Extension workers around the country are discovering a new way to help communities become more of what they want to be, and link them to extension resources, through the use of Building Community: A Tool Kit for Youth and Adults In Charting Assets and Creating Change. Developed by the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development with Extension partners, the tool kit focuses on the gifts that a community brings to their desire for change--gifts of the past, place, people, and relationships--and has proven itself to be a powerful tool for sustainable community development

Garthwaite, Lucinda J

Tucker, Beth K

English

Clemson University: TigerPrints

The Journal of Extension Volume 41 Number 4 Article 22 8-1-2003 Building Community: A Tool Kit for Youth and Adults in Charting Assets and Creating Change Lucinda J. Garthwaite Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development, ljgarth@gwi.net Beth K. Tucker University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, tucker@cals.arizona.edu This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License. Recommended Citation Garthwaite, L. J., & Tucker, B. K. (2003). Building Community: A Tool Kit for Youth and Adults in Charting Assets and Creating Change. The Journal of Extension, 41(4), Article 22. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/joe/vol41/iss4/22 This Tools of the Trade is brought to you for free and open access by the Conferences at TigerPrints. It has been accepted for inclusion in The Journal of Extension by an authorized editor of TigerPrints. For more information, please contact kokeefe@clemson.edu. 	 JOEHOME JOURNAL GUIDELINES ABOUT	JOE CONTACT NATIONAL	JOB	BANKCurrent	Issues Back	IssuesAugust	2003	//	Volume	41	//	Number	4	//	Tools	of	the	Trade	//	4TOT3Building	Community:	A	Tool	Kit	for	Youth	and	Adults	in	ChartingAssets	and	Creating	ChangeAbstractExtension	workers	around	the	country	are	discovering	a	new	way	to	help	communities	becomemore	of	what	they	want	to	be,	and	link	them	to	extension	resources,	through	the	use	of	BuildingCommunity:	A	Tool	Kit	for	Youth	and	Adults	In	Charting	Assets	and	Creating	Change.	Developedby	the	Innovation	Center	for	Community	and	Youth	Development	with	Extension	partners,	thetool	kit	focuses	on	the	gifts	that	a	community	brings	to	their	desire	for	change--gifts	of	the	past,place,	people,	and	relationships--and	has	proven	itself	to	be	a	powerful	tool	for	sustainablecommunity	development.	People	need	each	other.	They	need	each	other	for	comfort,	love,	safety,	and	companionship.	Theyneed	each	other	to	link	together	ideas	and	skills	to	create	positive	change.	They	need	each	otherto	grow.Extension	workers	know	this;	they	are	always	looking	for	ways	to	link	communities	with	Extensionresources	and	discovering	new	ways	to	help	communities	become	more	of	what	they	want	to	be.	Developed	Collaboratively,	Demonstrated	EffectivenessThe	Innovation	Center	for	Community	and	Youth	Development	and	National	4-H	Council	recognizedthese	needs	and	produced	Building	Community:	A	Tool	Kit	for	Youth	and	Adults	in	Charting	Assetsand	Creating	Change.The	Tool	Kit	was	developed	in	partnership	with	14	communities	throughout	the	United	States,	withthe	help	of	Extension	workers	in	many	of	those	communities.The	toolkit's	effectiveness	has	been	demonstrated	by	consistent	outcomes	wherever	it	isimplemented.	Communities	create	shared	visions,	develop	new	awareness	of	communityresources,	and	translate	their	new	collective	knowledge	into	strategic	action.When	communities	implement	the	tool	kit,	youth	participation	and	leadership	increase,	as	doescollaboration	among	community-based	organizations	and	groups.A	Focus	on	Community	Gifts,	Especially	Youth	Adult	PartnershipsThe	Building	Community	Tool	Kit	emphasizes	the	principles	of	youth-adult	partnerships,	mappingcommunity	assets,	and	engaging	in	intentional	reflection	and	learning.	It	takes	users	through	aseries	of	activities	designed	and	successfully	tested	to	guide	and	instruct	community	changeagents	as	they	work	to	create	their	visions.Lucinda	J.	GarthwaiteInnovation	Center	for	Community	and	Youth	DevelopmentChevy	Chase,	MarylandInternet	Address:	ljgarth@gwi.netBeth	K.	TuckerDirector/FCS	EducatorCoconino	County	Cooperative	ExtensionFlagstaff,	ArizonaUniversity	of	Arizona	Cooperative	ExtensionInternet	Address:	tucker@cals.arizona.eduIts	focus	is	not	on	problems,	but	on	the	gifts	that	a	community	brings	to	their	desire	for	change--gifts	of	the	past,	place,	people,	and	relationships.Sustainable	ChangeThe	tool	kit	has	proven	itself	to	be	a	powerful	tool	for	sustainable	community	change	because	of	itsfocus	on	gifts,	reflection,	and	the	engagement	of	participants	from	diverse	sectors	of	a	community.Too	often	in	communities	people	work	hard	only	to	meet	the	needs	of	their	isolated	"pocket,"	oftendefined	by	age,	race,	ethnicity,	class,	neighborhood,	or	religious	affiliation.This	sometimes	leaves	broader	community	change	efforts	unrecognized	and	ultimatelyunsustainable.	The	Innovation	Center's	research	and	experience	suggests	that	this	often	happensbecause	the	planning	and	implementation	processes	are	missing	the	input	and	participation	of	thevarious	sectors	of	the	community.Creating	an	inclusive	community	process	requires	skills	and,	in	many	cases,	a	paradigm	shift.	TheTool	Kit	creates	concrete	opportunities	and	approaches	to	develop	and	apply	these	skills.Communities	Using	the	Tool	KitHaving	applied	the	strategies	in	the	Building	Community	Tool	Kit,	communities	are	implementingpriority	projects,	finding	new	funding,	and	creating	sustainable,	effective	change.Broadus,	MontanaIn	the	town	of	Broadus	in	eastern	Montana,	community	members	used	the	Tool	Kit	to	create	avision	for	after-school	opportunities	for	youth	and	children.	They	identified	their	resources,developed	a	plan,	and	successfully	created	a	collaborative	after-school	program	in	which	highschool	students	staff	programs	for	younger	children.Oxford	County,	MaineIn	Oxford	County,	Maine,	young	people	and	adults	had	begun	talking	to	each	other	about	respect.Working	with	the	Tool	Kit	helped	them	expand	the	scope	of	their	work,	making	it	more	inclusive	ofthe	entire	community.Now,	the	Respect	Team	hosts	round	table	discussions,	promotes	inclusion	and	diversity	in	localmedia,	and	successfully	promotes	networks	of	community	groups	working	for	change.These	and	other	communities	are	changing	because	younger	and	older	people	are	workingtogether,	as	partners,	to	discover	their	communities'	strengths	and	reflect	on	the	lessons	learned."An	Excellent	Resource"The	Tool	Kit	has	caught	the	attention	of	Extension	workers	and	other	community	and	youthdevelopment	organizations	throughout	the	world.	Over	500	copies	of	the	Tool	Kit	have	beendistributed	in	less	than	a	year,	mainly	to	Extension	audiences.Currently,	it	is	being	used	in	almost	every	U.S.	state	and	five	other	countries.	Everywhere	theInnovation	Center	presents	the	Building	Community	approach,	it	has	garnered	a	high	level	ofinterest	(including	at	conferences	such	as	the	Search	Institute,	National	Service-LearningConference,	National	Conference	on	Community	Service,	and	Volunteerism	and	CYFAR).A	team	of	reviewers	from	Iowa	State	University	reviewed	the	Tool	Kit	along	with	dozens	ofcommunity	leadership	training	models.	They	gave	it	an	extremely	favorable	review	and	deemed	itan	excellent	resource	for	teaching	ways	to	build	community	capacity,	empower	excluded	people,incorporate	class	and	cultural	differences,	and	develop	vision.The	Building	Community	Tool	Kit	is	unique,	basing	its	guidance	on	principles	of	youth-adultpartnership,	a	focus	on	gifts,	and	on	learning	and	reflection.	It	offers	a	shift	from	a	traditionalleader/organizer	approach	to	one	that	creates	the	conditions	needed	for	many	communitymembers	to	engage	in	the	work.	The	result	is	an	effective	tool	for	sustainable	change,	both	in	thecommunities	and	the	changers	themselves.For	more	information,	contact	the	Innovation	Center	for	Community	and	Youth	Development	at301-961-2837	or	info@innovationcenter.org.Copyright	©	by	Extension	Journal,	Inc.	ISSN	1077-5315.	Articles	appearing	in	the	Journal	become	the	property	of	theJournal.	 Single	 copies	 of	 articles	may	 be	 reproduced	 in	 electronic	 or	 print	 form	 for	 use	 in	 educational	 or	 trainingactivities.	Inclusion	of	articles	in	other	publications,	electronic	sources,	or	systematic	large-scale	distribution	may	bedone	only	with	prior	electronic	or	written	permission	of	the	Journal	Editorial	Office,	joe-ed@joe.org.If	you	have	difficulties	viewing	or	printing	this	page,	please	contact	JOE	Technical	Support©	Copyright	by	Extension	Journal,	Inc.	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Building Community: A Tool Kit for Youth and Adults in Charting Assets and Creating Change

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Building Community: A Tool Kit for Youth and Adults in Charting Assets and Creating Change

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