Strength in Systems
An Asset Based Community Development activity collection
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Welcome to Strength in Systems!
This collection of activities is designed to bring members of a community together to build trust, envision personal and collective goals for the future, and begin working together to make progress in achieving those goals.
This collection of activities is one section of a larger Asset Based Community Development Toolkit. The purpose of the ABCD Toolkit is to be a guide for community leaders that want to celebrate and use the strengths present in local citizens and organizations to create a future where their community thrives.
Community Social Capital Model
University of Minnesota Extension
What is Asset Based Community Development?
What is Asset Based Community Development?
Building community capacity is at the heart of ABCD’s work
Building community capacity is at the heart of ABCD’s work
When trying to help an underserved community that has experienced generations of systemic oppression, it is a common practice for leaders or outside organizations to analyze the affected communities and approach the change from a deficit mindset. While it is true that communities have certain needs that should be addressed, constantly describing a community by what they do not have is mentally and emotionally damaging.
Asset Based Community Development enables communities to harness skills and boost the power and capacity that already exists amongst their members to reach the goals they have for thriving in the future.
Creating connections between individuals, community groups, and large institutions will generate a flow of resources and knowledge that can solve community problems from within, rather than relying solely on outside help. This ensures that solutions for problems are created OF, BY, and FOR the community. Also, this will strengthen the sense of community that members experience, building trust and relationships where there once was estrangement and skepticism.
"[ABCD involves using] local assets as the primary building blocks of sustainable community development. Building on the skills of local residents, the power of local associations, and the supportive functions of local institutions, asset-based community development draws upon existing community strengths to build stronger, more sustainable communities for the future."
-ABCD Institute
A "Double Diamond" Model for ABCD and Human Centered Design
This framework helps break down the process of facilitating ABCD within a community, and builds upon the original double diamond model of Human Centered Design practice.
Strength in Systems Activities
Strength in Systems Activities
- Listen and Share - Story Weaving
"Listen and Share" is an activity that is designed to help build communication trust amongst different individuals within a community. It gives people a chance to share stories about their lives and practice deep listening when hearing stories from others.
6 Reasons to Tell Our Story
Why is this activity important?
Though individuals may live and work in the same community, people have become increasingly disconnected and isolated. It is common to not know all the neighbors on your block. Because of a threat of discrimination or judgement, people who have complementary skills and interests may never have the chance to collaborate or even meet each other. Most of all, people distrust larger local institutions due to lack of transparency, lack of genuine connection, and most likely a history of institutionalized racism.
The goal of this activity is to begin to build authentic relationships between individuals, members of associations, and representatives from institutions.
Partnership for Safety and Justice's report
“When We Tell Our Stories”
What do we do?
"By sharing our stories, we are weaving a tapestry of connection and wisdom"
- Dr. Barbara Green
Everyone will have a chance to share multiple stories:
Personal story of success that they are proud of
Story of family/ community success that they take pride in
Story about a time where they did not feel heard, seen, or respected
Story about a time where they felt their community was not heard, seen, or respected
As the group hears a story, they listen for the key aspects of the storyteller's feelings and experiences. The group then repeats those aspects back to the storyteller for confirmation, and honors them by writing each one on a specific strip of paper/ cloth.
After each person shares a story, the group works together to weave the strips into a tapestry, with the success strips on one side and the struggle strips on the other, to represent that all of our experiences make this community strong. At the end, they will have created a tapestry that acknowledges the hardships people have faced and shines light on the success of the community and hope for the future.
2. Follow Through on Promises
2. Follow Through on Promises
"Follow Through on Promises" is an activity that is designed to help build accountability trust amongst different individuals within a community. It gives people an opportunity to help each other achieve small victories in their lives, and proves that they are willing and able to use their connections, skills, or resources to help their fellow community members.
Why is this activity important?
When people believe their neighbors have their back, they begin to strengthen their sense of citizen responsibility to support and protect their neighbors. Developing authentic relationships is the first step to strengthening a community, but in order for the community to rise up together, people need to know that they can depend on each other. Especially when trying to form or repair relationships between institutions and citizens, citizens need to see an institution "put its money where its mouth is" and prove that they are committed to nourishing this relationship.
The goal of this activity is for people to lay out ways they would like support, and establish clear expectations between people for giving and receiving support. This begins the longer process of people and institutions following through on the commitments they have made.
What do we do?
Individually, think of a small goal, or “quick win” you have wanted to accomplish for yourself, your family, or your community.
Example:
Install some washing machines and dryers in the local high school
Think about the reasons why this goal is important to accomplish. Keep thinking deeper to get to the core reason.
Example:
1st - Ensure source of clean clothes for students
2nd - Increase comfort in attending school
3rd - Ensure student fulfillment and success in school
As a small group, brainstorm ways that this goal can be achieved with the help of the community. Volunteer ways that you can help. Think of how the underlying “whys” can be solved.
Examples:
"I live right next to an appliance resale shop, I will ask the owner if they have any laundry units and give her your number so she can let you know when any get dropped off"
"My brother does laundry installations, I can connect you with him and he can provide a discount!"
"Our hospital is renovating our laundry room and is getting new appliances, so I can ask my supervisor if some units can be donated to the high school"
Once each person has shared their goal and gotten offers for support, each pair of people exchanging support sets clear expectations for help, sets a deadline to complete the task, and schedules a follow-up to update progress.
Example:
"I promise to talk to my supervisor about donating the hospital laundry units and connect you with her by end of day this Friday, Dec. 9th. I will follow up with you on Wednesday, Dec.14th to make sure my supervisor has responded, and will keep her accountable for working with you."
3. Imagine a Positive Future
3. Imagine a Positive Future
"Imagine a Positive Future" is an activity that is designed to help build alignment trust amongst different individuals within a community. It allows people to bring their big dreams for the community's future to the table and agree on a collaborative project that builds towards achieving those dreams.
Why is this activity important?
Individuals, associations, and institutions all have their own ideas of what community success and wellness looks like. When people understand each other's motivations and dreams, it is easier to begin to work together towards benefitting the community. Also, it is important to understand who in the community is striving to accomplish the same things. Associations with similar goals may be competing for the same resources and not even realize it. When given an opportunity to connect, they can move towards working together in harmony and sharing resources/ assets.
The goal of this activity is for a group of people to brainstorm a large list of ideas for projects that would benefit the community as a whole, and agree on one to start pursuing in the short-term.
Bethel New Life
What do we do?
Bring your big challenge/ goal from the "Follow Through on Promises" activity to the group.
Partner with a person outside of your block, association/ club, or institution. Share your big challenges and discuss similarities and potential for change.
Together, brainstorm some ideas that could benefit both people’s challenges/ goals. Write down all of your ideas and agree on a favorite.
Once you have come up with a potential idea, group with another pair and share your ideas. As a group, brainstorm an idea that combines the two, or come up with an idea that serves all four goals.
Keep combining groups until all the participants comes together and create one idea that would benefit everyone.
Create a list of assets that are needed to be able to make this goal a reality.
4. Work As One
4. Work As One
"Work As One" is an activity that is designed to help build competency trust amongst different individuals within a community. It people a concrete way to extend past the ideation stage for a community project and enter into the planning and logistics stage.
Why is this activity important?
When riding the high of community collaboration and brainstorming for the future, it is easy to get caught up in ideation but then lose momentum when it comes to knowing how to start. Visualizing the give-and-take between individuals, associations, and institutions will clearly establish the roles they play in supporting each other, and the process for starting to work on the project comes more smoothly.
The goal of this activity is to discover the reciprocal relationships between individuals, associations, and institutions within their community, and visualize the connected system that will enable the community to complete the joint project and achieve their own goals as well.
What do we do?
Once the community project has been established, people pair up to establish their reciprocal relationship, as well as how they will contribute to the project.
For fun, use a spinwheel with the names of the individuals present (and the organization they represent) to create randomized pairs every 15 minutes!
When paired up, the two people first brainstorm what ways they/ their organization can contribute to the community project. They then write on the diagram what skill, asset, or resource they will offer.
Next, the two people will share their big challenge/goal from the "Imagine a Positive Future" activity, and see what they can offer each other in terms of support. Their offerings do not have to be related to the large community project, but if they are able to connect it, that could potentially enhance the longevity of the project.
When the pair is finished, they each move on to different partners and repeat the process, only this time, they can share what their previous pair discussed, and can see if even more connections/ reciprocal relationships can be formed.
The above picture is an idealistic result to this activity, where the community has formed an interconnected web that revolves around the large project and helps each individual, association, and institution thrive.
The process to creating a map like this will take time and iteration, and will probably require multiple rounds of this activity to complete. The connections are there and will stay there, so it is ok to go at the pace of discovery and realize new connections gradually. Any recognition of a new reciprocal relationship is a success, no matter how small!
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