Mobilizing Assets for Community Driven Development Brianne Peters Coady International Institute April 29-May 3, 2013

St. Andrews Debrief  What were the factors that led to the success of this community?  How did they mobilize resources to get things done?  What challenges did they face and how did they overcome them (or not)? What challenges do they still face today?  Does any part of their story resonate with your experience?  What is your key take away from meeting with citizens of St. Andrews?

Needs, Assets and Citizens

Neighborhood 1 and Neighborhood 2

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ABCD focuses on the half full part of the glass where the strengths, capacities and assets of the community lie. For too long community workers have only paid attention to the half empty part: people’s needs and problems Asset- Based Community Development (ABCD): A focus on assets

Unintended consequences of a needs-based approach  Leadership emphasizes community “needs” in order to secure resources:  “Our people are poor, we need your help!”  Community members internalize what their leaders are saying:  “We are poor, we have nothing, we need help” (a deficit mentality)  A dependence on relationships with outsiders rather than relationships within the community  “We need you to help us because we cannot help ourselves or each other”

 Leadership emphasizes community strengths and recognizes the contributions of all community members. “Look at all we have done in the past. We should be proud.”  Community members internalize what their leaders are saying and feel confident in their abilities and capacity to act. “Here is what we can do. Lets use our skills to do more!”  Relationships and leadership inside the community are the forces that drive development activities. External actors are attracted to the community’s success. “Here is what we are doing. Would you like to contribute?” Consequences of an asset-based approach

 a growing recognition of strengths and assets in every community ABCD also emerged from…

And the idea that assets (no matter how few)…  ….are resources for making livelihoods and coping with life’s setbacks  ….provide us with a sense of identity and meaningful engagement with the world  ….provide us with the capacity to act  ….motivate us to get involved as citizens or entrepreneurs Bebbington, 1999 ….and so create agents of development

The Story of my Grandmother

What do we mean by assets at the community level?  Stories  Knowledge, experiences, innovations, talents and skills of individuals  Physical assets and natural resources  Financial resources  Cultural assets (including traditions of mutual aid and collective action)  Rights, claims and entitlements  Associations and social networks (including the community’s diaspora)  Local institutions

Institutions Associations The difference between associations and institutions

Compare and contrast needs  Focus on needs problems  Responds to problems  Charityentitlement  Charity or entitlement orientation agencies  Emphasis on external agencies credentials  Power comes from credentials incentives,  “Motivation to act”- incentives, terms of employment excellent service  Goal is excellent service clients, consumers  People are clients, consumers  Programs are the answer Service DeliveryResponsive investment

Compare and contrast needs  Focus on needs problems  Responds to problems  Charityentitlement  Charity or entitlement orientation agencies  Emphasis on external agencies credentials  Power comes from credentials incentives,  “Motivation to act”- incentives, terms of employment excellent service  Goal is excellent service clients, consumers  People are clients, consumers  Programs are the answer assets  Focus on assets opportunities  Builds from opportunities  Investment  Investment orientation associations  Emphasis on associations relationships  Power comes from relationships dreams,  “Motivation to Act” – dreams, fears, being asked to contribute community-driven development  Goal is community-driven development citizens, members  People are citizens, members  People are the answer Service DeliveryResponsive investment

Active Citizenship: Horizontal and vertical dimensions Claiming rights for self and others Self-imposed isolation, individualism Strong sense of civic duty: volunteerism, mutual support. Active membership of associations Passive acceptance of status quo

Needs, Assets and Citizens - Recap At the core, asset-based and citizen-led development occurs when:  Communities are using their own resources first before trying to get external resources  Citizens (not governments or NGOs) through their local associations are "self mobilizing” or "driving" the community development process

How do you know what you need unless you know what you have?

“Nobody has Nothing”

 These groups are marginalised and harassed : ‘the poorest of the poor’  Similar groups exist everywhere  What livelihood opportunities are there ?

Scenario 1: Plastic Rubbish Pickers in Delhi  250,000 +, mainly women  Pick from garbage, roadsides  Know where to go and to sell  Low value, mixed varieties and colours  Some recyclable materials  Harassed by ‘official’ services, police  Provide a valuable service  Visible, shameful to ‘image

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Some of their Products /

Scenario 2: Landless Women in Kenya  Rural community located downstream  Traditional basket-weaving skills  Dwindling natural resource base: Soil erosion is widespread, crop disease is common, nearby lake is being overtaken by water hyacinth (a weed)  Long-standing trade arrangements with upstream communities  Status in the area is attached to quality of housing

What really happened?: Landless Women  These women collected the water hyacinth (a weed) and adapted their basket-weaving skills to construct furniture for trade with upstream communities.

Scenario 3: Street Kids in Khartoum  Organised in gangs  Ruthlessly harassed: tough and determined  Energetic, strong, young  Know the city, in spite of no maps or street names or numbers  Keen to learn

What really happened?: Street Kids  They organized into a tour guide association.

Scenario 4: Ex-Prostitutes in Los Bagnos  Out of work; American base closed  Young, attractive  Good at selling  Know how to deal with authorities  Know the streets

What really happened?: Ex-prostitutes

Scenario 5: Crazy bikers in London  Passionate about motor-bikes  Own and cherish fast machines  Deal in drugs and stolen goods to ‘feed’ their passion  Used to coping with the police  Know the fastest route to everywhere  Compete fiercely, but strong cameraderie

What really happened?: Crazy bikers

Bottom Line: Nobody has Nothing Everyone has something to contribute

Courtesy of Peters Kenyon, Bank of IDEAS

Every single person has capacities, abilities, gifts and ideas, and living a good life depends on whether those capacities can be used, abilities expressed, gifts given and ideas shared. (Jody Kretzmann)

This afternoon: Hearts and Hands Art Studio  Meet at 1:00pm at Morrison Hall doors  Walk down to the Tall and Small Café  Take a tour of art work  Return to St. Ninian’s Place to see and hear more  Wrap up at 3:00pm