--- title: Eight Touchstones to Asset-Based Community Development description: Review the eight touchstones of asset-based community development (ABCD) as presented by Cormac Russell. image: https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hubfs/Photos/Image%20Library/stones%20nature%20light%20rocks.jpg --- [![20yrLogo-2_WhiteOrange](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/Administration/Tamarack%20Logos/20yrLogo-2_WhiteOrange.png?width=200&height=47&name=20yrLogo-2_WhiteOrange.png "20yrLogo-2_WhiteOrange")](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/?hsLang=en-us) # Eight Touchstones to Asset-Based Community Development Posted on February 12, 2018 [By Heather Keam](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/author/heather-keam) - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) *“A gift is not a gift until it is received” - Cormac Russell* Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) is about building community.  Historically, we have looked at communities based on what they don’t have (asset stripping) instead of looking at the gifts that a community does have (glass half full). Many of us who are doing community development work are looking for a cookie cutter way to do the work effectively.  However, everywhere ABCD is implemented it plays out differently as outcomes are contingent on the community it is applied in.  It is complex and messy, and does not fit into a recipe.  ![stones nature light rocks.jpg](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/Photos/Image%20Library/stones%20nature%20light%20rocks.jpg?width=400&name=stones%20nature%20light%20rocks.jpg "stones nature light rocks.jpg") In January, Tamarack invited Cormac Russell, who is a leader in ABCD and has worked in over 30 countries to support residents to be co-producers of their future, to be a guest speaker on a webinar entitled: [Asset-Based Community Development: Lessons From Across the World](http://deepeningcommunity.ca/blogs/natasha-pei/recording-online-asset-based-community-development-lessons-across-world). Cormac is the Managing Director of Nurture Development and a faculty member of the [Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) Institute](https://resources.depaul.edu/abcd-institute/Pages/default.aspx) at Northwestern University, Chicago. During the webinar, Cormac discussed the eight touchstones (not stepping stones) to consider when community building.  Cormac stated that the touchstones are about a framework - a way of working alongside community and trying to be in a complex and emergent space.  Cormac further said that when doing ABCD work you cannot generalize, the emphasis should be less about standardizing, but more importantly about helping to understand how to implement good practice.  The Eight Touchstones to ABCD work that Cormac referred to are: 1. **Finding a community building team:** Who are the unsung heroes in the community?  Who are the individuals that are good at discovering what people care about and where their assets can be used? How can this group be engaged? 2. **Recruiting a Community Animator:** Not someone who sets the agenda but someone who helps people get organized.  A champion in the community who is a natural community builder and willing to try new things.  3. **Hosting Community Conversations: **There is a lot of value in the simplicity of a conversation. Host a series of conversations in your community and think about shifting the focus of the conversation to discoverables not deliverables. The basis of the conversations should not be about what is wrong, but about what is strong!** ** 4. **Engaging Community Groups and Organizations: **The great capacity building that exists in communities can often be found in local clubs, associations and informal groups. These are places where people come together and support each other. 5. **Building Connections and Social interactions: **Connector and Animator roles should focus on creating interactions - not just planning events and hoping the community will come - but creating spaces that are welcoming and create shareable moments.  6. **Visioning and Planning:** Once a strong connection is built with the community, it's time to look to the future and envision what it could look like in ten years. Start by asking these three questions: What can we do? What do we need outside help with? And, what do we need outside agencies to do for us?  7. **Implementing change:** Take action and begin to do what you believe needs to happen. This allows people to reconnect and take back the function of the community.  8. **Fostering CELEBRATION: **Throughout the process, celebrate every effort.  Believe in everyone’s gifts! Paul Born, Co-CEO of Vibrant Communities at Tamarack, summed up the webinar by saying that doing ABCD work is like growing a garden, you need to prepare the soil before you can plant.  Cormac Russell is one of the faculty members for Tamarack’s upcoming [Asset-Based Community Development for Healthy Neighbourhoods event](https://events.tamarackcommunity.ca/abcd?hsLang=en-us) taking place in Kitchener, ON this April. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from such an inspiring leader in neighbourhood development. **Learn More:** - Listen to the full webinar [Asset-Based Community Development - Lessons From Across the World](http://deepeningcommunity.ca/library-topics/podcasts/asset-based-community-development-lessons-across-world) - Join us in Kitchener, ON from April 17-19, 2018 for [Asset-Based Community Development: For Healthy Neighbourhoods](https://events.tamarackcommunity.ca/abcd?hsLang=en-us) - Take a refresher on the [Principles of Asset-Based Community Development](http://deepeningcommunity.ca/blogs/natasha-pei/recording-online-needs-assets-new-approach-community-building) with John McKnight and Paul Born - Watch [*Sustainable community development: from what's wrong to what's strong*](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/e1t/c/*W96r_gR1Xbz1cW2zbtTJ6G_47B0/*W8KsCWB8vCVchVDfVBV1C88kH0/5/f18dQhb0Sjvc8XJblHW95YkS76ghkRDVWs4R058bhhjW5r8vwP3mm44rW5y5LlJ8q-MHxW1qfQ_Z8tzLxmW1s5Q1f7XmctxN5FwYMt8lmMTW6R7vZ35wL96LW1sL3M03MybvyW4XHP4_8q55kBVbY-SS55nSC9W1VJH714c2Rr9W3d2bMb32p-C3W4cMfVr2jNx62W7zN65h1CcflbW55T8N87w3wPSW1NC3Kc1F6KTtW1WHMV37ykG6pW7tqvt22QS8svW54bvyY1tg7SXN7kvFmFn2ynRN1S2DqfpR1twW4b_64R6z483WW91XlQf1MNVJnVjSJ8s6mFRYRW49xc4-1G875yW7nHLqb4lJDwBW2P244k1tl5zbW1RNcHq8V3jZpW7MFD-91t-xrnW49gXXx1Rg9nGVdh2WL7L-HpxW73Qsnm1d5pgbW58PjY71ZYHTBW6FHpbn1Q5ZkzW1Q6y9g932TgjW7tFlz18lnV7WW1wlbN35bnhZDW291mXk8PZYnNW8bVsj26GpZy-W44r2yP6tcrgHN7m1-CnZpcmqV9ZLgc9fpHgT111?hsLang=en-us) (TEDx Exeter Talk), presented by Cormac Russell   Topics: [ABCD](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/topic/abcd), [Heather Keam](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/topic/heather-keam), [Cities Deepening Community](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/topic/cities-deepening-community) ![Heather Keam](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hubfs/heather.png) ### By [Heather Keam](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/author/heather-keam) Heather works with municipalities and organizations to build strategies that put people at the center using Asset-Based Community Development. With over 22 years of experience in community development, she uses an ABCD approach to center people and belonging in the development of community plans and strategies through coaching and training staff teams, facilitation, and writing about ABCD and Belonging. She has a passion for the power of people and believes that people and communities are the solutions to local problems. She believes that we need to build a sense of community belonging so that people are connected to their community, and their place within it and get involved in decision-making. She also believes that municipalities need to shift the way they show up in community from doing “for” to supporting communities to do themselves. ## Related Posts [![](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hubfs/ABCD-2.png)](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/three-benefits-of-asset-based-community-development-abcd-for-communities-and-governments?hsLang=en-us) #### [Three Benefits of Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) for Communities (and Governments)](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/three-benefits-of-asset-based-community-development-abcd-for-communities-and-governments?hsLang=en-us) [![](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hubfs/pexels-lina-kivaka-1740897.jpg)](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/a-year-in-review-with-deepening-communities?hsLang=en-us) #### [The Holiday Season Brings out the Best in Our Communities](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/a-year-in-review-with-deepening-communities?hsLang=en-us) [![](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hubfs/2022_abcd_featuredimage.png)](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/the-power-of-connection-and-collaboration?hsLang=en-us) #### [The Power of Connection and Collaboration: Reflections from Celebrating Neighbours – Measuring the Impact of ABCD](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/the-power-of-connection-and-collaboration?hsLang=en-us) [![BACK TO THE LATEST](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/316071/e6ffa9bb-4467-4833-8ecc-eb340b11d829.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/316071/e6ffa9bb-4467-4833-8ecc-eb340b11d829) [![20yrLogo-2_WhiteOrange](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/Administration/Tamarack%20Logos/20yrLogo-2_WhiteOrange.png?width=3401&name=20yrLogo-2_WhiteOrange.png "20yrLogo-2_WhiteOrange")](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/?hsLang=en-us) ### Tamarack [Home](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/?hsLang=en-us) [Latest](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest) [Events](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/eventlisting?hsLang=en-us) [Donate](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/donate?hsLang=en-us) [About](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/whoweare?hsLang=en-us) ### Follow Us [** ** ](https://www.facebook.com/TamarackInstitute) [** ** ](https://twitter.com/Tamarack_Inst) [** ** ](https://www.linkedin.com/company/tamarack-institute-for-community-engagement)   In the spirit of respect, reciprocity, and truth we honour and acknowledge that our work occurs across Turtle Island (North America), which has been home since time immemorial to the ancestors of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Peoples. ### Subscribe Be in the know. 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