Community Involvement

This section of the Toolkit will help you involve your WHOLE community in your playspace project. Your playground or skatepark may primarily serve young people, but it will be planned, built, cared for and enjoyed by parents, seniors, and singles alike.

One of the most critical phases of your playspace planning lies in tapping you’re your community’s “assets.”

Who and what are assets?
Assets are the skills, talents and gifts of individuals, associations, businesses, and institutions in your community.

Folks in your town may not have cash to give, but in this part of the Toolkit, you will learn how to leverage what they can give, whether it's time, a hand-made craft, a yummy baked treat or their bilingual language skills. This approach to community organizing is commonly referred to as Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD).

What is Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD)?
Asset-Based Community Development is a positive, community-based approach to community organizing. Quite simply, ABCD builds on what a community has by focusing on the positives and the strengths present in every community.

An important element of ABCD is "connecting the dots" between and among community assets through relationship building. By making and building on these connections, you widen the circle of community involvement and build stronger networks that sustain a community over time.

Learn more about Asset-Based Community Development (http://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/abcd/)