My Minor: Community Development - 3:1

What Is It?

Community Development, by definition is "a practice based profession and academic discipline that promotes participative democracy, sustainable development, rights, economic opportunity, equality and social justice through the organization, education and empowerment of people within their communities, whether these be of locality, identity or interest, in urban and rural settings." as defined by the International Association for Community Development.

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Why Is It Important?

As a direct beneficiary of the current state of a community, Community Development is also a path toward the future by nature. Ever a planned-based practice, community development searches for future paths for a community, and works on building a solid foundation for the development to thrive on. It targets population and class inequalities, institutional renovation and upkeep, the enhancement of communal spaces and the progression of economical growth. It is a gateway to a better future and to a betterment of society as a whole.

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Who Does It Benefit?

Community Development efforts benefit society as a whole. The process actively searches to better the community it serves and the people residing within. In turn, this creates a ripple effect where community members learn effective skills pertaining to the progression and growth of their community, and this creates a more versatile and promising environment for future generations. Additionally, the strengthening of one development leads to the eventual outreach into others, creating strong bridges between multiple communities.

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How Is Writing Impactive In This Field?

In the Community Development field, writing tends to be the chosen medium. Most community development practitioners, such as myself, are CITI Human Research certified. This gives us the permission to conduct voluntary surveys, interview members of a community, or document the lives of people, with a strong sense of legal and moral ethical guidelines that bind us to serving the community as a whole. Writing is important, because it is used to document interviews quickly and efficiently, and to write surveys that are easily understandable by the general public. Additionally, community developers often use written mediums to communicate with city councils, city planners, officials and law-makers in order to instigate change.