Resources
ACORN -- The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) is inspired by the struggle for social justice and creating stronger communities. On the group's website, visitors interested in these ideas (either from a pragmatic or academic standpoint) can learn about ACORN's current work and accomplishments, along with reading a detailed history of the organization. Visitors will also want to take a look at the group's free newsletter and the newsletter archives, which date back to 2003.
American Institute of Architects -- On the website, visitors can appreciate the "Knowledge Communities" area, which gives access to the wealth of knowledge provided by AIA members in a number of different thematic areas, including historic preservation, religious architecture, and sustainable design.
Appalachian Regional Commission On-line Resource Center -- This website provides tools and information to help communities plan and develop economic development projects. The Center includes a data and research section containing socioeconomic data at county and state levels, ARC research reports on key socioeconomic issues, and downloadable maps of social and economic indicators. The site also has a funding section that includes tips on writing grant proposals and links to sources of funding for community development projects.
Australian Bureau of Statistics -- From the main page, visitors can view recent statistical reports, such as the Australian Consumer Price Index, information about the labor force (e.g., employment rates), and a series of occasional papers. Particularly helpful to the casual user will be the Themes section, which provides summary statistics about the environment, tourism, transportation, economic well-being, and education. Additionally, the Bureau publishes reports organized by administrative and regional divisions of the country, a feature that will be helpful to students doing research on a particular area of the country.
Beyond the City: The Rural Contribution to Development -- The situation of rural communities in Latin America and the Caribbean is in some cases quite dire, and this report from the World Bank offers some timely commentary on the economic opportunities in these areas of the world. Released in February 2005, this report evaluates the effect of the rural sector on national growth, poverty reduction, and environmental degradation. The report offers a number of policy recommendations, including the suggestion that "success in reducing poverty in marginalized regions will depend on the ability of both central and local governments to work with local communities to identify economic opportunities and constraints and to balance local needs with national interests."
Beyond Edge City: Office Sprawl in South Florida [.pdf] -- This paper deals with the persistent phenomenon of office sprawl throughout much of South Florida.
Beyond the Interstate: The Crisis in Rural Alabama -- This report describes the crisis and proposes some strategies for rural communities off the main roads. Among the highlights is a call for more coordination at both the state and local levels. At the state level, the report calls for coordination between the many players involved in community and economic development – from community colleges to utility companies. At the local level, the report points to the need for regional strategies that can help small, rural communities build a “critical mass” of leadership, financial capacity, and infrastructure.
Big Box Reuse -- The story is a familiar one, particularly for small towns and various exurban areas: A major retailer constructs what is referred to as a "big box" commercial building, and subsequently closes up shop several years later. While there is often a great public hue and cry over the construction of such buildings, few people have looked into what happens to these structures after they are abandoned. Julia Christensen (a MFA student at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute) has stepped into the fray to help answer that question. With the use of an interactive map of the United States, visitors can view the transformation of such structures from major retail outlets into flea markets, churches, apartments, and a host of other uses. For each site, Christensen has also included photographs of how the building has been reused and adapted, adding a nice dimension to her work. Planners, architectural pundits, and others will find plenty to keep themselves busy within this intriguing site.
Bodie, CA -- Held in a state of arrested decay, the ghost town of Bodie, California is one of the best known ghost towns in the United States. As with many a small town in the western part of the country, the town was part of the boom and bust cycle that was emblematic of the raucous world of mineral extraction, and as the gold in the region came and went, so did most of the residents of Bodie. This whole cycle began for Bodie in 1859, when a substantial quartz ledge was located in the region, along with significant deposits of gold. In 1962, the state of California took over what remained of the town in order to create a state historic park, and today approximately 200 structures remain on the site.
Boomers and Seniors in the Suburbs: Aging Patterns in Census 2000 [.pdf] -- This paper documents the "greying of the American suburban population."
Building Community Social Capital Through the Arts [.pdf] -- This article calls on state arts agency leaders and the professional arts community to look for connections between their work and activities recognized as rich in social capital. The article appeared in the Southern Arts Federation’s Southarts newsletter.
Building Service-Learning Partnerships between Schools and Communities [.pdf] -- “Building the Community through Service-Learning: The Role of the Community Partner,” provides tips for building strong service-learning partnerships between schools and community organizations.
Centre for Civil Society -- Located at the London School of Economics and Political Science, the Centre for Civil Society (CCS) is a "leading international organization for research, analysis, debate and learning about civil society". This group performs a broad range of research on the general topic of civil society across the globe, and its Working Papers series is definitely worth a look. Visitors arriving on the site may also want to look at the section on current and recently completed projects, which include work on European social policy, social capital, and local civil society.
Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) -- CIRCLE promotes research on the civic and political engagement of Americans between the ages of 15 and 25. Although CIRCLE conducts and funds research, not practice, the projects that they support have practical implications for those who work to increase young people's engagement in politics and civic life. CIRCLE is also a clearinghouse for relevant information and scholarship.
Center for Spatially Integrated Social Science -- The Center's primary mission is "to develop unrestricted access to tools and perspectives that will advance the spatial analytic capabilities of researchers throughout the social sciences." To that end, their Web site will be of great use to those individuals working in the fields of geography, anthropology, urban planning, sociology, and geographic information systems.
Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion -- The Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion (CASE) is one of the London School of Economics and Political Science's research centers, and performs research into five programmatic areas, including the dynamics of low-income areas and social networks and social capital. For persons with a broad interest in sociology, social work, urban change, and interpersonal dynamics, the CASE website will warrant several visits. Users of the site can browse through sections that offer detailed profiles of the CASE mission and the organization's staff members, learn about events sponsored by the group, and read and download some of its most research publications, such as working papers and policy briefs. Some of CASE's more compelling recent works include such pieces as "Urban Social Exclusion in Transitional China" and "Ethnic Segregation in England's Schools".
Center for the Ethnography of Everyday Life -- Much of the scholarship at this Center is informed by the approach of cultural anthropology, but a host of perspectives are included in their projects, including those of social work and sociology. Perhaps the centerpiece of the site is the Working Papers section, which features different works in progress. Recent titles include "Taking Culture Seriously: Making the Social Survey Ethnographic," "Media in the Middle: Work, Family, and Media Use in a Middle Class Midwestern Town," and "The Farming Family: Work, Character, and Change in Rural America."
Center for Rural Affairs -- The Center for Rural Affairs is "committed to building communities that stand for social justice, economic opportunity, and environmental stewardship."
Chavez Ravine - Urban renewal in its various guises swept through many American cities beginning in the early 1950s, and there are many who have not forgotten these experiences. Jordan Mechner, a filmmaker, has brought together the experiences of those who lived through the demolition of the Chavez Ravine community in Los Angeles for the Independent Lens series on PBS. The story of Chavez Ravine is quite complex actually, as it involves both the protests of the existing Mexican-American community that lived on the site, the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, and the mayor of Los Angeles during the period, Norris Poulson. The film explores much of the controversy surrounding this project, and also offers space for the voices of those affected by this decision. The site includes a brief overview of the film, an amazing photo album that features images of the Ravine in 1949, and a question-and-answer section with the filmmaker.
Chiloe Stories -- Developed as a cooperative project between the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of North Carolina and the Faculty of Communication at the University of Andes, this multimedia documentary project tells the stories of the archipelago of Chiloe, which is located approximately 1100 kilometers south of Santiago. The project was initiated as the archipelago prepares for major change as the government of Chile prepares to join Chilo to the mainland by 2010 through the construction of the longest bridge in Latin America. Many local residents are worried that the unique cultural traditions will disappear, will others believe that it will be an effective form of economic development. There are 12 segments altogether on the site, and some of them include an exploration of the mythology of Chiloe and the life of traditional fisherpeople in the region. All told, this is an engaging site that draws the visitor into the many realities and lived experiences of this clutch of islands off the coast of South America.
Civic Engagement as a Means for Curbing School Violence [.doc] -- Civic Engagement and Service Learning with Young Children: Intergenerational Peacemaking Projects, a new issue paper from the Education Commission of the States, addresses a key concern of communities and schools across the country – school violence. In addition to discussing the importance of civic engagement and service learning to both young people and their communities, it offers a number of ideas for preventing future violence by helping young children build communication, cooperation and conflict resolution skills. Highlighted activities connect young children with other generations in the community outside of school.
Columbia, Irvine, and The Woodlands: Planning Lessons from Three US New Towns of the 1960s and 1970s [.pdf] -- This paper examines three communities in the United States developed during the 1960s as responses to critics of urban sprawl. This work is probably most important for the effective way that it examines the connection between these attempts to address the seemingly endemic problems generated by urban sprawl and the current "smart growth" and New Urbanism movements within city and regional planning.
Comm-Org: The On-Line Conference on Community Organizing and Development -- With origins in a 1994 online seminar on the history of community organizing, COMM-ORG has grown into a fine resource for persons interested in the current field (and history) of community organizing, both in the United States, and with an international perspective. COMM-ORG is currently under the direction of Randy Stoecker at the University of Toledo, and brings together a host of materials related to the field of community organizing, including a moderated listserv, various syllabi from courses about community organizing, and a collection of papers about this broad theme. The COMM-ORG Discussion listserv area allows visitors to view archives of the many interesting electronic listserv topics, and to join up to become a member of the listserv. The papers section is also worth a look, as it contains approximately 80 papers dating back to 1995 on the various subfields of community organizing, such as faith-based movements and social justice.
Community Broadband Applications -- The Alliance for Public Technology (APT) and the Benton Foundation have released a new report featuring case studies of community broadband applications. A Broadband World: The Promise of Advanced Services includes 12 case studies with examples of telemedicine, distance learning, services for people with disabilities, community networking, wireless efforts to connect remote locations, municipal efforts to spur deployment and worker training. The publication is a continuation of efforts, begun in 2002, to identify applications and their impact on communities.
Community Development Corporations and their Changing Support Systems [.pdf] -- This report takes a critical look at the ways in which community development corporations (which generally are nonprofit, community-controlled real estate development organizations) have assisted in the revitalization of poor communities around the United States.
Community Voices -- Community Voices is designed to attract new leaders and citizens who traditionally have not been actively involved in public decision making in their communities and who have often experienced many social, economic and educational limitations. However, because if its easy adaptability, Community Voices can be used with wide variety audiences.
The Cyberhood -- The CyberHood’s mission is to build a virtual community where students, scholars, practitioners, and social activists, who want to change urban society and improve the plight of people of color, can find each other, share information, exchange ideas, and build professional relationships. Our goal is to build a community that encourages dialogue, facilitates research, and spawns joint ventures.
Development Gateway
-- The Development Gateway is an independent not-for-profit organization
initially developed in the World Bank. It works to help improve people’s
lives in developing countries by building partnerships and information
systems that provide access to knowledge for development.
We exploit powerful and affordable information and communication
technologies that were previously unavailable to:
- Increase knowledge sharing;
- Enhance development effectiveness;
- Improve public sector transparency; and
- Build local capacity to empower communities.
Do Something -- Do Something was founded in 1993 by Andrew Shue and Michael Sanchez, childhood friends from New Jersey who wanted to make a difference. They had a very simple dream: what if making a difference became just as cool and important to American education as athletics? What if community service became like physical education during the day and team sports after school? Kids would develop not only their minds and bodies, but their souls. Every school might have a math teacher, football coach-and a Community Coach. American youth would learn leadership, citizenship, and character-and our democracy would be stronger for it.
Eldis -- The core function of Eldis is to act as an Internet-based information service, maintaining a library of online documents and resource guides to such relevant development topics as climate change, health systems, globalization, and pastoralism.
Federal Reserve Community Affairs -- The Federal Reserve System, through its Community Affairs program at the Board of Governors and the twelve Federal Reserve Banks, engages in outreach, educational, and technical assistance activities to help financial institutions, community-based organizations, government entities, and the public understand and address financial services issues affecting low- and moderate- income persons and communities.
Fostering Community-Driven Development: What Role for the State? [.pdf] -- This report asks: How can poor developing countries make their institutional settings more conducive to growth and poverty reduction? As previous analyses of these issues have generally focused on the nature of formal and informal institutions, the authors here focus on "a subset of issues related to improving service delivery at community level, and more broadly to helping achieve a transition to better-functioning institutional settings." Drawing on case studies from Asia and Latin America, the work indicates how state efforts to bring about land reform, tenancy reform, and expanding non-crop sources of income can broaden the distribution of power in rural communities and that higher levels of governments can form effective alliances with communities.
Ghost Town Gallery -- This site contains over 1300 photographs from 174 ghost towns across the West, with the majority of them located in Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, California, and Arizona. Each ghost town entry is complemented with photography, short captions, and a brief history of each place.
A Guide to Smart Growth and Cultural Resource Planning [.pdf] -- This 72-page guide is an outgrowth of Wisconsin Act 9, which stipulated that every comprehensive plan address cultural resources in the affected community or region. The guide itself is divided into two main sections, Planning and Implementation. Within each of these sections, the guide contains chapters dealing with creating and executing a cultural resource survey, educating the community about the resulting cultural resource plan, and potential funding sources.
Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies -- The Center's central focus is to "analyze the dynamic relationships between housing markets and economic, demographic, and social trends, providing leaders in government, business, and the non-profit sector with the knowledge needed to develop effective policies and strategies." The publication section is quite strong, as visitors can browse through a diverse set of publications (many of which are available at not cost) by thematic focus, including finance, community, development, and industry studies.
The Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations -- The Hauser Center was launched with a mission "to expand understanding and accelerate critical thinking about civil society among scholars, practitioners, policy makers, and the general public." As part of working towards achieving this goal, the Hauser Center's Web site contains information about ongoing research projects, events sponsored under its direction, and publications conducted under the auspices of the Center. Visitors will want to examine the research section, as they will find valuable information on the Center's current work, which ranges from work in the nonprofit sector, as well as public policy, philanthropy and social investing. The Hauser Center Working Paper Series is also available here, reaching back to the year 2000, and addressing such topics as The Role of NGOs in Human Security and Social Entrepreneurship and Social Transformation.
Eugene Havens Center for the Study of Social Structure and Social Change -- Named in honor of the late professor of rural sociology Eugene Havens, the Center is dedicated to promoting critical social thought throughout the social sciences and humanities. At the site, visitors can learn about the annual Radfest gathering (which is a social forum for activists, policymakers, and academics in the Midwest), the Real Utopias project, and register for some of the center's upcoming conferences. The real treat of the site is the audio archive, which contains talks by various visiting scholars on a host of relevant topics, such as labor unions, social justice movements around the world, and critical race theory.
HUD: Community Renewal Initiative -- Based on ideas developed in the United Kingdom, the Community Renewal Initiative (operated under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development), was launched in 1994 under President Bill Clinton. The Initiative consists of a number of discrete policy initiatives, including the Empowerment Zone program and the Enterprise Communities program. As the website notes, the Initiative has "opened new businesses and created jobs, housing, and new educational and health care opportunities for thousands of Americans." Persons interested in these novel initiatives will want to peruse this site, as it contains detailed information about each of these policy initiatives and about the various incentives for businesses interested in relocating to these various locales. The site also features frequent updates on new program incentives, along with a number of important documents, such as the recent publication Tax Incentives + Businesses = Jobs.
Identifying Infrastructure Needs in America's Distressed Communities [.pdf] -- A study by the Office of Economic Development at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill examines the critical role that technology infrastructure plays in economic development. This study focuses specifically on how to use technology infrastructure to help the economies of poor communities. The study reports general lessons learned about technology infrastructure and answers questions about critical infrastructure elements necessary for development. Case studies include examples from Arkansas and North Carolina, as well as Pennsylvania, Washington, and Massachusetts.
Images Canada -- Images Canada provides a central point to start a cross-collection search through more than 75,000 images held by participating Canadian museums, archives, and libraries.
The Impact of Collaborative Planning on Governance Capacity [pdf] -- The question of institutional effectiveness and the efficacy of institutions to respond quickly to the forces that underlie globalization have piqued the interest of many scholars and pundits. This 27-page working paper looks at the ability of institutions to effectively build capacity, how this capacity can be utilized to create meaningful change within governance, and how this capacity might also aid in collaborative planning schemes.
Institute for Policy Research at Northwestern University
--
The Institute for Policy Research (IPR) at Northwestern University is an interdisciplinary public policy research institute that supports dozens of research projects dealing with a range of issues, including poverty, race, adolescent studies, philanthropy, and community development. The site will be invaluable to persons interested in these fields (especially those interested in the Midwest and Chicago), as complete information is offered about ongoing research
programs and affiliated centers (such as the Joint Center for Poverty
Research). As with many policy research institutes, the publications section contains the most important substantive material, as users may browse working papers, policy briefs, newsletters, and publications from affiliated centers. The IPR Working Paper series extends back until 1995, and contains over 100 reports in total.
Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy -- The Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy (ISERP) serves as the research arm of the social sciences at Columbia University and offers a host of online resources.
International Association for Community Development -- IACD is the main international membership organization for those working in or supporting community development and is open to both individuals and organizations. Their aims are to promote community development across international policies and programs, to network and support community development practitioners and to encourage information and practice exchange.
International Economic Development Council -- Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the IEDC's mission is "to provide leadership and excellence in economic development for our communities, members and partners to build economically strong, sustainable communities." While some of the online materials are available only to association members, there is a good deal of material that may be accessed by the general public. Through the online resource center, visitors may access such materials as the Economic Developer's Reference Guide (which provides an overview of such key topics as tourism, venture capital, and empowerment zones) and an overview of ongoing legislative matters that may impact the landscape of economic development. Finally, the site is rounded out by an excellent section dedicated to brownfields redevelopment, which includes a general manual of redevelopment techniques and links to external websites, such as those offered by the Environmental Protection Agency.
International Society for Quality of Life Studies
Ireland's Department of the Environment, Heritage & Local Government -- The Department has a broad mandate, and is responsible for a host of highly coordinated policy strategies that include nuclear safety, planning, local governance, and preservation programs. The publications area also contains a number of helpful policy and guideline documents, including materials on sustainable housing developments and waste management control.
Leadership and Community Capacity Building: An Inventory and Analysis of Curricula and Tools. -- A web site by Flora, Jan L., Cornelia Butler Flora, Stacy Bastian, and Elizabeth Manion.
Leadership for a Changing World -- This Ford Foundation program seeks to recognize, strengthen and support leaders and to highlight the importance of community leadership in improving people’s lives. The program seeks to confirm that resourceful leaders are bringing about positive change in virtually every community. Together with these leaders, Leadership for a Changing World hopes to facilitate a new dialogue about community leadership, one that encourages others to appreciate that leadership comes in many forms and from many different communities.
Levittown: Documents of an Ideal American Suburb -- This site documents the social, cultural, and visual history of that much maligned epitome of post-World War II suburban living, Levittown. Utilizing the photographic collections of former residents of Levittown, different sections of the site address certain facets of the community's existence.
The role of land development in universities’ relationships with surrounding communities is the focus the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. The site includes a resource library, with links to case studies, presentations, and publications.
The Louisiana State Museum Photograph Collection -- The Louisiana State Museum Photograph Collection consists of approximately 1500 photographs detailing the people, folkways, traditions, and landscape of Louisiana. Overall, persons with an interest in material culture and urban history will find this site quite compelling, and a valuable place for getting the feel and look of late 19th century Louisiana.
Mappr! -- With all of the sophisticated mapping and GIS applications commonly available today, it would make sense that someone would develop a site where visitors could upload their photographs onto an interactive map. Mappr is such a website, and it serves as "an interactive environment for exploring place, based on the photos people take." Mappr takes the photos uploaded to the Flickr photograph management-and-storage system, and maps them on to a map of the United States based on their location of origin. Visitors to the site will want to read about the methodology behind the system, and then peruse some of the recent images that have been placed on the site. Using a image scale bar, visitors can enlarge the size of the images, or just click on the ones that strike their fancy. In many cases, the photographs are "tagged" with additional information that assist Mappr with assigning a geographic location to each image.
Mid-South Delta Initiative -- This site offers the latest news about MSDI as well as helpful information for organizations that are interested in economic development in the Delta region. For practitioners, grassroots organizations, and non-profit groups engaged in the complex work of community building, our toolbox is full of links and resources addressing technology, youth, leadership, funding opportunities, community & enterprise development, and culture and heritage.
Migration and Geographic Mobility in Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan America: 1995 to 2000 [pdf] -- This special 8-page report from the US Census takes a look at migration and geographic mobility across the metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas of the United States. The report offers some interesting observations, such as the fact that residents of central cities within metropolitan areas were more mobile during this time period than those residing in nonmetropolitan territory.
Mixed Communities in England -- Among urban policy-makers, there continues to be a wide range of opinion on the role of communities that feature a mix of incomes, ages, and household types and how the private and public sector can work together to create such places. This report, published jointly by the Brookings Institution and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation reviews the existing research evidence and policy experiences from both the US and the UK on the various prospects for developing these mixed communities.
Lewis Mumford Center for Comparative Urban and Regional Research -- In 1988, a group of scholars from the University of Albany visited Mumford and his wife to discuss a plan for an academic center whose work would be both "comparative and historical in scope." The fruits of this initial idea became the Lewis Mumford Center for Comparative Urban and Regional Research at the University of Albany. Headed by Professor John R. Logan, the Center has a number of research projects, including a global neighborhoods initiative and the research network of professionals concerned with working on the study of urbanization in contemporary China. For those interested on the changing demographics in the United States, the center's research reports, drawing on 2000 U.S. Census, will be particularly useful, as they cover such topics as racial segregation in the Boston region and the Muslim world in metropolitan America.
National Association of Community Develement Extension Professionals (NACDEP) -- NACDEP is an organization dedicated to improving the visibility, coordination, professional status and resource base of community and economic development Extension programs and professionals.
National Association of Development Organizations -- The NADO "provides training, information and representation for regional development organizations serving the 82 million residents of small metropolitan and rural America." Additionally, one of its adjunct organizations, the NADO Research Foundation provides research, education and training for community and economic development practitioners and policymakers. From their Web site, visitors can learn about the many programs and services they provide to member institutions, including consultation information and legislative lobbying.
National Association of Towns and Townships -- The purpose of the National Association of Towns and Townships is to strengthen the effectiveness of town and township government. NATaT does this by educating lawmakers and public policy officials about how small town governments operate and by advocating policies on their behalf in Washington, D.C.
National Center for Small Communities -- the National Center for Small Communities provides the elected leaders of America's small communities with tools to govern effectively. The Center envisions a future where elected leaders of small communities have the skills and resources to draw upon strengths and talents of the diverse members of their communities to solve local problems; expand local economies while preserving community character; protect local natural resources for future generations; and protect the health and welfare of their citizens.
National Neighborhood Indicators Project -- The National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership (NNIP) is a collaborative effort by the Urban Institute and local partners to further the development and use of neighborhood-level information systems in local policymaking and community building.
Neighborhood Funders Group -- The Neighborhood Funders Group (NFG) is a "national network of foundations and philanthropic organizations." The NFG supports community-based efforts that improve economic and social conditions in low-income communities. The news and resources section of the site contains information about professional opportunities, recommended reading lists (along with links to selected online readings), and links to related sites on the Web such as the National Low-Income Housing Coalition. Visitors may also want to look at the organization's newsletter (which is archived back to 1998), and check out its publications, which include papers dealing with the affordable rental housing market and community organizing.
The NewCities Foundation was created by the Kentucky League of Cities in 2001 to promote citizenship and build civic capacity in Kentucky's cities and towns. The Foundation does not give grants, but rather focuses on providing localities and officials with ideas through training, publications, and events. The NewCities philosophy is summed up in 12 principles about how modern communities should operate. They are explained in more detail in a book published in late 2004, The Little Blue Book of Big Ideas (see http://www.klc.org/news_release.asp?id=194).
The New Wealth Package: Generating Value in Distressed Urban Communities [.pdf] -- From the Community Development Research Center within the New School University, this new working paper examines the use of arbitrage theory as "a means of valuing community assets in urban low-income communities." The paper includes a historical sketch of capital markets and continues with an extended discussion of how arbitrage theory might best be deployed in creating a meaningful valuation of the assets contained within low-income and distressed urban communities.
Office of University Partnerships -- The Office of University Partnerships is designed "to encourage and expand the efforts of higher education that are striving to make a difference in their communities through funding opportunities." Their online presence includes a number of helpful documents for persons interested in these relationships, including a recently updated guide to foundations likely to fund research related to topics dealing with colleges and communities. Also helpful is a database of research and publications conducted by OUP and its grantees, along with archived OUP newsletters. Rounding out the site is a section devoted to upcoming events sponsored by the OUP and participating institutions, in addition to documents for persons interested in applying for funding.
Pew Report Focuses on Civic Engagement in Higher Education -- Civic engagement in higher education is the focus of a new report from the Pew Partnership for Civic Change. Through a series of ten essays, higher education and community development leaders share their insights about using university resources to address community challenges, while also teaching important civic skills to university students. Auburn University’s work in Alabama communities is among the efforts highlighted, as is the work of the Rural Community College Initiative in several Southern states. Key lessons and recommendations include: 1) articulate an institution-wide vision for community engagement, with support from top leadership; 2) define “engagement” more broadly than simply student volunteerism; 3) build successful university-community partnerships through communication, flexibility, and a common vision; and 4) nurture civic skills, such as tolerance, conflict resolution, and leadership. Access the report, New Directions in Civic Engagement: University Avenue Meets Main Street, at http://www.pew-partnership.org/whatsnew.html
PictureAustralia -- PictureAustralia provides a central point to start a cross-collection search through images held by participating Australian museums, archives, and libraries.
Planetizen: The Planning and Development Network -- With the increased interest in planning, PLANetizen was created three years ago as "a public-interest information exchange for the urban planning and development community." The site features a host of frequently updated links to recent news stories that address one of the facets of planning (such as gentrification), job opportunities, commentary, and conference announcements.
Politics and Civic Education -- "There are many ways to undermine a government. Terrorism is only one means,” observe the authors of a report from the University of Virginia that calls for greater attention to youth civic education. The report emphasizes that civic education is not something solely in the domain of K-12 schools. The authors suggest actions by parents, elected officials, the media, colleges and universities, private businesses and volunteer organizations. Among the recommendations are for parents to facilitate family discussions of political and community issues; for elected officials to create more opportunities for youth participation in political campaigns as well as town meetings and debates; for businesses to provide flex or comp time to encourage their employees to vote and volunteer; and for volunteer organizations to encourage their volunteers to understand the issues affecting the organization and to promote those issues in the political process. The report’s findings are based on a survey of more than 2,000 students in 20 states. See Politics: The Missing Link of Responsible Civic Education
ProVention Consortium -- The ProVention Consortium is a "global coalition of governments, international organizations, academic institutions, the private sector and civil society organizations dedicated to increasing the safety of vulnerable communities and to reducing the impact of disasters in developing countries." Organized by the World Bank, the Consortium and its Web site are dedicated to disseminating materials and resources about how disaster risk management can be best applied to mitigate the effects of various potential disasters and events.
Public Conversations Project -- The mission of the Public Conversation Project is to foster a more inclusive, empathic and collaborative society by promoting constructive conversations and relationships among those who have differing values, world views, and positions about divisive public issues.
Reston Collection Images -- Despite the majority of critics who assume that the majority of suburbs are creations solely of the past five decades, planned communities designed around the automobile have been around before World War II. One of the most notable planned communities in the United States is in Reston, Virginia, which was constructed after World War II. The creation of such a community was a rather ambitious undertaking, as it attempted to integrate almost every aspect of human life, including health services, recreational facilities, religious institutions, and commercial facilities. This online archive contains hundreds of documents that tell the story of Reston. Some of these documents include promotional brochures, studies, reports, correspondence, and maps, such as the town's original master plan and those documenting major road systems. On the site, visitors can search for documents individually, or elect to browse through the documents by subject, title, or by the organization responsible for creating each document.
Rural Assistance Center -- The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has funded the establishment of an on-line resource center aimed at providing policymakers, researchers, and citizens with information on community development, child care, faith-based initiatives, and other health and human services issues in rural communities. Information specialists are also available to provide customized assistance, such as web and database searches on rural topics and funding resources, linking users to organizations, and furnishing copies of relevant publications from a resource library.
Rural Policy Research Institute -- This Web site is divided into a number of sections, including a publications area, a section that contains editorials written by Institute fellows and staff members, and an area dedicated to providing information about helpful resources such as basic statistics about rural America. On the left side of the home page, visitors can also browse the Web pages of the Institute's affiliated centers such as the Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis and the Rural Poverty Research Center. Finally, users can elect to sign up for an electronic newsletter that will update them about upcoming events, conferences, and publications related to rural policy issues.
Small Town America: Stereoscopic Views from the Robert Dennis Collection -- This thoroughly fascinating collection, presented by the New York Public Library contains approximately 12,000 stereoscopic views from the Tri-State region from the 1850s to the 1910s. Along with showing a number of buildings and street scenes, these photographs show industry, transportation, natural disasters, local festivities, and costumes. Visitors may want to begin by browsing through this massive collection by title, name, subject, formats, or places in order to get some sense of the wide variety of material covered in the holdings of this online archive. Some of the subjects include Lake Niagara, Norwich, and Saratoga Springs. Finally, visitors can also complete a simple or detailed search in order to locate specific views
Small World Project at Columbia University -- In 1967, social psychologist Stanley Milgram conducted an important experiment to test the hypothesis that members of any large social network would be inevitably connected to each other through short chains of intermediate acquaintances. His results, now a part of popular culture and common parlance, was that the average lengths of the resulting acquaintance chains was approximately six. Professor Duncan J. Watts and his team hope "to test not only average properties of lengths of acquaintance chains, but also the distribution of lengths, along with the effect of race, class, nationality, occupation, and education."
Smart Communities Network -- The Department of Energy has created this online clearinghouse of relevant information for areas interested in learning more about incorporating sustainable principles into their new (or existing) developments. On the site, visitors can read about communities that have implemented sustainable development plans, locate technical and financial resources designed to assist communities with such plans, and access various codes and ordinances related to subsequent implementation of these development schemes. The Topics in Sustainability is quite helpful, providing a list of related themes (such as land use planning and community energy) that users can click on and view a brief synopsis of each theme, read articles on the theme, and examine the key principle behind each theme. For those who wish to keep abreast of the latest developments in sustainable development, a monthly electronic newsletter is also available at no charge.
Smart Growth America -- a coalition of nearly 100 advocacy organizations that have a stake in how metropolitan expansion affects our environment, quality of life and economic sustainability. One interesting report that the group has produced is Measuring Sprawl and its Impact: The Character and Consequences of Metropolitan Expansion.
Smart Growth Leadership Institute -- The Smart Growth Leadership Institute was created by former Maryland Governor Parris N. Glendening to help state and local elected, civic and business leaders design and implement effective smart growth strategies. The institute is dedicated to helping communities achieve diversified employment, a broadened tax base, more choice in housing and transportation, convenience, healthier neighborhoods, and quality of life. We believe that growth and prosperity can be achieved without many of the growing pains associated with sprawl—crushing traffic congestion, car-dominated neighborhoods, the loss of farmland and open space, crowded schools, and rising taxes to pay for services and ever expanding rings of new infrastructure.
Smart Growth Online -- This well-developed site will allow even the casual visitor easy access to a host of materials about the smart growth movement and various projects being developed around the country that adhere to these various tenets and principles. Visitors can sign up to receive a free weekly e-newsletter, browse through full-length publications in their resources archive, and sign up to become a member of the smart growth network. Finally, there is also an online audio archive of talks and lectures sponsored by the smart growth network that dates back to 2000. Some of the speakers featured in the archive include the well-known author and social critic Joel Garreau and Robert Lang, director of urban and metropolitan research at the Fannie Mae Foundation.
The Sociable Media Group -- Located at MIT, the Sociable Media Group is interested in questions concerning society and identity in the networked world. Some of the group's research questions include: How do we perceive other people on-line?, What does a virtual world look like?, and How do social conventions develop in the networked world? As with most research institutes or think-tanks, the Sociable Media group has seen fit to put a number of its working papers on the site for general consideration.
SocioSite -- With the broad range of research interests covered within the field of sociology around the world, it is a formidable task to attempt to offer a clearinghouse of information about the various aspects of this area of scholarship. The site is divided into 18 subject areas, including those devoted to courses, journals, data archives, research centers, associations, newsletters, publishers, and subject areas. The Sociologists section is quite helpful for those looking to peruse valuable online materials related to important persons who have worked in sociology (and other related disciplines), such as Claude Levi-Strauss, Robert Merton, Erving Goffman, and dozens of others. Almost every section is arranged geographically, facilitating searches for journals found in almost any part of the world, or for sociology departments on different continents.
Southern Rural Development Initiative -- The SRDI is a regional collaborative of 34 member organizations in 11 Southern states that work together to improve economic conditions in the rural South. Key strategies include: 1) building a base of community-controlled capital; 2) focusing on human development, through education, skills training, and social services; 3) increasing community planning and organizational skills; 4) exploring ways to build environmentally sustainable economies; and 5) encouraging collaboration. SRDI, in partnership with the Southeastern Council of Foundations and the Foundation for the Mid South has also developed a Philanthropy Index that uses data indicators to assess the philanthropic potential in the region’s rural communities.
Space Available: The Realities of Convention Centers as Economic Development Strategies -- Among urban policy analysts, politicians, and investigative journalists, there is great concern about the viability of developing new convention centers in an attempt to "prime the pump" of an urban region. For the most part, the prevailing wisdom seems to indicate that persons coming to large conventions in a city will spend millions of dollars when they are in town, and that cities will benefit greatly from such inward investment. This paper, authored by Heywood Sanders for The Brookings Institution, takes on much of this conventional wisdom in its 36 pages. Released in January 2005, the report finds that the overall convention marketplace continues to decline, and despite this fact, numerous localities continue a type of "arms race" in order to those these events. The paper is well written, and should be of interest to those persons in the fields of economic development, and the future of cities, more generally.
Sprawl City -- Sprawl City is dedicated to informing and assisting on the issues of sprawl and rural land lost in the United States. With oversight from a variety of academic and practicing planners, the site contains a host of information about the growing rate of sprawl among urbanized and urbanizing areas across the country.
Status of Michigan Cities: An Index of Urban Well-Being [.pdf] -- This report provides policymakers in Michigan with a thorough portrait of the general well-being of the numerous urban areas within the state.
Task Force for Faith-based & Community Initiatives -- On January 29, 2001, President George W. Bush issued two executive orders related to faith-based and community organizations. The first established a base of operations within the White House for such initiatives, and the second established centers within various cabinet- level departments, including the Department of Justice (DOJ). As the latter's website notes, "The Task Force's purpose is to promote good works by neighbors, particularly in the areas of juvenile delinquency, prisoners and their families, victims of crime, domestic violence, and drug addiction/treatment/prevention." Visitors to the site can learn about funding opportunities administered by the DOJ and also read some of its publications, such as "Moving Beyond the Walls: Faith and Justice Partnerships Working for High Risk Youth". Interested parties may also want to look at the Task Force's FAQ section and sign up to receive email updates.
Tending the Commons: Folklife and Landscape in Southern West Virginia -- This online exhibit examines the folkways and culture of the people in southern West Virginia. As the project sought to examine the relationship between the people and their rugged physical surroundings, it is appropriate that the exhibit offers a host of materials that orient the visitor to this part of the country, including several well designed maps. The site itself contains 679 audio recordings and 1256 photographs, all of which can be searched by subject, geographic location, and title. The audio clips feature natives of the region talking about everyday experiences such as hunting, gardening, coal mining, and timbering. Additionally, there are several special collections organized around certain themes, including "Seasonal Round of Activities on Coal River" and "Seining for Hellgrammites on Coal River."
Tennessee Electronic Atlas -- The main maps contained on the site include thematic maps (at the county and state level) and interactive maps (which contains tutorial exercises that introduce the basic concepts involved in geographic information systems). For users interested in utilizing the full capabilities of the site, the Metro Web GIS service area of the site allows users to look at the main metropolitan regions in the state, and to customize the themes (such as churches, golf courses, and hospitals) to their preferences. Another helpful feature of the Metro Web service is that as users zoom into any particular locale, the topographic maps change to aerial photograph overlays.
Through the Lens of Time: Images of African Americans from the Cook Collection of Photographs -- Father and son George and Huestis Cook were photographers active in the US South, particularly Virginia, from the 1860s to the 1930s. Their work resulted in a photograph collection, which contains over 10,000 negatives. The Web interface provides both keyword searching and browsing by 19 different subject headings, such as children, portraits, or tobacco. Once images have been retrieved in a search, the subject headings are presented as links, so that users can easily broaden a search to related topics. Explanations of the terminology used to describe the pictures and instructions for ordering copies are also available at the site.
Toolkit for Historic Preservation and Redevelopment Released [.pdf] -- The National Trust for Historic Preservation has published a best practices toolkit for historic preservation and redevelopment. The toolkit, entitled “Rebuilding Community,” features examples of communities that have used public policy, advocacy and marketing, design, partnerships, adaptive use, and financing strategies to revitalize their neighborhoods.
Tools for Community Action Guidebook [.pdf] -- “Placemaking: tools for community action” urges local officials to work with citizens to define goals, create shared values, and select decision making tools that are most appropriate for their particular situation. Among the tools highlighted are communication tools, visualization tools, and impact analysis tools. Case studies help to illustrate how different types of tools can be used in a community setting.
UC Berkeley: Regional Oral History Office -- The Regional Oral History Office has carried out hundreds of interviews in a wide variety of subject areas, including arts and letters, business and labor, University of California history, and the environment. As part of a vast digitization project, a number of these interviews have been placed online for consultation and research purposes.
UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center -- Established in 1969, the Chicano Studies Research Center at UCLA places a premium on "interdisciplinary and collaborative research that analyzes issues critical to the knowledge of Chicano and Latino communities in the United States." Visitors to their site will find information on their ongoing research projects, such as the Mexican-American Study Project, a 30-year longitudinal and inter-generational study of the Mexican-origin people. Scholars will find the section devoted to the Center's publications quite helpful, as it contains links to "Azatlan: A Journal of Chicano Studies" and a series of policy briefs addressing issues affecting the Latino community.
UNESCO Institute for Statistics -- Established in 1999, the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) was designed to meet both the needs of UNESCO Member States and to provide the international community with a wide range of statistical information in order to "analyze the efficiency and effectiveness of their programmes and to inform their policy decisions." The UIS performs work around four primary themes, including education, literacy, culture & communication, and science & technology. Overall, the site is a remarkable source of information, including databases, working papers, country profiles, statistical tables, and methodological material about the conduct of their research.
UN-HABITAT: The Global Campaign on Urban Governance -- The Campaign is dedicated to increasing the capacity of local governments around the world to practice good urban governance, with specific attention paid to the excluded urban poor. The Campaign works through a number of strategies, including normative debate, advocacy, capacity-building, and developing a number of toolkits. At the website, visitors can learn about the group's various flagship products, which include the good urban governance index, national and local campaigns, and policy papers, which deal with such timely topics as urban governance in Africa. Along with these materials, visitors will want to take a look at the toolkit titled, Tools to Support Participatory Urban Decision Making.
Urban Ecology -- When people think about the concept and idea of ecology, they may not immediately picture a bustling urban street or a network of interconnected bike paths. Since 1975, a group of architects and activists have been thinking about exactly those things in terms of urban ecology (and a good deal more to boot), coupling it with a conviction that urban ecology can draw on ecology, public participation and urban planning "to help design and build healthier cities." Given these ideas, it seems logical that this organization has its roots in the Bay Area, and continues to offer up interesting plans and proposals, many of which can be found on the website. One such document is the Walkable Streets Toolkit, which is designed for use by communities that seek to make their streets more pedestrian friendly. Additionally, visitors will want to look at current and past editions of The Urban Ecologist, which is the group's quarterly newsletter.
U.S. Agency for International Development
USDA Agriculture Fact Book: 2001-2002 [.pdf] -- The 169-page USDA Agriculture Fact Book offers a view of the broader trends in American agriculture, as well as the extent and nature of the outreach programs provided by the USDA and its related agencies. The topics are divided into more digestible smaller sections, including the food consumption of Americans, the transformation of American farms, and American food safety. The chapter dedicated to rural development efforts will be of great interest to policy and planning professionals, as it details the extent to which the USDA is able to affect change and create growth within many of America's rural areas, some of which continue to experience severe population losses.
When They Were Young: A Photographic Retrospective of Childhood -- The Library of Congress has created this online exhibit of over 70 images that capture the experience of childhood as it is connected across time, different cultures, and diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. The portraits of children here include young people in the rural American South during the Great Depression, Native Americans from the Pacific Northwest, farm laborers in Puerto Rico, and African Americans in Harlem.
WorkforceUSA.net -- WorkforceUSA.net is a new web-based virtual library offering tools, policy and regulatory analyses, evaluation results and case studies. Developed with funding from the U.S. Department of Labor, the Ford Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation, the site's database can by searched by state, target population, industry and occupation, and workforce development strategy such as building career ladders or addressing skills shortages. Soon the site will offer a variety of interactive tools for peer-to-peer exchange and community building.
World Learning for International Development -- For the past eight decades this organization has been involved in programs that "are based on local partnerships with people who have an active and respected role in addressing their own development challenges". Currently, the organization's programs take place in more than 50 countries, and are organized around the themes of education, civil society, and training and exchange.
World Development Report 2003 [.pdf] -- This World Bank report "examines the relationship among competing policy objectives-reducing poverty, maintaining growth, improving social cohesion, and protecting the environment-over a 50-year horizon." This important document will be especially relevant to those with an interest in sustainable development from an inclusive and global perspective.
Rural Sociological Association
The RSS is a professional social science association promoting rural sociological research and sharing of that knowledge to enhance rural quality of life