Join us on FacebookInspiring Communities
Inspiring Communities has been working since 2008 to grow the recognition, understanding and practice of community-led development and promote the difference it makes in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Inspiring Communities has been working with eight communities from around the country to write up learning and outcome stories. These stories talk about what it is really like to work together, building community and nurturing leaders as well as how to keep it all going. Listed at the end are the key learnings those who were there took forward into what came next. Check them all out here and begin to write your own!
In August Inspirig Communities brought Jim Diers, a neighbourhood development guru, over from Seattle to speak and meet around the country. There was a huge interest from right around the country with a range of co-hosts and 18 odd workshops set up in 7 places…..including a breakfast seminar hosted by Len Brown in Auckland and a cross parliamentary breakfast in Welly. View the video of Jim speaking at the Inspiring Communities event here.
Canadian Nicole Foss toured Aotearoa back in March-April, 2012 thanks to Resilience by Design the 11th Australasian Permaculture Convergence held in Turangi 11-15 April and a number of local hosts. Feedback from her 24th March Kim Hill interview describes her as “the most lucid, informed analyst of the current state-of-play… Unmissable.” Key take-outs for helping to build your community’s resilience include:
- Begin or join a Timebank
- Write a regular community newsletter to communicate the good news and how people can participate in community activities
- Consider a local currency, a savings pool and a cooperative as well as supporting local businesses and events
- Do all you can to relocalise your food security. Start with your own backyard, have a look around for some space for a community garden. Dig up some of the grass and plant some veges
- Nurture a culture of gifting, sharing and possibility in your place
Please share your inspiration, ideas, successes and challenges with Inspiring Communities so everyone can learn together.
Connecting online for real time action is increasingly popular and there are a number of websites popping up to help people do just that. In Auckland there is www.downtheroad.co.nz while in Portland there is www.portland.brightneighbor.com and over in Perth www.allweneedisrighthere.org. Join up, or start one in your area and find people who think and do like you!
Tactical Urbanism is about short-term action for long-term change that improves the liveability of towns and cities. Commonly starting at the local scale, incremental and relatively small improvements are seen as a way to stage more substantial investments while also offering immediate results and rewards. Sometimes sanctioned, sometimes not, Tactical Urbanism features the following five characteristics:
- A deliberate, phased approach to instigating change
- The offering of local solutions for local planning challenges
- Short-term commitment and realistic expectations
- Low-risks, with a possibly a high reward
- The development of social capital between citizens
Plus the building of organisational capacity between people and organisations.
See their latest publication here and get regular insight, inspiration and updates here.
For more information about Inspiring Communities, please contact the organisation directly: exchange@inspiringcommunities.org.nz