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2019's Top 10 Reads in Cities Deepening Communities

What a year 2019 has been! With all the news around the growing epidemic of loneliness, communities have been leaning into each other, seeking to foster social connection among residents and neighbours. This momentum has catalyzed a Deepening Community movement. Fifteen cities across Canada are leading this movement as founding members of our newly launched Cities Deepening Community membership. We have gleaned numerous insights from our members and our learning community over the course of the year.  There was so much great work that was done this year that we wanted to give you our top 10;

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Building Social Capital Through Bartering, Learning and Relationships

Maureen bustles around her kitchen, boiling water for tea and looking around for the sugar bowl. She has already laid out 20 mugs but decides at the last minute to pull 10 more out of the basement. It still isn’t quite enough but they’ll make do. She has never been formally trained in the practice of community development, but you won’t find a more natural community leader than Maureen.

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Three Lessons from Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods

Over the past several months, I have enjoyed participating in a book study of Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods by John McKnight and Peter Block through the Tamarack Institute. This study, led by Jonathan Massimi and facilitated by Heather Keam, offers a brilliant introduction to the principles of community development through the lens of assets and strengths rather than merely meeting needs or confronting challenges.

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Involving Government in Deepening Community

Community and individual well-being are important contributors to deepening a sense of community in order to promote community change led by those who live in the community. Community members’ feelings of safety and support is intrinsically connected to the community’s strength and success. Until recently, community plans on safety and well-being operated on a community-by-community basis in Ontario.

On January 1, 2019, the Government of Ontario mandated new legislative requirements under the police services act for municipalities to work in partnership with the community to develop and adopt community safety and well-being plans.

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Building Strong Communities One Conversation at a Time

“So, let me get this straight, we’re inviting people over for a BBQ and the purpose is…just to…talk to each other?”

I had to laugh at my partner’s confusion when I recently hosted a gathering with the goal of fostering social connections and building community. Our BBQ was part of The Genwell Project, a campaign whose mission is to make the world a happier and healthier place by reminding people about the importance of face to face social connection and inspiring them to take action.

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Building Healthy Communities with Youth: Halton’s Story

For some, the idea of engaging teenagers can be intimidating and riddled with questions like, what should I do? Where do I start? How do I do this? Thankfully, we don’t have to stay in a place of uncertainty too long. With an ABCD approach, we know to do things together, not alone; we know assets are there, even if they seem hidden.

We have a story to tell about how communities in Halton, Ontario (Acton, Burlington, Oakville, Georgetown, and Milton) are creating ways of working together with youth to shape the places we all call home.

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