MODULE 2

Community Development

Lesson 1. Principles of Community Development

Overview:
Successful community development depends on certain basic principles being followed.
This topic is a brief introduction to three important principles of community development:
sustainability, participations and equity and social justice. These principles are expanded and
explained in greater detail throughout this module.

Lesson Objectives:
At the end of this lesson, the students should be able to:

 Describe important principles of community development

 Apply these principles to community development projects.

Course Materials:
Participation

Participation or participatory development is the first basic principle of community development.

It means listening to the voice of the people and assisting them to develop their own community,
in a way that they want it developed. It means finding appropriate ways to involve people if they
choose to become involved. Sustained community development ultimately depends on people
participating in their own development from the early planning stages through to completion. By
doing this people are more likely to manage and maintain their new development.

Some important principles of participation include:

 Listening
 Questioning
 respecting local knowledge
 using local talent

Activity No.1:

If you were involved with a community development project at a secondary school, what actions
would you take to ensure that the project followed the principle of participation? How would you
try to get affected community members participating actively? Discuss your ideas with a group
of your peers.

Sustainability

The principle of sustainability or sustainable development is a basic principle of

community development and often very difficult to achieve. When change is introduced to a
community, it is hoped that the community will manage or maintain it. Sustainability can be
achieved with outside support or without outside support. Whether it is a new primary school
library or water-well if it cannot be maintained or managed by the community members it will fail.
Some principles of sustainability include:
- active participation of community members in all aspects of the project.

 identification of problems/needs
 planning
 implementation
 monitoring and evaluation
- use of appropriate technology that can be maintained and serviced locally.

Activity No.2

Consider the following projects and list the ways they can be sustained from within the
community without outside support. Try being as specific as you can.
Project How sustained from within the community
1. Community Water scheme

2. Library books for a school

3. Computers for a college

Equity and Social Justice

The third principle of community development is equity and social justice. What do these terms
mean?

In terms of community development the principle equity and social justice means:
- all community members, regardless of culture, religion, sex or age, having the
opportunity to participate actively in their community.
- availability for peoples’ access to information that is presented in ways they can
understand
- fairness in peoples’ access to and use of community resources.
- community members not being disadvantaged or denied their democratic
- rights by any form of community development.

Activity No.3

Write a slogan or a song that promotes equity and social justice in community development. It
could be used to educate and inform people about their roles and responsibilities in a
community development project.

References:

www.education.gov.pg › documents › pastep › cd...

Unit 2: The Environment of the Community

Community does not exist in vacuum. A community’s environment is not isolate from other
environment, their influences have effect on the people lives.

Environment

 Natural Environment
 Political Environment
 Social Environment
 Economic Environment
 Cultural Environment
 Psychological Environment
Natural Environment
 Natural environment is important in the rural area
 Soil type; availability of water; climate; forest
 To be in harmony with the natural environment
 No to harm the natural environment but to improve it for community development
 Sustainable Community Development should take into the account
Political Environment
 No development effort stand outside of politics
 Awareness of the political tendency
 The influence of the chief of village o commune, or district and even of province in
political party population.
 The best way to circumvent the political problem is to “Dive Deep” the more higher
profile the more politics involved.

Social Environment
 Every community own its social activities and objectives: employment (job) issue,
religion (belief), social life, social service, social order, social security
 Relationship, friendship, affiliation, club, church, school, association development
lead to community social stratification
 The community worker must be aware of these stratifications but need not respect
these. The community worker must be aware of consequences

Economic Environment
 These is usually close to the natural and social environments
 Availability of the fund resource for community
 Level of deprivation of the people concerned

Cultural Environment
 Place and role of the traditional leasers
- Regards as gateway to the community
- Guarding over own interest
- A fear of the outsider taking his position
  Roles of the women in the society
- Need permission from husband to be involved in action group
 Roles of the community workers ( refer to roles and tasks)

Psychological Environment
 It is usually an obstacle
 Not easy to observe (tend to ignore)
 Rural areas versus urban area versus squatter
 Other community’s environment influence the psychological environment strongly.

Example of Community Development

A city with a large number of residents in sever debt launches a campaign to increase financial
literacy and assist community members in getting out of debt. Money from the city is invested in
programs to provide education and resources, from simple talks and materials explaining how
debt works to offering discounts on budget software that will help them pay off their debts
quicker. The program lowers debt and increases citizens’ expendable income (purchasing
power). This money will better the city by allowing citizens to purchase property, start
businesses, save for retirement and support important local businesses and initiatives.

Why is Community Development Important?

Community development is important because it provides the foundation a city builds off
of to improve the lives of its citizens. It creates strong, diverse communities that are able to
attract and keep talent, start and grow businesses, and overcome issues that arise. Citizens will
be happier, healthier, richer, and live longer lives. Businesses will have a larger base of
customers who can purchase their products and services, and the city will earn tax income to
continue to support important programs and reduce debt.

When community development is effective, there is less crime, less disparity between
citizens, better jobs available, a more talented workforce, and less overall issues that impact
residents. Community development doesn’t necessarily solve problems in a city; it reduces
problems and increases opportunities for growth. Without community development, both
economic and business development suffer greatly.

How to Facilitate Community Development in Your City

Successful community development takes collaboration among stakeholders who are
dedicated to working together to define and solve problems within the community and pursuing
opportunities. It requires those not associated with the government (also known as the private
sector) to get involved through volunteering and take action. 

As a member of a community — you are a stakeholder, and you can contribute to the
development of your community.

Are you ready to help develop your community? There are many ways to get involved,
including:

 Attending a City Council meeting

 Volunteer to help at a local event hosted by the city
 Ask local representatives if they would be willing to go out for a cup of coffee to talk
 Serve on a Board
 Volunteer time for a Committee that helps with Community Development
 Volunteer to help people outside your usual circle of friends and influence
 Encourage others to be involved with local organizations.