Community Development & Empowerment
Table of contents
Component
1. The Practice The Practice defines a body and process of core principles that when applied set the stage for life affirming demonstrations. The value of these core principles have all been well documented. For the most part the principles are presented with focus on their applications scripting new behavior patterns for productive living.
2. A New Pair of
Glasses This was a short course presented to community economic development directors in Texas. It provides a different perspective to develop a community by focusing on the people and assets already existent in a community, as compared to the "traditional" model of trying to attract companies to a community to somehow "save" them.
3. Nature Tourism
Handbook (Entrepreneurial opportunities for farmers and ranchers, etc.)
4. Community Tourism - an extensive publication created by Texas Cooperative Extension, in the Recreation, Park and Tourism Sciences Dept. at Texas A&M University under leadership of Dr. Carson Watt
5. Leadership - inspired by the book written by Stephen Simpson, The Leader Who is Hardly Known, this section addresses
fundamental ideas of "Service oriented leadership". This section throws out what we have been taught about "leadership"
until this point in history. These ideas are guided by the idea put forward by Desmond D. Green - (see additional reference)
"Authority without vision is the author of much confusion."
6. Team Building - compiling a variety of essays and resources into a single outline as a preparation for community development work. A focus is on each individual beginning a process for "blank slating" - planting seeds for going into a Service opportunity for a more enlightened personal experience, but also to be of greater service to the people and places where the work is to be accomplished. This particular outline was developed for preparing people from the United States who were interested in working in India. More on Team Building
7. Volunteerism - is an extremely important topic. I will be delving into this topic soon, but until I provide the link, here is an excellent presentation about Service, as an inspiration for the majority of people What Really Motivates Us (I have to thank my friend, artist, Dean Timmerman, in posterity for pointing me to this powerful presentation.
Download a Pdf document of this course series, in rough draft form.