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IACD publications

Appreciating Assets

Tara O'Leary, Ingrid Burkett and Kate Braithwaite
Published by IACD and the Carnegie UK Trust, February 2011

As political, economic and social upheaval brings renewed focus to building capacity in communities, there is increasing recognition that asset-based approaches (as opposed to negative, deficit models) can have better outcomes for individuals and communities. Drawing from experiences across the globe, the report presents a holistic overview of asset-based approaches to community development, looking into the assets of people, the politics of assets, and how assets are grounded in places and in communities.

'Appreciating Assets’ goes behind the scenes of asset approaches and offers a critical but practical perspective of how they have shaped and will continue to shape community development.

Please note that the photo on page 38 of this report was provided by the Family Action Centre at the University of Newcastle in New South Wales, Australia. http://www.newcastle.edu.au/research-centre/fac/

Read the report online by clicking on the image below. Scroll down further for download details.

To download, click on the attachment here: 

Community capacity building: Definitions, scope, measurements and critiques

Gary Craig

A paper prepared for the OECD added October 2007

Asset Based Rural Community Development: Literature Review and Resources

Tara O'Leary
Published in 2006 with the support of the Carnegie UK Trust

Although the ABCD approach is well developed internationally and its core values well understood by practitioners in the UK and Ireland, there has been little explicit application of the approach in community development policy and practice. The purpose of this work therefore is to help inform future asset based community development initiatives in the UK.

The report outlines a range of international perspectives from the literature, predominantly that which is published in English. It explores the ways in which the work has developed and some problematic areas and critical voices as well. There are preliminary lessons to be learnt from this experience for those wishing to incorporate an ABCD approach in the UK and Ireland.

What in the world...? Global lessons, inspirations and experiences in community development

Ingrid Burkett and Harvinder Bedi
Published in 2007 with the support of the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.

This IACD report explores some questions, innovations, ideas and case studies related to five themes that emerged from the first phase of a research project, ‘What in the World?'. These were identified by community development practitioners in the UK as being themes they would most value learning about from other practitioners around the world.

The themes are:

  1. Environment/Sustainable community development
  2. Capacity building and training
  3. Refugees and migration
  4. Women and Children
  5. NGO Regulation and Governance issues

The report examines some of the key elements of each theme, drawing on a range of literature sources, and bringing to these to life through global case studies.

Community development and information technology: International case studies

By Margie Scotts with Gary Craig and Tara O'Leary
Published in 2005 by IACD with the University of Hull

This report is a second collection of case studies from many different contexts worldwide - from Pacific Region, Europe and North America and covering a range of social and economic issues, including housing poverty, education and social exclusion. The nine case studies are all reported to a standard format to assist comparison between them.

The report is available in hard copy only. Contact info@iacdglobal.org to order.

Community Development Journal: An International Forum CDJ/IACD Special Issue

Volume 37 Number 4 October 2002
Oxford University Press

This includes the following contributions:
'Local people rebuilding local economies' - Anne Jennings
'Rituals: emotions, community faith in soul and the messiness of life' - Ronald Hustedde and Betty King
'Environmental justice: a crucial link between environmentalism and community development' - Mick Hillman

This is available in hard copy only. For more information, contact info@iacdglobal.org.

Training for rural community development activists in rural United Kingdom and Ireland

Report April 2006 by: Prof Gary Craig, James Derounian and Ruth Garbutt

This report outlines a research project commissioned in 2005 by The Carnegie UK Trust. The purpose of the research was to identify any current training in rural community development, or aspects of it, for volunteers/local activists in England, Ireland, N Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Does ABCD deliver social Justice?

Report from IACD seminar held during the 2006 CIVICUS World Assembly in Glasgow. It explores asset based community development (ABCD) and social justice from several international perspectives.

Rural Community Development in Scotland and Kentucky

The Report from the Rural Community Development in Scotland and Kentucky event on 8 September 2005 in Inverness Scotland is now available for download.