Sustainability Language

Development, Impact & Global Frameworks

Community development

A process in which community members come together to take collective action on shared concerns, building capacity and self-reliance.

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Definition

Community development is a practice and profession in which people in a defined community organise, identify common needs and act collectively to improve their social, economic and environmental conditions, with emphasis on participation, empowerment and local leadership. The International Association for Community Development adopted a global definition in 2016, and the United Nations has long framed it as a process of citizen participation and democratic action.

References

Overview

What it means

It treats communities as agents of change rather than passive recipients of services.

How it is used

Applied by NGOs, local government and international agencies in livelihoods, health, housing and post-disaster programmes; the Community Development Journal has published the field's scholarship since 1966.

Why it matters

Participation-driven development is consistently linked to more durable and equitable sustainability outcomes.

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