Community Building & Collaboration Links
Asset-Based Community Development Institute
The Institute was formed to assist in providing training nationally regarding the Asset-Based Community Development approaches developed by John McKnight and colleagues at Northwestern University and documented in the book Building Communities from the Inside Out. ABCD produces resources and tools for community builders to identify, nurture, and mobilize neighborhood assets.
www.northwestern.edu/IPR/abcd.html
Assoc. for the Study & Development of Community
ASDC is a research and development organization for community capacity building and social problem solving. ASDC represents a network of leading community development practitioners and scientists in the United States and Europe, with offices in Gaithersburg, Maryland and Milan, Italy. ASDC provides capacity building services to government agencies, foundations and nonprofit organizations.
Benton Foundation
The Foundation works to realize the social benefits made possible by the public interest use of communications. Provides links to on-line tools for community organizing and community building.
The Carter Center
The Carter Center, which is based in Atlanta, Georgia, has been a key supporter and stimulus in urban revitalization and community building efforts in Atlanta and in sponsoring and assisting other cities throughout the country.
Center for Collaborative Policy
The Center is a joint program of California State University, Sacramento and the McGeorge School of Law, University of the Pacific. The mission of the Center is to build the capacity of public agencies, stakeholder groups, and the public to use collaborative strategies to improve policy outcomes. The Center produces a quarterly newsletter called The Collaborative Edge.
The Center for Neighborhood Technology
CNT is engaged in a range of projects assist economic and community building efforts in neighborhoods. CNT's mission is to invent and implement new tools and methods that create livable urban communities for everyone.
Center for New Community
The Center for New Community is a faith-based initiative whose mission is to revitalize congregations and community for genuine social, economic and political democracy. The Center's two main programs focus on building democracy and revitalizing church and community through faith-based organizing.
Chapin Hall Center for Children
The University of Chicago runs this research and development center, which offers many downloadable publications on community building and capacity building efforts, child welfare, etc.
TheCivicMind
TheCivicMind is a gateway to information and resources about civic participation and democracy education. The site is run by Wendy Bay Lewis, a lawyer turned speaker, civics coach and consultant who tracks efforts to engage the public in civic issues and includes this info on the site. The site includes directories to help you locate civic resources by topic (university-based programs, court-based programs, election reform, etc.) or state.
Communitarian Network
The Communitarian Network is a coalition of individuals and organizations who have come together to strengthen the moral, social, and political environment. The network publishes a journal (The Responsive Community), an online newsletter and a series of publications regarding community building.
Community Based Collaboratives Research Consortium
CBCRC is a network of researchers, mediators and facilitators, government agencies, community groups and environmental groups which seek to understand and assess local collaborative efforts involving natural resources and community development. CBCRC provides a venue for the sharing of research, evaluation and case studies; emerging stewardship issues and practice and policy outcomes concerning community based collaborative processes.
Community Building Resource Exchange
This site provides a broad array of resources and information about innovative community building efforts to revitalize poor neighborhoods and improve the life circumstances of residents and their families.
Demos
Demos was founded in 1999 as a national research and advocacy organization to help create a new long-term vision for American society. Demos works on two of the most urgent challenges facing the U.S. today: strengthening our democracy and creating more broadly shared prosperity. Demos conducts original research and builds networks of civic and economic reformers to help turn ideas into action.
Fellowship for Intentional Community
FIC nurtures connections and cooperation among communitarians and their friends. They provide publications, referrals, support services, and sharing opportunities for a wide range of intentional communities, cohousing groups, ecovillages, community networks, support organizations, and people seeking a home in community.
Foundation for Community Encouragement
FCE is a Seattle-based international nonprofit which teaches the community building methods developed by FCE and Dr. M. Scott Peck, author of The Road Less Traveled. Committed to discovering new and better ways of being together, FCE offers facilitator training; regional, national and international workshops; seminars; corporate consulting; and community coaching services.
National Charrette Institute
The National Charrette Institute is a nonprofit educational institution. Their mission is to help communities achieve healthy transformation through the NCI Charrette, a collaborative planning process that harnesses the talents and energies of all interested parties to create and support a buildable plan.
National Civic League
NCL is dedicated to strengthening citizen democracy by transforming democratic institutions. NCL accomplishes its mission through technical assistance, training, publishing, research, and the All-America City Awards, the nation's oldest and most prestigious community recognition program.
National Civility Center
NCC's work is focused on distributing better tools for capacity building and helping individuals and institutions to be strong champions for improvement in their own communities.
National Community Building Network
NCBN was formed in 1993 to facilitate collaboration and mutual sharing among community building efforts in poor communities. These programs enable community members to build on their own strengths and resources to improve their communities.
Neighborhoods Online
Neighborhoods Online was created in 1995 by the Institute for the Study of Civic Values and as an online resource center for America's neighborhood builders - people who work through grassroots organizations, as volunteers, and in government to build strong neighborhoods and communities throughout the country.
Partnerships Online
Partnerships Online offers the full texts of guides to community participation and partnerships, and other Internet resources. Their key messages are that partnerships are more about building a shared vision and sense of trust than about formal structures....and that takes time.
The Pew Partnership for Civic Change
A civic research organization funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts and administered by the University of Richmond, the Partnership identifies and documents promising solutions crucial to strong communities.
www.pew-partnership.org/index.html
PolicyConsensus.org
Home of the Policy Consensus Initiative and the National Policy Consensus Center. The Policy Consensus Initiative is a national nonprofit organization that works with states to promote collaboration to achieve more effective governance. The National Policy Consensus Center provides assistance to state leaders in addressing difficult policy issues using consensus-based governing models.
Race-Democracy.org
A project of John Maguire, President Emeritus of the Institute for Democratic Renewal at Claremont Graduate University, Race-Democracy.org is the home of the 2000/2001 Community Builder's Tool Kit. The Tool Kit is a primer for revitalizing democracy from the ground up and can be downloaded for free or ordered for $1.50 per copy.
Rural Empowerment Zone and Enterprise Community Program
EZ/EC provides communities with opportunities for growth and revitalization. The framework of the program is embodied in four key principles: economic opportunity, sustainable community development, community-based partnerships, and strategic vision for change.
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