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THE SHORT GUIDE TO COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
adopted by successive governments, designed to build ‘community capacity’, ‘active citizenship’ and ‘collective resilience’, as well as to support ‘community engagement’ or ‘social enterprise/investment’ for addressing persistent local problems.
BUP Copyright Material: Individual use only. Not for resale.
Recent changes Global inequalities continue to rise, and progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals has stalled. Action is certainly much needed after a tumultuous period of increased destitution, polarisation and most recently the devastating impact of the coronavirus pandemic that has convulsed lives and livelihoods on an unprecedented scale. The negative effects of the pandemic, and consequent economic recession, have fallen disproportionately on women, Black and minority ethnic communities, young people and disabled people. Widespread hardship and uncertainty have generated stress and fuelled social tensions. Successive clampdowns on social interactions have had drastic effects for millions of people, causing unwanted social isolation and stifling many aspects of community life. But we have adapted to online networking, using different technologies to stay in touch, organise meetings and social activities to maintain groups, make decisions and access learning. The internet has enabled rapid access to reputable sources of knowledge and increased global solidarity and co-operation, potentially widening the scope of community development to combat the spread of misinformation and divisive conspiracy theories. Awareness of the impact of globalisation is also reflected in widespread recognition that climate catastrophe could be imminent. Communities across the world are responding with innovative schemes to generate renewable energy, cut down waste and pollution, protect the habitats of endangered species and combat the complacency of politicians. Ingrained inequalities have widened over recent years (Dorling, 2018) due to the long-term impact of austerity, and have been further exacerbated by the economic downturn induced by the pandemic and the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union. Notwithstanding the stark realities of income differentials and the seeming impregnability of super-rich elites, advances have been made on other fronts. Recent
