 11 ‘Code Red’ priority neighbourhood hubs that are organized...

What if we believed in an economy of abundance, rather than one of scarcity? What if we focused on assets and opportunities, instead of needs and deficits? These will be some of the questions Sheldon Johnson, Managing Director at the Community Development and ...

Krista Tippet wrote in Becoming Wise, “Seismic shifts in common life as in geo-physical reality begin in spaces and cracks.” One of the these spaces where seismic shifts generate from is Thunder Sky Inc. in Cincinnati, OH. The founders of Thunder S...

I noticed this sign on a recent trip to Toronto. This same question came up often during a series of conversations on community mapping recently. Everyone agreed that the more we all can be known, the more likely we will have a more welcoming community where e...

Do you have a why that inspires and engages?  Why do you do what you do? This has been a frequent topic of conversations I have facilitated over the past several months. Groups often become focused on the “what” or the “how” of their a...

This week I was invited to join a drum circle. Although I had heard of drum circles, I had never had to chance to participate in one. My friend who invited me said that I didn’t need to have experience and that it was a welcoming group. I very much enjoyed m...