Care of People on the Margin

John talks about two different approaches to community organizing in a Q & A session on community development with participants in a workshop sponsored by the Communities First Association. Watch the conversation and discover the difference between community organizing and...

“You get food, you get exercise, you get vitamin D … it’s a sense of freedom,” says New York native Ila Falvey in a recent article on community gardening from The Philanthropic Enterprise’s Trends in Innovation series. Falvey was recently elected...

I started law school in 1987. I was 29 years old and married with a blended family of seven kids at home. We were politically and socially active, making a difference in our community. My husband was sometimes arrested...

The Highlands neighbourhood lies in northeast Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, overlooking the North Saskatchewan River valley. It’s a mature neighbourhood of Foursquare and various Arts and Crafts style homes, large lots, big trees and beautiful river views, all close by central Edmonton. Annexed by Edmonton in 1912,...

What would make Cincinnati a great city? To explore that question, more than 100 folks from around town gathered with Peter and John to learn about “The Abundant Community.” There is growing buzz around town about civic engagement and how we...

When Edd Conboy took over orchestrating the Breaking Bread meals at Broad Street Ministry in Philadelphia, he focused on developing as many ways as possible to counteract the constant messages about scarcity that their guests encounter each and every...

When residents are genuinely at the center of community building, a different process unfolds. Relationships become the centerpiece of the work. This is because for residents community building is personal — it’s about their children, their families, their homes, their neighbors and their streets. It...

Download or listen to John and Peter's March 5 conversation with Mary Nelson on asset-based approaches to building community generally and what makes them effective. Mary is the founder and longtime Director of Bethel New Life, one of the nation's best neighborhood development...

The I Ching is an ancient Chinese book of 64 oracular readings that reflect enduring wisdom that predates and includes Confucianism and Taoism. The readings consist of archetypal circumstances with guidance on how the individual may act in harmony...