Having immersed myself in the Asset Based Community Development world, in my previous role in public health, and now at Tamarack, I keep seeing and hearing the same questions over and over. Is ABCD an inclusive process? How do you make ABCD address diversity? These questions have made me think about ABCD and does the approach address diversity and inclusion?
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“There is no way to community; community is the way.”
These were among the words that greeted me on the first morning of ABCD Healthy Neighbourhoods Healthy Cities in Edmonton in May 2019. From the very first keynote speaker, Prof. John McKnight, to the last words spoken on the third day, I was hooked. I couldn’t get enough. Often when attending conferences and seminars, I walk away with new knowledge and tools to apply in my work. This was more. I walked away from this immersive learning experience looking not only at my professional role differently, but my personal life as well. How could I help my community thrive? Do I know my neighbours? How can I get to know them better? Attending this event has impacted me in many different facets. Here are my biggest takeaways from those three amazing days:
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The Government of BC’s Poverty Reduction Planning & Action Program is providing $5M over three years to support local governments to reduce poverty at the local level. The program was developed based on a recognition that local governments are crucial partners in poverty reduction. They see the impact of poverty first-hand and play a central role in developing collaborative local solutions.
There was a time, just before I was to leave for a week of learning at Roffey Park in the UK, where I could make the case not to go. I was too busy. The holidays were coming up. I was just back from travelling and now was packing my bag again. The tree was not decorated. The dog needed attention and on and on the excuses went.
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Every week, for one year, you can relieve an inspirational message that often has very practical ideas for deepening community.
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What’s so stimulating about the language of evaluation?
On several recent occasions in meetings about designing evaluation plans for community interventions the terminology about evaluation has almost derailed constructive, creative and innovative conversations about an intervention, and all I keep thinking is “WOW! I am finding this really overwhelming, I can’t imagine how people without a background in evaluation must be feeling when having to make decisions about these things!?”
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