For decades, charity and welfare groups have approached recipients of their programs as ‘problems to be solved’. Solutions are designed and implemented by organisational leaders, based on their assessments of issues, rather than with the input of the community members impacted by the problems at hand.
While well intentioned, this ‘top down’ approach rarely works as it excludes those with knowledge and experience of local nuances and needs, leading to costly, ineffective, and sometimes even harmful strategies.
Thankfully this approach has been challenged over the years and increasingly organisations are flipping the script to adopt ‘community led’ initiatives, putting communities front and centre in identifying problems and developing solutions.
This month Westsiders are being invited to join the Victorian Community Development Conference taking place in Footscray, the first such initiative in Melbourne for over 20 years. With guest speakers from around the country, and lots of local ones as well, you’ll be able to hear and chat with a diverse range of people with experience in the transformative power of community led solutions.
If history has taught us anything it’s that positive change isn’t led by government. It’s led by grassroots movements and individual initiatives. To quote Margaret Mead: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has”.
So let’s tackle our local problems with local solutions, and regenerate the western suburbs with community led initiatives, to build lasting and meaningful community connections for a resilient future.
Read our article on page 25 and check the details here – regeneratingcommunities.net
I hope to see you there!
