2025 CDS Annual Conference

CDS Conference Attendee Check-in Schedule
July 6th: 8:00am to 6:00pm
July 7th: 7:15am to 12:00pm
July 8th: 8:00am to 12:00pm
July 9th: 8:00am to 9:30am

Check-in includes:
- Picking up your name badge
- Receiving your meal tickets, if applicable
- Receiving promo bag

At the CDS Registration Desk you can also:
- Register for the CDS Conference until 5pm ET on July 6
- Register for remaining open spots on Mobile Learning Workshops until 10am ET on July 7
- Bid on the 2025 CDS Silent Auction (Silent Auction Items will be nearby)
- Pay for Silent & Live Auction winning bids
- Visit to ask any questions or resolve any issues

We look forward to meeting you!

This presentation will feature the initial efforts to build collaborations between neighborhood
leaders and university partners in Port Alfred, South Africa, and Missouri, USA. In 2024,
colleagues from Stenden South Africa, University of Missouri Extension, University of
Missouri-Columbia, and University of Missouri-St. Louis hosted the first international pilot of
Neighborhood Leadership Academy – South Africa, after almost a year of learning and working
together virtually. This presentation will discuss the process for building the collaboration,
adapting the curriculum, lessons learned and impacts from the pilot training, and next steps in
deepening the partnership for future shared international learning and exchange.

This project highlights the opportunities for shared learning and community-led impact across
international boundaries made possible by leveraging the experience, resources, and common
values of community leaders and universities in the Port Alfred region of South Africa, and
Missouri, USA. Using an evidence-based leadership development curriculum, over twelve hours
of joint review and development, adapting materials for the local context, and deep commitment
by the partners, the first Neighborhood Leadership Academy-South Africa train-the-trainer
program was hosted in May 2024 with thirteen community leaders and four university faculty.
The goal of the collaboration was to identify barriers and opportunities for community leadership
development in resource-limited communities, adapt existing training resources, uncover shared
learning opportunities, and support faculty and community members with the skills and
curriculum to continue offering leadership development training for grassroots leaders long-term.
This presentation will highlight core community leadership values shared by community
members in Port Alfred and Missouri communities, what worked in the process, opportunities
for continued program adaptations moving forward, as well as evaluation data from the program
and six-month follow up impact evaluation of participants. Next steps including student and
community leader exchanges, leveraging institutional and community experiences for enhanced
shared learning, expanded university partner sites, additional curriculum modifications, and
funding proposals for future work will be discussed.

The Community Development Program (CDP) was first implemented in 1968 in Taiwan and achieved the goal of the first phase of infrastructure construction in 1980. For administrative and historical reasons, CDP is implemented by the social welfare department who has been looking forward to integrating Community Development Associations (CDAs) into the social welfare provision system. However, like Western countries, CDAs function as community clubs and lack capacity and cannot meet the expectations of the authorities. The experience of the Community Care Centre Project (CCCP) started in 2008 has accumulated initial experience for social workers to guide CDAs to enhance their capacity, which was beneficial to the establishment of Community Empowerment Centers (CECs) in local authorities in 2015. CECs provide a practical mechanism for social workers to implement community empowerment. The Changhua and Tainan CECs use social work methods to implement team building, external supervision, and case management, distinguishing them from the other 21 community empowerment centers in Taiwan. The two centers not only transformed CDAs into local welfare service points, but also clearly articulated the methods they used based on a theoretical foundation. This article analyzes these community empowerment modules, using social work methods to define service objectives within a helping philosophy, employ social work concepts as internal communication language, and outlining the role of empowerment in the professional role of social workers. It discusses how the social work profession enhances the efficiency and accuracy of implementing community empowerment and concludes with suggestions for further professional development and expanded application.

Explanation of how the presentation relates to the conference theme

Researchers focused on answering the question, “How do leaders inspire hope and relational action in
communities through story?” and discovered that stories provide a compelling pathway to innovative
and transformative change in a range of community settings. Through storytelling, community members
can share learnings, collectively increase passion, learning, and capacity to address challenges and
opportunities. Through storytelling, community leaders create shifts in mental models and inspire a
larger group of community members (in rural, urban, regional and international examples) to drive
innovation that is people-centered, inclusive and empowering for diverse voices and talents.
This research includes stories and lessons from community leaders across cultures, generations, and
communities.

These included leaders who:
● created the first Latine festival in a rural, predominantly white community;
● sparked collective anti-racism actions following an anti-Muslim mass shooting;
● broke internal barriers and external stereotypes with the Hmong community to create
culturally-led television and community-centered educational programming;
● healed organizational and LGBTQ+ network rifts while navigating a pandemic to successfully hold
a Pride Fest in a large urban community; and
● helped Croatia transition from communism to capitalism.

This session will share an interview framework, the stories shared, and lessons learned for community
capacity building for storytelling in leadership programs.

Overall description for the conference program

How do leaders inspire hope and relational action in communities through story?
Join the presenters as they share their community-based research about the power of storytelling for
sparking community-wide change. This includes stories about leaders who brought about change and
innovation in communities ranging from small rural communities to international approaches to
economic development. Each story shows positive impact towards creating pathways to improvement.
Presenters will highlight what the literature has to say about change management and the potential for
storytelling. They will also discuss implications for leadership development in uncertain times.

Communities for Kids (C4K) was founded with the vision of ensuring communities can thrive by
strengthening the community-based early childhood care and education system. C4K began its
journey by listening to the voices of struggling communities and moved forward to develop a
community organization approach emphasizing collective impact and providing flexible
technical assistance. The partnership between C4K and Nebraska communities is built on the
belief that the best solutions come from within the community. We will share community stories
grounded in three pillars: Engagement, Data Utilization, and Connection. These stories will
focus on community power and strong local collaborations.

Storytellers will share stories from across Nebraska highlighting the power of local efforts and
the guiding philosophy that answers to a community’s challenges will be found in that
community. These stories align with the conference theme of "Innovative Pathways to Thriving
Communities," showcasing the importance of building a collective approach, community
exploration of opportunities, leveraging resources, and co-creation of effective solutions by
community members. The impacts are measured through collection of quantitative data and
community conversations related to the Community Capitals Framework.
C4K partners with communities to increase access to quality early childhood care and education
through a framework that helps guide the community planning process. Community participation
within C4K is a fundamental element that ensures inclusivity by reaching out to various sectors
within the community. This requires thoughtful strategy, and the importance of this effort lies in
acknowledging that any segment of the population left unengaged represents a loss to the overall
effort.

Communities for Kids partners with over 70 communities across Nebraska, each taking a unique
approach to strengthening early childhood care and education. These communities focus on
raising awareness of the importance of early childhood programs, emphasizing their connection
to economic development, workforce support, and providing quality experiences for young
children during their critical developmental years.
A variety of stories will be shared, including one about a community that influenced a statewide
system to support non-English speaking early childhood teachers, unique partnerships developed,
and how focused communities shape the priorities of statewide agencies and early childhood
policy.

Description of the Present and Respond panel

The field of refugee studies outlines several domains that evidence suggests are of central importance to achieving integration – the long-term goal of resettlement. Equally important is the role that receiving communities play in facilitating integration. The presenter, a city planner by training who is deeply involved in refugee resettlement through his work and volunteer activities, is exploring how the theory and practice of community development can help achieve refugee integration and link resettlement to local development. The presenter will share examples from practice and invite responders to comment and critique from their perspectives as scholars.

It may seem an odd time to be thinking about long-term refugee resettlement considering the program in the U.S. has been suspended by the Trump administration. But the program could be restarted if various lawsuits prevail, and there are hundreds of thousands who began their resettlement in the U.S. before this year. And the U.S. is not the only country that resettles (or resettled) refugees; overseas experience can help inform U.S. approaches, and vice versa. Furthermore at some point the entire refugee program in the U.S. may be re-invented, at which time new ideas might contribute to the discussion.

Note: Judi Aubel will be presenting on behalf of Mamadou Coulibaly.

In Senegal, over a ten-year period and through an iterative learning process, a conceptual
framework and methodology called Change through Culture (CtC) was developed through the
Girls’ Holistic Development (GHD) program to address girls’ education, child marriage, teen
pregnancy and female genital mutilation. GHD is an intergenerational approach that involves
elders, adults and adolescents in various dialogical activities to promote collective reflection and
consensus-building for change in support of adolescent girls. Evaluation of GHD reveals that the
CtC approach it has led to very positive change in community capacity to promote change in line
with their priorities for adolescent girls’ development.

How the GHD program exemplifies: People-driven solutions
The GHD program is an example of a people-driven solution as it catalyzes dialogue within
communities and challenges them to identify community level actions to promote Girls’ Holistic
Development.

Presentation objectives:
First, to explain the 5 pillars of the CtC approach. Second, to describe
the use of the CtC approach in GHD. Third, to present the very positive results of the program
based on an extensive external evaluation.

The Change Through Culture (CtC approach):
The CtC approach builds on 5 key pillars: 1) grounding all community interventions in cultural
context; 2) acknowledging the culturally-designated role of elders, especially of grandmothers,
in SBC related to women, children and adolescents; 3) strengthening intergenerational
communication; 4) strengthening community leader skills and commitment; 5) using
communication methods based on dialogue for consensus-building. The use of CtC approach in
the GHD program will be explained.

In the GHD program a series of dialogue-focused activities elicit community-wide discussion of
key GHD issues. These include: intergenerational forums (with elders, adults, adolescents, male
and female); Days of Praise of Grandmothers; Grandmother Leadership Training; Under-the-
Tree participatory learning sessions with girls, mothers, grandmothers; and intergenerational
women-specific forums.

Results of the Girls’ Holistic Development program:
The GHD program elicited strong community engagement from traditional community
and religious leaders. Adult education methods were used in all community activities to
elicit reflection and dialogue to encourage community consensus-building for change.
Strong community engagement in GHD reflects the critical importance of involving
culturally-designated and community-recognized authorities in efforts to promote social
change. Along with adolescents, parents and elders were involved, and especially
grandmothers, given their role in supporting adolescent girls’ development.

1. Program/Project Description The Ethio-China Scholarship Hub, established in 2022, is a volunteer-driven initiative dedicated to supporting Ethiopian students in securing scholarships for higher education in China. Through digital platforms like Telegram and WeChat, the hub shares official scholarship links, provides step-by-step application guidance, answers queries, and hosts interactive mentorship sessions with successful scholars. With over 6,000 Telegram and 500 WeChat followers. Managed by 12 dedicated volunteers, including PhD holders and candidates, the hub fosters academic excellence, strengthens the research community, and expands educational access through technology-driven solutions.

2. Relation to the Conference Theme 
   

The Ethio-China Scholarship Hub aligns with the 2025 CDS Annual Conference Theme: "Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities" by leveraging technology and community-driven collaboration to promote equitable access to higher education for Ethiopian students.
Technological Integration for Accessibility:
Through Telegram and WeChat, the hub provides a cost-effective, scalable platform that disseminates official scholarship opportunities, assists in applications, and connects students with scholars for real-time mentorship. By harnessing digital tools, the initiative removes barriers to education, particularly for underserved Ethiopian students.
People-Driven Solutions for Sustainable Growth:
The hub is entirely volunteer-led, with PhD holders and candidates serving as mentors, offering insights and experiences to guide aspiring scholars. This peer-support model ensures a community-driven, culturally relevant, and sustainable approach to scholarship accessibility.
Place-Based Collaboration for Impact:
The initiative collaborates with universities and government bodies to enhance outreach and provide structured guidance for Ethiopian students. These partnerships create a well-informed, skilled applicant pool, strengthening both the scientific and research communities in Ethiopia.
By bridging the gap between scholarship providers and Ethiopian students, the hub fosters educational empowerment, capacity building, and long-term community development. This model serves as an innovative, scalable, and replicable pathway to thriving communities through higher education.

Description: In recent years, community land trusts (CLTs) have emerged as an alternative land
ownership strategy to promote affordable housing, community ownership, democratic decision-
making, and community wealth building opportunities, especially for marginalized groups.
However, little is known about the complicated nature of scaling up CLT landownership in urban
neighborhoods to actualize their promise. Moreover, multiple stakeholders are playing
significant roles in the expansion of these models, bringing into question the power dynamics
inherent in CLT efforts. By ethnographically examining the evolution of five CLTs in three
different cities—Chicago, Memphis, and San Diego—we address the complexities of CLT
implementation including the role of the community, organizers and funders, and the power
dynamics between the groups.

Conference Theme: CLTs have immense potential to overcome U.S. the inaffordability,
political polarization, and individual wealth building inherent in our cities and country. Despite
the use of CLTs in the U.S. since at least the 1960s, the academic literature on these models is
still scarce and local and state stakeholders lack case study research to effectively advocate for
them. Findings of this qualitative study will assist future communities in their attempts to
establish and scale up CLTs so they can reach their regional potential. As such, this paper speaks
to the conference themes of place-based collaboration and people-driven solutions. First, CLTs
are place-based collaborations that pool the resources of multiple stakeholders. This includes the
economic resources of funders, the technical resources of organizers, and the local knowledge
and democratic participation of residents and community members. Our paper attempts to
facilitate knowledge sharing about the power dynamics involved in these collaborations to
improve future iterations in other neighborhoods and cities. Furthermore, CLTs are at their core
people-driven solutions. CLTs are established for the benefit of community members’ access to
ownership, affordability of housing, and amplification of their collective voices. We discuss
implications for increasing inclusivity and empowerment in these models.

All Things Nebraska is a unique platform that integrates critical datasets to support real-time
decision-making for Nebraskans. This mapping application and database are co-created to serve communities, municipalities, residents, and the UNL system. Its goal is to provide up-to-date, quality data across various sectors for stakeholders including businesses, nonprofits, governments, researchers, and Extension staff. The platform offers valuable insights for decision-making and strengthens Nebraska Extension’s ability to address critical issues, while engaging partners, local decision-makers, and community members through public access to this comprehensive data resource.

All Things Nebraska aligns perfectly with the theme of Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities:
People, Technology, and Place-based Collaboration by leveraging data to foster informed decision-
making and collaboration among diverse community stakeholders. This platform is designed to integrate critical datasets that support the needs of Nebraskans, ensuring that people—whether business owners, residents, nonprofit leaders, or government officials—have access to relevant, up-to-date information. Through this data, users can make decisions that directly impact their communities, driving sustainable growth and local development. The platform’s use of technology is key to connecting people across various sectors. By providing a comprehensive mapping application and database, All Things Nebraska bridges gaps between municipalities, businesses, researchers, and Extension staff, facilitating seamless communication and collaborative action. Technology serves as a catalyst, enabling stakeholders to access data in real-time, identify challenges, and craft data-driven solutions that improve quality of life.
Furthermore, All Things Nebraska is deeply place-based, as it focuses specifically on Nebraska’s unique needs and opportunities. It recognizes that every community is different, and thus, the data provided is tailored to help local decision-makers address region-specific issues, whether in agriculture, education, infrastructure, or public health. By fostering collaboration and empowering local stakeholders with relevant insights, the platform builds a foundation for thriving, resilient communities where people are equipped to address pressing issues and seize opportunities for
innovation and growth. Ultimately, All Things Nebraska exemplifies how technology and collaboration can be harnessed to create meaningful, place-based solutions that benefit all Nebraskans.

The Regional Knowledge Center (RNC) exemplifies an innovative model of Place-Based Collaboration by employing a “collaborative governance” model. In recent years, "collaborative governance" has gained prominence in public administration, political science, and various fields, particularly in the U.S. and internationally, describing a wide range of public policymaking approaches that transcend public, private, and civic boundaries. Over the past decade, this term has been refined to refer specifically to multiparty, consensus-driven processes, often facilitated by a neutral third party, aimed at resolving distinct public policy challenges. This definitional specificity differentiates collaborative governance from other forms of cooperation, such as partnerships, coalitions, and networks. 
The primary mission of the RNC is to promote both national and local policies, that enhance regional quality of life through data-driven strategic planning and informed governmental decisions. To achieve this mission, the center leverages existing data and initiates research and surveys involving citizens and stakeholders, to gather relevant data on quality-of-life indicators. These data analyses are used to draft policy briefs and recommendations for local and national decision-makers and raise public awareness of regional issues and challenges. The RNC's initiatives are also directed toward fostering a regional identity among communities, building a culture of collaboration, and encouraging active civic engagement. 
The RNC stands as a collaborative effort, supported by Tel-Hai College, the Eastern Galilee Cluster, the Ronald S. and Roadburg Foundation, and the Jewish Federations of Canada. We lead research focused on critical socio-demographic trends within the Eastern Galilee region, driven by active public participation. Our central mission is to enhance the quality of life in our region by facilitating informed policy decisions grounded in locally relevant data. we are committed to making a profound impact on socio-economic landscape by harnessing the power of knowledge and community involvement. Together, we strive to build a brighter and more prosperous future for our region.

High-Level Description (100 Words)
This session explores emerging trends in community development (CD) and local development and society (LD&S) research, focusing on innovations in practice, technology, and scholarship. Featuring insights from CDS journals, we’ll discuss critical themes shaping the field, including the role of emerging technologies like AI, strategies for enhancing community resilience, and equitable development. The session also provides practical tips on preparing standout submissions for our journals, emphasizing ways to bridge the gap between research, policy, and practice. This interactive discussion invites scholars, practitioners, and policymakers to reflect on current trends and share strategies for advancing impactful community development research.
Expanded Description (250 Words)
This session highlights the latest trends and critical discussions in community development (CD) and local development and society (LD&S) research and practice, drawing on insights from CDS journals. Aligning with the 2025 conference theme, “Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities,” the presentation examines evolving topics that are reshaping the field, such as resilience building, equitable urban and rural development, and the integration of emerging technologies.
While artificial intelligence (AI) will be a focal point in exploring how technology intersects with community development, the session will also cover other transformative tools, frameworks, and opportunities. These innovations are positioned alongside established community development models, fostering a conversation about blending tradition and technology to address contemporary challenges.
The session will include practical advice for researchers and practitioners aiming to publish their work in CDS journals, offering insights into crafting impactful submissions that resonate with editors, reviewers, and the broader academic and practitioner communities. We will discuss strategies for aligning research with critical themes, ensuring methodological rigor, and addressing the broader implications of findings for community practice and policy.
Attendees will have the opportunity to engage in an interactive dialogue with editors, gain clarity on navigating the submission process, and reflect on how their work contributes to emerging conversations in CD and LD&S. Whether new to the field or an experienced scholar, this session promises to inspire and equip participants to advance impactful research and practice.

This study explores how Louisiana's three largest cities—New Orleans, Baton Rouge,  and Shreveport—leverage social media to connect with their communities through their  parks and recreation departments. The study uses both content analysis and interviews  to identify strategies and challenges to effectively using technology to enhance  community through the parks systems. This research delves into the effectiveness of  these digital strategies in fostering engagement, promoting park usage, and ultimately  enhancing the quality of life for Louisiana residents. 
Public parks have long served as community hubs, evolving from equitable spaces  breaking class barriers to modern gathering places. The industrial age shifted populations  to cities, increasing the need for public parks. As public parks became a more important  part of government, people realized they contributed to various positive community  impacts. Well-managed public park systems can contribute to a community’s economic  development, enhance healthy living, and address environmental concerns. 
Meanwhile, technology has changed the way people interact and build community,  especially with the use of social media. Public entities, such as public parks, can leverage  this tool for communication, citizen engagement, and mobilizing the public in a resourceful  and productive manner to help them achieve their goals more efficiently and effectively  (Xu & Saxton, 2019; Bhati & McDonnell, 2020). Social media has evolved as the most  effective medium of persuasive communication, public relations, promotion, and  marketing in the 21st century. 
This research examines how the parks and recreation departments of three Louisiana  cities (New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Shreveport) utilize social media to build  community. By analyzing their content and interviewing content creators, the study aims  to understand their goals, successes, and challenges. The "Hierarchy of Engagement"  model categorizes social media messages into Information, Action, and Community.  While Information is a common use, a more interactive approach is often more effective. 

In 2017 Facebook presented its vision to be a platform for the global community. In  2018, a year after the announcement, 1.4 billion people were members of Facebook  groups, of which 200 million were members of significant groups and as defined by  Facebook, communities. In 2020, about 60% of the adults and about 69% of the youth in  Israel felt that "networks make you feel part of the community". These data show that  the social network Facebook is an important player in the community arena. 
 This qualitative study seeks to examine the perception of managers of geographic  Facebook communities regarding the definition and purpose of these communities. This understanding will help deepen the place of geographic Facebook communities  on community life and examine whether the geographic Facebook community is a  community 'without kinship' or whether it complements and expands the traditional  community.  
The data were collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews with fifteen geographic Facebook community managers. Informed by thematic analysis the findings  indicate that Geographic Facebook communities exist not only online but have meaning  in real life such as friendships, mutual help, problem solving, etc. The interactivity  between the spaces - online and physical - blurs the distinction between them. The  Facebook community is perceived as a geographical meeting space similar to a  playground or a neighborhood restaurant.  
The research findings sharpen that the distinction between the geographic community  and the geographic Facebook community is almost imperceptible and that there is an  interaction between the two communities or in fact between the different spaces of the  same community. These communities allow the members of the community a new and  useful opportunity to build and maintain community ties and develop a sense of  community belonging even beyond the physical geographic limitations. This is a  paradigm shift in the concept of community development - moving from involvement  that is limited by the physical space, to involvement that also takes place through the  online space. Dealing and developing both spaces foster connectivity within and  between communities.

Overall description of the program/project: 
Closing the digital divide has been a key objective for communities across the United States. The  University of Wisconsin – Madison Extension Broadband Team addressed this capacity gap through  collaboration and network-building principles. We empowered community members via workshops,  a comprehensive toolkit, webinars, and technical assistance, fostering co-learning and resource  sharing. Our inclusive approach encouraged local ownership of broadband planning, highlighting  successful case studies and practical solutions. We facilitated knowledge sharing and relationship  building across geographic boundaries, engaging all stakeholders, including Tribal entities. Over two  years, we developed 15 webinars, hosted 14 workshops, and provided technical assistance to over 40  communities. 
How our program/project relates to the theme Innovative Pathways to Thriving  Communities:  
Closing the digital divide has been a key objective for communities across the United States.  Communities often find themselves ill-equipped to address the challenge. The University of  Wisconsin – Madison Extension Broadband Team infused collaboration and network-building  principles to address this capacity gap. Through workshops, a comprehensive toolkit, webinars and  technical assistance, we empowered community members to take an active role in broadband  expansion. Our programming fostered co-learning and resource sharing, enabling participants to  gain experiential knowledge and connect as peers. Collaboration was a central theme as we  developed tools and technical assistance that led to effective public-public partnerships. 
People-Driven Solutions: We emphasized inclusive, ensuring all community members' needs are  considered. Our approach encouraged local ownership of broadband planning, providing tools and  knowledge for informed decisions. By highlighting successful case studies and offering practical  solutions, communities could create customized approaches and further build their network. 
Place-Based Collaboration: We facilitated knowledge sharing, relationship building, and collective  impact across geographic boundaries. We encouraged engagement with all stakeholders, including  Tribal entities as sovereign nations, emphasizing that “broadband doesn’t stop at the county line.” 
Program Impact: Over two years, we developed 15 webinars, hosted 14 workshops, created a  comprehensive toolkit, and provided technical assistance to over 40 communities. The ever-evolving  toolkit includes modules on broadband planning and digital equity. We reached 56 out of 72 
counties and 9 out of 11 of Wisconsin’s federally recognized Tribes. This work continues to guide the  expansion of broadband access and digital equity programming for communities across Wisconsin.

Research Posters & Exhibitors: Stern Hall Lobby
Silent Auction Items: Stern Hall - Room 101

This workshop will be a collaborative space for students and those affiliated with the CDS
Student Chapter to come together and talk about this CDS initiative. We will begin by reviewing
the 2024 outcomes from the Student Chapter workshop, then move into goals for the rest of 2025
and 2026. This workshop space proved to be quite useful in developing the mission, vision, and
goals for the International Student Chapter Collective (ISCC), and we would like to carve out a
space at the 2025 conference to do the same.

This is a people-driven solution to community development. The ISCC and the CDS Student
Chapter provide places where students can be supported in their own unique ways. The ISCC
provides learning opportunities and collaborative efforts geared towards students and faculty,
specifically in university setting, and beyond. This is a practical application to community
development practice.

The learning objectives for this workshop include:
 Outlining the objectives and focus areas for the following year of ISCC activities
 Reviewing the past year of progress from the ISCC
 Holding space for additional insights and suggestions related to the ISCC

The Division Midway Alliance (DMA) is a place-based nonprofit dedicated to fostering social  resilience and economic opportunities for the diverse communities in East Portland. This area  of Portland is home to a vibrant mix of cultures, with more than 55% of the population being  either low English proficient or bilingual. To better address the needs of its diverse residents,  DMA conducted a Community Visioning Session. During this session, 109 community members  from nine cultural groups—Afghan, Arabic, Burmese, Bhutanese, Chinese, Latinx, Somali, Pacific  Islander, and Vietnamese—shared their feedback. 
Using a strength-based approach, DMA facilitated the session to focus on community assets  and opportunities for growth. The feedback gathered resulted in the creation of the Cultural  Liaison Model, which has become the foundation for DMA's long-term relationship-building  
efforts. This model ensures that DMA’s programming is culturally relevant, accessible, and  responsive to the unique needs of immigrant and refugee communities. The insights from the  session also led to the development of four new programs. One standout initiative is the Youth Led Cultural Conversation and Mural Art Project, which combines cultural expression with  youth leadership development. This project brings together individuals with diverse identities,  cultures, and geographic backgrounds, creating a space for them to exchange ideas and  collaborate on building a more inclusive and welcoming community. This initiative highlights  the potential of community-driven projects to foster not only social resiliency but also civic  engagement, leadership development, and positive placemaking. It creates opportunities for  intercultural dialogue and youth empowerment, demonstrating how grassroots efforts can  drive meaningful change in diverse communities. 
Overall Description 
The Division Midway Alliance (DMA) is a nonprofit dedicated to fostering social resilience and  economic opportunities for East Portland’s diverse communities, where over 55% of residents  are bilingual or low English proficient. DMA’s Community Visioning Session engaged 109  community members from nine cultural groups to gather feedback. Using a strength-based  approach, the session led to the creation of the Cultural Liaison Model, ensuring culturally  relevant programming. One key initiative, the Youth-Led Cultural Conversation and Mural Art  Project, empowers youth to explore cultural heritage through art and leadership. This  community-driven project promotes social resilience, civic engagement, and youth  

This presentation documents the development, launch, and outline of the 10-month intergenerational master volunteer program for Community Resilience Builders in Orange County, NY, offered through Cornell Cooperative Extension. Community Builders learn to apply frameworks, strategies, and tools that build resilient and just communities in their respective fields of work, areas of interest, and environments. This program is for everyone who wants to "do" something, is interested in personal growth, and in supporting communities to navigate challenges related to public and mental health, climate change, community and economic vitality, equity, education, public safety, and public policy. 
How the presentation relates to Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities?
The Community Resilience Builder Program speaks to Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities by fostering transformative practices that empower individuals and communities to tackle systemic challenges and achieve sustainable well-being.
The program's people-driven solutions emphasize inclusivity and collaboration and invite diverse participants—ranging from educators to community activists—to learn, apply, and share resilience-building strategies. Through experiential learning, participants explore frameworks for equity, belonging, and well-being, empowering them to create environments where diverse voices shape community progress.
Additionally, the program highlights place-based collaboration by equipping participants to lead initiatives tailored to their unique community contexts. Training modules, such as conflict resolution, leadership styles, and community café facilitation, provide practical tools for fostering collective action and dialogue. This approach enables knowledge sharing and resource pooling across sectors and geographies.
Lastly, the program integrates innovative practices that take emerging technologies like AI into account as a factor that impacts community resilience when addressing modern challenges. For example, participants gain insights into the science of resilience and regenerative environments, allowing them to apply cutting-edge principles in areas such as climate adaptation, mental health, and economic vitality. The use of platforms like Moodle for resource sharing also reflects a commitment to technological integration.
By cultivating community-driven leadership, adaptive strategies, and equity-centered action, the Community Resilience Builder Program contributes to creating sustainable, flourishing communities—an essential goal of the "innovation corridors" this conference seeks to promote.

The Community Council Empowerment Pilot Project aims to invest in the advancement of the  Community Councils on the Dutch Caribbean island of Sint Maarten, with the goal of improving social cohesion, empowerment, and  community engagement. This involves equipping community councils with trainings to enhance their  effectiveness as change agents, and resources to establish their councils as official NGO’s. Trainings  include Project Management, Effective Communication and Grant Writing to name a few. The goal is for  the communities to move away from relying solely on initiatives from Government or other  organizations, rather than solving their challenges and improving their quality of life independently. 
The way in which this project relates to the theme, “Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities” is  that thriving communities is the ultimate goal. As the saying goes, “You can bring a horse to the water,  but you cannot make it drink.” Due to Sint Maarten's colonial history under Dutch rule, many of its  people have developed a reliance on the government to address most of their challenges. As a newly  established autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, going on just 15 years now, the  communities of Sint Maarten are nudging towards having their own agency. It is for this reason that the  Department of Community Development, Family and Humanitarian Affairs is working to establish the  Community Councils as formidable entities that have the skills and capacity to seize opportunities and  chart their own paths towards a common goal shared by everyone in their respective neighborhoods.

ABSTRACT: The Institutional Review Board (IRB) was created to protect human research subjects. In community based research, the IRB protections can inhibit centering the voices and experiences of community members themselves. This paper centers on a year-long IRB review for a community based research project where the authors attempted to center community members experiences and use student researchers. Ultimately, the authors decided not to pursue the research through the IRB and become consultants for the nonprofit instead. This paper will discuss both the positive and negative consequences of that decision and best practices for IRBs to use in the future. 
EXPLANATION: The theme of Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities outlines the importance of community development initiatives in supporting flourishing communities. The town gown relationship is of utmost importance in community development and the relationship can be stressed by high education’s institutional requirements. It is important to have an open discussion about the role of IRBs in community based research in particular. Before the establishment of the IRB, community members (research subjects) were taken advantage of. Because the IRB exists, researchers were able to form trusting relationships with communities and create community based research initiatives. In today’s research landscape, the IRB is occasionally viewed as an obstacle to overcome. The IRB can be patriarchal, inflexible, and elitist, none of which center the voice of the community in community based research initiatives. It is up to both the researcher and the IRB to examine protective strategies that pose a barrier to community driven research. The IRB forced researchers to think about protecting community, now it is time that the researchers force the IRB to think about incorporating the community. To truly center community voice within community development, the IRB needs to evolve. 

The relationship between this paper and the conference theme;
Technology integration, people-centered solutions, and location-based collaboration are the three core concerns of this conference. This paper is related to the conference themes of "Human-Centered Solutions" and "Location-Based Collaboration".
The purpose of this paper is to explain and comment on the changes in community development methods in Taiwan.
In the context of government modernization and in response to the aging of society, the government and community organizations have changed the theme of community development, from focusing on environmental construction to providing welfare services. Under these changes in themes, the role of external assistance organizations in community organizations has changed. The methods of these changes are specific people-centered solutions, and these thematic changes that respond to community needs are also local and have the characteristics of location-based collaboration.

General description of meeting agenda
There is no unique design and it follows the general performance of the paper.

Abstract
Under the guidance of the United Nations, Taiwan's community development program began in 1968. Under the background of political martial law at that time, residents were organized from top to bottom, resources were mobilized, and basic hardware construction was completed in 1980. Before the 1990s, community development associations established to promote community development were still responsible for maintaining community construction. After 1990, the political lifting of martial law and administrative modernization made it difficult to promote community development work based on political mobilization. In addition, as the social structure changes to a modern industrial and commercial society, relationships among community residents break down and young people's participation in the community decreases. Most of the members and cadres of community development associations are people with low education or the elderly. Community development associations only operate the functions of community clubs.
In 2008, in response to the aging population, the government implemented the community care center plan, expecting community organizations to play a role in providing primary benefits to the grassroots. Providing continuous and stable services is one of the basic requirements. This requires the continuous strengthening of the capacity of community organizations. How to help community organizations improve their capabilities so that they can operate services stably rather than as a one-time event is a big challenge. The tasks of external mentors focus on community capacity building.
Since 2015, the establishment of 25 community empowerment centers in 23 local governments is a significant improvement. The key to specific implementation is that each community empowerment center develops various useful professional methods for improving community capabilities. This article analyzes and discusses the practice of assisting communities through professional community empowerment centers under the evolution of Taiwan's community development policies, and the corresponding series of new professional developments. In addition to helping relevant professionals reflect, this article will also provide a reference for other countries and regions dealing with social changes.

Description: Polycentric governance systems characterize processes of collective learning, in which myriad policy actors work together to acquire, translate, and disseminate knowledge. This framework is used to explain the dissemination and application of knowledge in  an example from practice, the “6 Regions, One Nebraska” initiative, led by Nebraska’s Department of Economic Development, Nebraska’s Office of the Governor, and the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce & Industry, to demonstrate how polycentric governance applies to regional collaboration initiatives and explains the transmission of knowledge within communities. 

Relation to Theme: Launched in the summer of 2024, the “6 Regions, One Nebraska” initiative was branded as a “new approach” to economic development with special emphasis on being community-driven, action-oriented, and partnership-driven – a place-based collaboration as per the theme of the conference. The initiative was organized according to Nebraska’s six community college regions and involved government, education, and industry leaders from each region in order to leverage local knowledge in brainstorming dynamic and transformative opportunities for economic and regional development across the state. The Center for Public Affairs Research, at the University of Nebraska Omaha, provided data analysis at each regional meeting to share pertinent trends on the region’s demographics, education, workforce, housing, and childcare needs, as well as post-event evaluation. Drawing on participant observation and post-event surveys from the regional meetings, findings suggest that, while regional stakeholders cite the importance of having access to regional data, rarely do they use data to make evidence-based decisions about the potential of economic development in their regions. This research builds on recent findings about c learning in poly-centric system. Overall, this research suggests that while polycentric governance systems may be touted as a framework for collective learning, polycentric systems may fall short when it comes to supporting evidence-based decisions in practice. 

Relevance to Conference Theme
The Food-Energy-Water (FEW) nexus is of utmost importance to the resilience of any thriving community. Innovative and collaborative community-based solutions are needed to advance resilient local FEW systems. This presentation would be of interest to both scholars and practitioners. 
The theoretical framework of the study integrated the Community Capitals Framework, Second Nature, and 100 Resilient Cities. Based on data collected through 54 interviews and focus groups with stakeholders in Dayton (OH), the presentation will discuss perceived community based, collaborative, and innovative solutions to create resilient FEW systems. Lessons from Dayton could be transferable, especially in an urban context. The City endures impacts of economic decline, segregated neighborhoods, and many neighborhoods designated as food deserts. Dayton region also grapples with unpredictable seasonal weather events. 
The findings show that collaborative, local, and community-based initiatives could help build resilient FEW systems. Participants described how a community owned cooperative grocery store helped create food security in a previous food desert neighborhood. Participants recognized the importance of distributed solar based local energy initiatives to build basic resilience to extreme weather events and highlighted the importance of social capital in disaster recovery. Updating the city’s parks and green infrastructure, planting more trees, and protecting the city’s water sources were perceived as critical for adaptive resilience. Participants also described how innovative and collaborative community-based initiatives could transform the city’s food and energy systems to build long-term resilience. Examples of these initiatives using participant perceptions will be presented and discussed along with policy implications. 
Description for Conference Program
The Food-Energy-Water (FEW) nexus is of utmost importance to the resilience of any thriving community. Based on data collected through 54 interviews and focus groups with stakeholders in Dayton (OH), the presentation will collate perceived community based, collaborative, and local solutions that can build resilient FEW systems. Lessons from Dayton could be transferable in an urban context. The findings show that community based innovative initiatives could help build basic resilience, adaptive resilience, and transformative resilience. Examples include a community owned cooperative grocery store, urban greening, local food growing initiatives, and community solar initiatives among others.  

Description: 100 words  
Small to midsize farms and food businesses face many challenges as they run their operations.  These challenges can be mitigated through support systems in the overarching food system. We  sought to understand the journey into becoming a farmer or food business owner, what helped  them along the way, what challenges they encountered, and how they addressed them. Journey  mapping provided the framework to follow the lived experiences of individual farm and food  business owners as they navigated the food system. Understanding regional resources available  to consumers, service providers, and farmers helps build a strong local food system.  
Relation to theme: 250 words 
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the nation saw significant issues in its food system; because of  this, the USDA has renewed efforts to strengthen local and regional food systems through  partnerships. These partnerships include individuals from community, state, and academic  organizations. A community’s food sovereignty is important to a healthy, strong local food  system. Every community should have access to food. Through the use of journey mapping,  researchers discovered barriers and obstacles faced by farm and food business owners as they  navigated the food system, what helped them along the way, and how they have accomplished all  they have. This allowed individuals within communities to voice their experiences. By sharing  their lived experiences, service providers can create a system of support that will help current  and future food and farm businesses. The understood needs of farm and food businesses  demonstrated collaboration between those invested in the food system and their supporting  communities. Resulting in connections to the conference tracks of place-based collaborations and  people-driven solutions. Place-based collaborations were present through the results of the  understanding of the lived experiences shared by farm and food business owners, which provide  resources that can be pooled and shared across communities. People-driven solutions were  present during this project because the research team sought out members of underserved  communities, such as individuals from the Latino and Hispanic communities. Thus, it gave a  

Description 
Communities need new farmers but farmer training and resources are not always easy to locate, relevant or accessible for diverse audiences. A team of educators, organizers, farmers and a retailer leveraged existing networks and resources to co-create curricula to serve the needs of both formal beginning farmer programs and peer-to-peer learning. The group worked in teams to create participatory, hands-on learning modules on: land access, farm finances, soil health, integrated pest management, pollinators, produce safety, marketing, urban agriculture, mentorship, and working with diverse farmers. The curricula is stored in Airtable so it can be added to any website. 
How this project relates to the conference theme “Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities: People, Technology, and Place-based Collaboration.” 
This project relates to all three sub-areas of the conference theme, though we have it slotted under “People-Driven Solutions” due to the participatory nature of writing and delivering the curricula. When assembling the project team, we not only looked for individuals with subject matter expertise, but also aimed to have representation from a variety of Michigan’s established beginning farmer education programs for both urban and rural farmers. All educational materials were written collaboratively by team members working together virtually. Farmers themselves were a critical part of the writing process, providing feedback via survey about how they prefer to learn and participating in the editing and piloting process to ensure the content was relevant and jargon was eliminated or defined. Guidance for curricula facilitators details strategies for empowering farmer learners as peer educators, sharing their knowledge and experiences to enhance the learning environment for all. With authors representing various geographies across Michigan, the content leverages place-based networks and resources, including city-specific policy guides and case studies. Emerging technologies were utilized for collaboration, including Canva templates for achieving a harmonious design and Google Drive and Airtable to store and share curricula and additional resources. Storing the curricula files and curated resources in Airtable allows us to build a main website for the project, but also for anyone to host the curricula files on their website by copy/pasting a bit of code or using a plug-in. Our goal was to make it simple for materials to be widely shared and accessed by anyone.

Affiliation:  
 University of Johannesburg, Department of Social Work and Community Development
Abstract
This paper seeks to explore and examine different roles that social entrepreneurship, community-based organizations and collaborative networks play in ensuring that communities are resilient and that communities members become change agents in their communities. It is extremely crucial that communities are able to adapt and thrive through these constant environmental, social and economic changes. It was through existing literature and case studies that we were able to identify that Community-based organizations play a very important role in the mobilization of local resources in communities, fostering inclusivity amongst community members and enhancing social capital while social entrepreneurship steps in as a catalyst for innovative solutions that seek to address pressing social issues while promoting economic sustainability. Collaborative networks are equally important because they facilitate knowledge sharing in communities, resource pooling and collective action. This paper also outlines the limitations and challenges that come with social innovation and highlights areas for future research. Through our findings we can agree that social innovation has a huge potential to drive and foster community resilience, especially when it is in sync with the deep understanding of community needs and assets. By harnessing the power of social innovation, communities can therefore develop the capacity to navigate challenges more effectively and build a more sustainable future

Key Words: Collaborative Networks, Community-Based Organizations, Social Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Resilience

Overall description of academic paper (100 words or less):
As part of a larger mixed methods study, this quantitative study examined longitudinal trends in community leadership structures via four variables of interest: capacity for change, community growth mindset, civic engagement, and effective local leadership. Societal growth curve modeling, multiple regression, and trend analyses were conducted to compare communities with a record of community leadership success with their demographic and economic counterparts. Models revealed higher scores and a more favorable growth trajectory in capacity for change, growth mindset, civic engagement, and effective leadership for identified communities compared to their matched counterparts, offering insight into the dimensionality of community leadership structures.

Explanation of how academic paper relates to conference theme Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities and conference track(s) selected (250 words or less):
Today’s global challenges have complicated community thriving so much that community leaders can no longer rely on traditional leadership practices. Transformative change demands new ways of thinking about and practicing leadership development that considers both global realities and local norms. This research offers pathways toward an innovative approach to leadership development that goes beyond individual leader training to engage communities in creating a leadership ecosystem that builds more robust leadership capacity and culture. Our unique contribution to sustainable community thriving lies in moving past the band-aid approach of swooping in to do leader training at a single point in time. Rather, this approach concentrates on community-based systems that support community members in developing their gifts on their journey toward individual efficacy and community wellbeing. This study applied rigorous theoretical and empirical approaches to innovatively advance local and regional leadership structures that play a key role in promoting rural prosperity. The quantitative strand of this mixed-methods research design identified communities with strong leadership profiles and control communities with matched demographic and economic profiles to analyze the evolution of community leadership structural dimensions. As a result of this research, we see people-driven solutions and place-based collaborative opportunities to revolutionize community leadership development, incorporating existing leader development resources into a larger systemic approach to supporting strong rural community leadership systems capable of addressing climate, demographic, socioeconomic and other global challenges impacting the well-being and prosperity of rural communities.

Abstract:
This quantitative study, as part of a larger mixed methods study, examined longitudinal trends in community leadership structures via four variables of interest: capacity for change, community growth mindset, civic engagement, and effective local leadership. Societal growth curve modeling, multiple regression, and trend analyses were conducted to compare communities with a record of community leadership success with their demographic and economic counterparts. Societal growth curve models indicated that the identified communities, collectively, demonstrated higher values on all four outcomes than matched communities and that this pattern held across time, whereby the identified communities consistently demonstrated higher scores on the outcomes at each time point included in the data and across all time points, revealing a more positive (or less negative) growth trajectory on the community leadership dimensions. Furthermore, multiple regression analyses for each pair of identified and matched communities revealed that, where significance was found, community group membership mattered. Taken together, communities with previous success in community development initiatives were observed to have noticeable and quantifiable growth in community leadership structures. These findings offer insight into the dimensionality of community leadership structures, opening innovative pathways for revolutionizing community leadership development into a larger systemic approach capable of addressing challenges impacting the well-being and thriving of rural communities.
 

From Bowling Alleys to Social Networks: Evolving Metrics of Community Connectedness and Their Economic Implications 
October 2024 
Paper Description: This study explores the evolving landscape of social capital measure ment in community development. We contrast the “bowling alone” method of quantifying social capital via the presence of local civic institutions (e.g., churches, bowling alleys) with the more recent social network data approaches, which uses billions of social media friendship connections to measure economic connectedness, social cohesion, and civic engagement at the neighborhood level. Our analysis provides both an exploration of the statistical and spatial differences be tween these two data measures, and a descriptive analysis of how each corresponds with local development outcomes, such as job creation and per-capita income growth. 
Relation to Conference Theme: Our research illuminates how communities can forge in novative pathways to prosperity by leveraging both traditional and digital approaches to social capital measurement. By comparing traditional and innovative measurement approaches, we provide a nuanced analysis of how technological advances are transforming our understanding of community connections and offering new pathways for fostering thriving communities. This work directly or indirectly addresses all three pillars of the conference theme: technological integration, people-driven solutions, and place-based collaboration. 
On the technological integration front, we explore how social media data analytics can pro vide insights into community connectivity patterns. This emerging methodology complements traditional measures, offering communities powerful new tools for understanding their social fab ric. Regarding people-driven solutions, our research demonstrates how different measurement approaches capture varying aspects of how community members actually connect and engage with one another, both through traditional civic institutions and digital networks. The place based collaboration aspect is central to our findings, as we examine how these measurement approaches can help communities identify and strengthen regional connection patterns. By un derstanding both physical and virtual corridors of interaction, communities can better target their development efforts and foster regional prosperity. 
Keywords: social capital, community development, social media, network

Description of the paper (100 words)
Application of the Community Capitals Frameworks to a place-based Australian rural and remote health training program found a key contribution of these university departments was intellectual capital. This paper specifically explores the role of intellectual capital as a pathway to rural community development through four place-based case studies. The university departments collaborated with local networks to provide evidence, research, education and critical thinking that were utilized to address local issues, seek funding and build local capacity. Findings suggests intellectual capital is important for fostering thriving communities and that universities have an active role to play in rural community development.  

An explanation of how your paper relates to the theme Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities and Place-based Collaboration (max. 250 words).
This paper focuses on place-based collaborations that lead to improved wellbeing in rural and remote communities, thereby increasing their ability of communities to thrive.  In earlier work, the Community Capitals Frameworks (inclusive of natural, cultural, human, social, political, financial and built capital) was applied to a rural health training program in Australia—the University Departments of Rural Health.  All capitals were found to lead to place-based change, particularly social capital.  What was desired by communities from these university departments was their intellectual capital and contributions of evidence, best practice and local research.  Communities used this intellectual capital to: build local capacity and learning; embed evidence in the co-design of activities; focus on local residents with the poorest health outcomes; and work with others towards increased financial and political capital for the community.  The four case studies in this paper illustrate in detail and how intellectual capital invested in local communities improved health, wellbeing and the community’s ability to thrive.  Based in different rural and remote settings across Australia, the case studies identify how these university departments worked with people, organizations and networks in a specific place to implement a pathway to improved health and wellbeing.  Further, intellectual capital was found to be desired by communities, key to community-university partnerships and embedded in the resulting community development strategies.  This suggests that intellectual capital has an important role in rural community development and universities have a strong role to play in supporting communities to thrive in the twenty-first century.  

Description: 
This paper examines health migration in rural Jharkhand, focusing on the structural factors driving migration in search of better healthcare. Using the Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) method, the study collects qualitative and quantitative data from various districts in Jharkhand, including focus group discussions, interviews, and community mapping. Findings reveal significant health care access disparities, influenced by poor infrastructure, limited medical personnel, and socio-cultural barriers. The paper advocates for community-driven healthcare solutions, emphasizing structural changes and regional collaboration. It argues for policies integrating structural competency into healthcare systems to address these disparities and reduce health-induced migration. 
Explanation: 
This paper aligns with the conference theme of "Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities" by exploring how community-driven healthcare interventions can address disparities in rural Jharkhand, a region with significant health-induced migration. The study emphasizes the importance of people-driven solutions, highlighting the role of local communities in identifying and addressing healthcare challenges through Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA). By focusing on the regional collaboration between communities, local governments, and healthcare systems, the research proposes that leveraging shared resources and knowledge can foster sustainable healthcare practices. Additionally, the paper touches on place-based collaboration by advocating for localized, culturally-sensitive healthcare models that reduce the need for migration and promote equitable access to services. Through these approaches, the research connects to broader community development goals, proposing an integrated, collaborative framework that enhances both healthcare delivery and community resilience, thus contributing to the creation of thriving, 

This paper explores how LGBTQ+ chamber of commerce creates not only an inclusive economy but enhance social capital and enhance equity and build community in place.  Crawford (2015) suggests that market competition is set aside for cooperation in the chamber environment. A proposed social equity model will explore the 57 LGBT+, we examine how LGBTQ+ or Pride chambers of Commerce foster economic and community well-being as well improving quality of life with an emphasis social equity. LGBTQ+ people face discrimination and exclusion across the U.S. and beyond. Ramsey (2021) suggests that “LGBTQ people have significant “social capital” (p.11). In our study, we examine how this social capital then has transformed business communities though shared economic capital ( Emery and Flora, 2020: Flora, Emery and Fey, 2005;  Aigner, Flora and Hernandez, 2001). Chambers of commerce create place and community. We examine the self-efficacy though the creation chambers to empower business development and an inclusive economy that is people centered ( Robinson & Hales, 2007: Moxely & Hannah, 1986) . We examine the mission, values and equity statements, programming, and strategies of the 57 of California LGBTQIA+ chambers in this exploratory descriptive study. We examine how these chambers increase economic inclusion when people not only have their basic subsistence needs met but also are productive, fulfilled, and fully empowered to make choices about their lives.  
Aigner, S. M., Flora, C. B., & Hernandez, J. M. (2001). The premise and promise of citizenship and civil society for renewing democracies and empowering sustainable communities. Sociological Inquiry, 71(4), 493-507.
Ball, C. A. (2019). The queering of corporate America: How big business went from LGBTQ adversary to ally. Beacon Press.
Bennett, R. J. (1995). The logic of local business associations: An analysis of voluntary chambers of commerce. Journal of Public Policy, 15(3), 251-279.
Crawford, B. (2015). The historical and cultural construction of legitimated interests: the rise of American chambers of commerce. Management & Organizational History, 10(3-4), 230-250.
Emery, M., & Flora, C. (2020). Spiraling-up: Mapping community transformation with community capitals framework. In 50 Years of Community Development Vol I (pp. 163-179). Routledge.
Figueroa, C. A. (2022). Lavender Labor: The Development of Queer Work and Entrepreneurism. Colo. Tech. LJ, 20, 197.
Flora, C. B., Emery, M., Fey, S., & Bregendahl, C. (2005). Community capitals: A tool for evaluating strategic interventions and projects. Ames, IA: North Central Regional Center for Rural Development. Retrieved on February, 27, 2007.
Moxley, R. L., & Hannah, S. T. (1986). Individual Participation Patterns in Community Social Action. Journal of the Community Development Society, 17(2), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/15575338609490040
Ramsey, T. (2021). LGBTQ Inclusion In Public Gardens: A Toolkit. Retirevd from: https://ecommons.cornell.edu/server/api/core/bitstreams/13bb3a52-ea87-4a5e-9fa3-a8563d2ba93d/content
Robinson, J. W., & Hales, B. D. (2007). Models and Methods for Creating Sustainable Community-Based Development Organizations in Diverse Communities. Community Development, 38(2), 33–51. https://doi.org/10.1080/15575330709489838
Socarides, R.  (2015). Corporate America’s evolution on LGBT rights. The New Yorker. Retrieved from: https://www.piecesetmaindoeuvre.com/IMG/pdf/corporate_evolution_on_lgbt_rights-2.pdf

Paper description: 
This paper explores the work of the Rank Foundation—a UK-based grantmaking organization that conducts place-based philanthropy as a form of community development. It begins with an overview of place-based grantmaking in the UK, tracing it to different policy and sociopolitical phenomena in the last 30 years. It then discusses how the Rank Foundation emerged within this landscape as place-based funders. Finally, the paper will go over the programmatic elements of Rank’s work in the city of Plymouth (which includes a participatory grantmaking panel, repayable grants scheme, and a digital network platform) and discuss the promises, challenges, and lessons learned. 

How the paper relates to Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities:   
‘Place-based philanthropy’ is increasing as a grantmaking methodology within the UK giving space. Instead of channeling philanthropic gifts towards a specific cause, place-based philanthropy funds a variety of charities, activities, and thematic programmes that are all bounded within a specific locality. This is because poverty is increasingly understood to be a spatial phenomenon (linked particularly to British post-industrial towns) whereby intersecting and bespoke issues of class and identity drive the socioeconomic struggles within a local place.

With this context in tow, our paper relates to the theme Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities because it provides both a practical application of how to establish pioneering collaboration in a local place and because it simultaneously takes a critical perspective on community development and practice. Regarding the former, our case study pulls from personal experience tied to establishing and running a place-based program that will offer insight on the instrumental aspects of the process, including but not limited to: using lived experience of community members to drive strategy, engaging with the emergent issues within a place, and fostering reciprocal relationships across a place. Regarding the latter, the paper also explores the questions laden in place-based philanthropy, namely around issues of ‘who knows best’ in local development, the important but problematic role of private philanthropy in the face of persistent austerity, and difficult questions around bounding what defines a ‘community’ in the first place.  

Finally, by showcasing an example of ‘engaged scholarship’, whereby academics and practitioners come together to advance the health and prosperity of local places, our paper fundamentally shows that developing innovative pathways requires both academia and practice to learn from one another when developing data-and-context-driven policies for specific communities in the UK and beyond.  

Project/Program Description (100 words or less) 
For over 100 years, the cooperative Extension service has been dispersing knowledge accumulated at land grant universities with the rest of the state. They have helped many generations modernize daily practices from farming and gardening to cooking and healthy habits. Today there is a role for Extensions to play in helping everyone in the community make full use of the current digital age. Drawing on program experience, this presentation will explore Extension’s relationship with technology. From helping communities embrace technology to integrating technology into programming, there is much to be learned from Extension so far. 
An explanation of how your program/project relates to the theme Innovative Pathways. You may also include an explanation of how your program/project relates to the conference track(s) selected. 250 words or less. 
Technology is both a challenge facing communities and a tool we can use to help. The digital divide has economic and social impacts, as technology is required for everything: applying for jobs, banking, healthcare, education and more. At the same time, technology offers solutions to many issues facing communities: Telehealth increases healthcare access, online banking assists with staying on budget, and eLearning provides more options for education. With technology being in this unique position to hurt as much as it helps, it is essential for it to be included in community development practices. This presentation will explore both sides of this coin, and how Extension has employed programming to address the digital divide and taken advantage of technology. Through digital inclusion efforts, technology is a powerful tool for social justice and gaining economic autonomy. We will share best practices and lessons learned 

An overall description of the program/project. 100 words or less.
The 1890 Land Grant System has a unique role in serving underserved and unserved communities in digital skills adoption and awareness. Digital skills play a transformative role in empowering underserved communities, offering pathways to economic mobility and sustainable development. However, underserved populations often face barriers such as limited access to technology, insufficient infrastructure, and a lack of digital education. These challenges exacerbate social and economic inequalities, widening the digital divide. Fort Valley University Cooperative Extension staff is equipping underserved communities with digital skills through targeted programs and access to affordable technology, can foster innovation, entrepreneurship, and better job opportunities.  
An explanation of how your program/project relates to the theme Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities. 
This session shares Fort Valley State Cooperative Extension role in driving inclusive economic growth and community development by leveraging technology and innovative training approaches.
Fort Valley State University (FVSU) Cooperative Extension secured funding to address digital equity gaps by offering affordable technology access and training programs. FVSU Cooperative Extension partnerships equipped rural communities with technology devices and wireless infrastructures. Extension staff collaborative efforts continued with curriculum development and technology trainings tailored to the communities’ skilling and upskilling needs. Their efforts focus on digital skills adoption and awareness impacts community development and fosters connectivity within and between communities.  Extension efforts with digital equity implementation and digital inclusion activities can empower individuals and communities with the tools needed to thrive in an increasingly digital world.

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Research Posters & Exhibitors: Stern Hall Lobby
Silent Auction Items: Stern Hall - Room 101

Sarah Kirk, Welcome remarks
Amie Hendrix, Welcome remarks
John Sipple, Speaker – Community partnerships and rural education
Craig Talmage, Speaker and Moderator – Community partnerships and rural education
Frank Sykes, Panelist – Community-rooted efforts and public library initiatives
Steven Schultz, Panelist – Data on needs and impact through collective action
Cassandra Lundgren, Panelist – Youth development and community engagement

Research Posters & Exhibitors: Stern Hall Lobby
Silent Auction Items: Stern Hall - Room 101

This session is geared towards networking opportunities among our CDS members.CDS believes it is essential to highlight the diversity that exists within the membership and cater to the unique needs of international members. The International Connections Session is a unique networking opportunity designed to promote knowledge sharing and collaboration between US-based and International members.

Various topics of interest will be highlighted, among which will include the re-establishment of the CDS International Chapter, a subcommittee of the Membership Committee dedicated to:

• Fostering exchange between local and international members.
• Furthering the development of CDS as a globally minded organization.
• Ensuring that community development is approached from a globally learned perspective by all CDS members in their respective communities.
  
  

CDS will be seeking to determine the interest of members that would like to participate in the International Chapter, creating opportunities for practitioners and researchers alike to meet virtually and assist one another with ongoing projects and challenges beyond the conference.

Overall Description 
This workshop, part of the Rural Shrink Smart project at Iowa State University, explores how building belonging through bridging social capital can empower rural communities facing climate change and depopulation. Drawing on five years of research with shrinking towns in Iowa, it highlights how prioritizing relationships over traditional economic models fosters resilience and strengthens communities. Participants will reflect on their own practices, discuss trust, generosity, and relational strategies, and examine case studies to understand how these approaches improve quality of life. By prioritizing the relational, rural communities can address challenges and thrive despite isolation, economic constraints, and climate vulnerabilities. 
Workshop Abstract 
Our climate is changing, and belonging is a fundamental human need. The United States Department of Agriculture recognizes, as a key priority, that rural communities face unique challenges in preparing for climate change that heighten their vulnerability—such as isolation, economic constraints, and aging populations—further straining essential systems already impacted by limited resources and accessibility. Additionally, in 2023, the Surgeon General declared an epidemic of loneliness in the United States, highlighting the increasing need for social connection. While scientists and policymakers develop tangible solutions to address climate change, fostering a sense of belonging in rural communities could be foundational to resilience across the nation. 
As part of the Rural Shrink Smart project, funded by the National Science Foundation at Iowa State University, this workshop explores how building belonging through bridging social capital can empower rural communities. As the majority of towns in Iowa continue to depopulate, some are maintaining or increasing their quality of life while others are declining. We ask why? Drawing on five years of engagement with shrinking towns in Iowa, our research highlights how prioritizing the relational can not only empower these communities but also strengthen resilience in the face of depopulation and emerging climate change challenges. 
This research shifts the focus from traditional economic models to the power of community development through relationship-building. In the workshop, we ask participants to reflect upon their own practices of community. We open space for discussion on how acknowledging the good, fostering trust, and embracing generosity can support rural communities in addressing challenges. Through case studies and community building, participants will explore how prioritizing the relational contributes to strengthening community ties, which in turn helps build the trust essential for long-term thriving and resilience. 
Anticipated Learning Outcomes 
Participants in this workshop will gain a deeper understanding of how fostering belonging and bridging social capital can empower rural communities to address challenges such as depopulation, isolation, and climate change. They will learn to shift their focus from traditional economic approaches to relational strategies that strengthen community ties and resilience. Through reflection, discussion, and case studies, participants will explore practices that build trust, embrace generosity, and acknowledge community strengths. By the workshop’s end, participants will be equipped with insights and tools to prioritize the relational in their own contexts, enabling rural communities to thrive despite limited resources and emerging vulnerabilities. 

Across the Global South, most programs promoting adolescent girls’ education and development are grounded in concepts and methods from psychology and communications 
and give limited attention to constructs and methods from adult education and community 
development. Collective Transformative Learning (CTL) is an important construct in adult 
education that promotes community-wide learning and change through an inclusive and 
active process of dialogue and consensus-building. Developed in Nigeria, CTL embodies the 
notion that social change requires collective reflection and action (Mejiuni).  In Senegal, 
extensive evaluation of the Girls’ Holistic Development program, based on a CTL framework, 
reveals strengthened community capacity and social cohesion that has catalyzed change in 
harmful social norms affecting girls, e.g. child marriage and teen pregnancy. 

People-driven solutions
Most development programs in the Global South engage communities in discussion of  specific needs, perceived by external experts, and encourage them to undertake pre- defined actions to address those issues. Girls’ Holistic Development (GHD) is an example of an approach that challenges communities to identify their own solutions, i.e. people-driven solutions.  Key facets of the CTL process used in GHD include: it is inclusive, involving three generations of men and women; it strengthens intergenerational relationships; all activities are based on local cultural roles and values; dialogical and critical thinking methods are used in all activities; and it accords grandmothers a central place in the change process.  

Given the severe breakdown in communication in all communities at the outset, GMP identified as the first priority – building trust and communication between community members, essential for open dialogue and learning.  GHD activities created spaces for inclusive and participatory interaction between community leaders. Subsequent activities contributed to further strengthening relationships and promoting dialogue between the generations and sexes. With increased social cohesion between community actors, transformative learning activities provided new information and challenged participants to critically reflect on how existing norms and practices could be modified to promote GHD. Community groups identified and planned collective actions to promote those changes. In all cases, communities have undertaken some actions to promote GHD and these have contributed to the process of changing deeply ingrained social norms.  A significant conclusion from an extensive evaluation of GHD in 2019-20 is “the main outcome of this intervention is that it has brought community members together, strengthening community ties”. Increased trust, communication and collaboration between community actors has provided the foundation for collective transformative learning to support change for girls. 

Findings from Ripple Effects Mapping (Chazdon et al., 2017) in a rural community showed how Extension staff, youth, and volunteers impacted Community Capitals before, during, and after COVID-19. Results comparing recession-era budget challenges to post-pandemic data brought new perspectives for program administrators on the long-term impact of Extension programs and how their investments created lasting change. 

This research highlights how Ripple Effects Mapping (REM) shines light on “Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities,” especially in understanding and sharing the collective impact across communities – ideal for the Track 3 forum of “Place-Based Collaboration.” REM brought together diverse perspectives and participants identified unintended outcomes far beyond what the County Extension Director could see. Instead of a lone agent with a flashlight out measuring impacts, REM brought together a team of staff and volunteers to light up a whole arena full of outcomes. 
Staff and volunteers’ stories were coded to show how Social, Human and Cultural Capitals rippled out to deeper impacts to the community, maintained positive community impacts through time, and grew long-term impacts across other Community Capitals (Hansen, 2017). Built capital examples include improved broadband access, fairground infrastructure, and a new community food processing facility. Financial capital includes more than $200K in grants for 4-H Youth Development. This positive value of “spiraling up” of Community Capitals is referenced in other research (Emery, 2013 and Bloom, 2021). Learn how Extension collaboration contributed to community resiliency through challenging times and how this knowledge and understanding will sustain programs and future community development.

Chazdon, S., M. Emery, D. Hansen, L. Higgins, and R. Sero. 2017. A Field guide to ripple effects mapping. University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing. Minneapolis, MN.
Emery, M. 2013. Social capital and youth development: Toward a typology of program practices. New directions for youth development, 2013(138): 49-59.
Bloom, J. 2021. “Spiraling up”: Using ripple effect mapping to evaluate how an extension volunteer program increases community development capacity. Community Development, 52(1): 22-41.
Hansen, D. 2017. Community capitals framework (CCF) guide. Appendix C. pp. 164. In: (Chazdon, S., M. Emery, D. Hansen, L. Higgins, and R. Sero eds.) A Field guide to ripple effects mapping. University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing. Minneapolis, MN.

Description of the Academic Paper 
This paper examines the long-term impact of dialogue-driven strategies for fostering inclusion and systemic transformation within Extension systems. By collecting follow-up data from the “Coming Together for Racial Understanding” initiative launched in 2018, the study evaluates whether changes initiated through facilitated dialogues have persisted.
Ripple effect mapping (REM) and online surveys were employed to evaluate changes at four levels: personal, interpersonal, institutional and cultural. The research highlights how training Extension professionals to lead dialogue-based interventions can empower diverse voices, strengthen collaborative networks, and, ultimately, drive structural change. Those changes include becoming comfortable in having conversations at a personal level, developing more diverse relationships at an interpersonal level, making hiring processes more inclusive at an institutional level, and taking action. By presenting practical strategies and evidence-based results, the paper demonstrates how inclusive dialogue can inspire lasting change.

Relation to the Theme and Track 
The proposed paper aligns with the conference theme, Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities: People, Technology, and Place-based Collaboration, by emphasizing the role of people-driven solutions in fostering innovation and inclusivity. Specifically, the paper contributes to the sub-theme People-Driven Solutions, showcasing how dialogue-driven strategies empower diverse voices to drive sustainable, systemic change. The research highlights findings from the "Coming Together for Racial Understanding" initiative, which trained Extension professionals to lead transformative conversations in their institutions and communities. Through a longitudinal study comparing data from 2021 and 2024 based on an initiative launched in 2018, this paper evaluates the sustainability of inclusive practices and their capacity to address systemic inequities. The findings emphasize the importance of intentional dialogue as a catalyst for structural shifts in organizational culture and community engagement. The paper outlines experiences shared by extension professionals while implementing training for change to embed inclusion and equity within their systems. Results highlighted that development of more diverse relationships, collaboration among different LGUs, examining policies & practices, integrating DEI into institutional practices, and including more voices in decision-making increased from 2021 to 2024. By showcasing the tangible outcomes of these strategies at all four levels, this paper offers actionable insights into how dialogue-based initiatives can drive systemic change.

​For Full Paper Proposal: CLICK HERE​​​

Affiliation:  
University of Johannesburg, Department of Social Work and Community  Development  
ABSTRACT  
The impressive impact made by social entrepreneurs in addressing socio-economic  challenges faced by people coming from disadvantaged communities, especially in  the highly poverty-stricken provinces of South Africa, such as Eastern Cape and  KwaZulu-Natal provinces shows that social entrepreneurship has a great potential to  assist in the attempts made to eradicate poverty in the country as a whole (Impact of  social entrepreneurs on community development in the Cape Town Metropolitan  Municipality area, 2017). Poverty is a complex social issue and thus requires an  innovative approach that can make positive societal impact. It is caused mainly by the  increasing unemployment rate, and underemployment resulting in almost half of the  South African population depending entirely on social grants. This includes the R370 Social Relief of Distress Grant (SRD Grant) received by unemployed youth per month.  This paper aim to provide current role and contribution of social entrepreneurship in  South Africa, and explores the application of business and indigenous knowledge  systems. Furthermore, the paper looks at ways of how best these together with the  lessons learned can be utilized to effect the change required to alleviate poverty and  ensure sustainable development. A qualitative research approach and an explorative descriptive research design are employed. Interviews will be used to collect data from  identified social entrepreneurs and their partners from various sectors including the  private, public, and NGO sectors, including strategic leaders from other organs of civil  society. Finally, based on the findings, the paper recommends practice innovations for  community development and social work practice. 
Key words: Social entrepreneurship, Poverty, Community development,  Partnership, Social development and Social service practitioners
List of references 
Impact of social entrepreneurs on community development in the Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality area, South Africa Russ Ngatse-Ipangui, Maurice O.  Dassah Received: 18 Sept. 2017; Accepted: 28 Aug. 2018; Published: 30   Jan. 2019 
 

Presentation Explanation: 
Advocacy is often associated with policy change through legislation, but at the  neighborhood level, its impact can be driven by action by neighborhood leaders. In the  context of the Neighborhood Leadership Fellows (NLF), we have seen firsthand how  grassroots efforts can create meaningful change. However, questions remain about how to  effectively bridge advocacy education—especially in university settings—with the needs of  community leaders to tackle systematic issues that result in neighborhood inequities 
This session will explore how neighborhood-based advocacy can align with university  protocols while addressing the pressing needs of local leaders. We’ll share examples of  advocacy, from policy discussions to grassroots efforts to legislation, that have driven  positive outcomes such as increased community engagement, empowerment, and  tangible improvements effecting the social determinants of health like housing, vacancy and education in the St. Louis region. 
We will also delve into the challenges of engaging diverse stakeholders, overcoming  communication gaps with decision makers, and ensuring the sustainability of advocacy  efforts. Insights from NLF projects will illuminate both the successes and the ongoing  hurdles. 
Finally, we will gather feedback from participants to understand their perspectives,  fostering an open dialogue about strategies and where improvements are needed. This  feedback loop will help refine our approach, ensuring advocacy efforts remain dynamic,  responsive, and impactful. 
By the end of this session, participants will have a deeper understanding of neighborhood  advocacy, how to navigate university protocols, and strategies to overcome challenges,  while gaining practical insights that can be applied to their work.
Overall Description: 
This session will explore how neighborhood-based advocacy can align with university  protocols to address local challenges. Using the Neighborhood Leadership Fellows (NLF)  program as a model, we’ll highlight successful grassroots efforts that have driven change in  areas like housing and public safety in the St. Louis region. Participants will learn from  alumni-driven projects, discuss challenges such as engaging diverse community members  and ensuring sustainability, and gain practical insights on overcoming these barriers. The  session will also gather feedback from participants to refine advocacy strategies, ensuring  they remain responsive, effective, and impactful at the neighborhood level.

Purpose: This study has two purposes. The first is to understand the actual usage situation of foreign parents  and children who use the services at “Local Childrearing Support Center Services”. The second is to  understand the support methods implemented by the staff of “Local Childrearing Support Center Services”. 
Methods: From August 2024, interviews were conducted with childcare support workers from “Local  Childrearing Support Center Services” and the content was analyzed. 
Results: The following responses were obtained from the interviews. 
· Children and parents are not given special treatment just because they are foreign nationals living in Japan, just like other users. 
· There are cultural differences regarding "childcare support." 
· We provide easy-to-understand introductions to Japanese culture, customs, systems, etc. to help  you understand life in Japan. 
· There are also challenges, such as language barriers making it difficult to convey necessary  information. 
· We need to create many places where people from the same country or region can gather. 
The interviews revealed that when supporting foreign parents and children, it is important to (1) know  that the concerns about raising children are the same regardless of nationality, (2) provide information about  the country in which they live, and (3) provide ongoing support to help them adapt to the culture and lifestyle. 
In recent years, as the number of foreigners living in Japan has increased, the number of parents and  children with foreign nationality has also increased. Living in an environment with a different language and  culture can cause great confusion and anxiety. In order for foreign parents and children to connect with the  local community, it is important for them to use services from an early stage. 
The term “Local Childrearing Support Center Services” refers to services that provide a place where  infants and their guardians can interact and receive consultation, information, advice and other assistance  regarding child-rearing. The purpose is to reduce the anxiety of raising children and support their healthy  growth. The project is implemented by municipalities, and the number of base project locations in 2023 is  8,016. It is being implemented in all 47 prefectures across Japan. (Department for Children and Families,  2024) 
“Local Childrearing Support Center Services” implements many initiatives aimed at preschool children  and their parents, but there is little participation from foreign parents and children. The reason for this  seems to be language and cultural barriers. Rather than waiting for foreign parents and children to  participate, supporters need to approach them by disseminating information via social media and the  internet. Furthermore, by supporting foreign parents and children in raising their children, we also play a  role in supporting families. We believe that an important role is not only to expand connections between  parents and make friends, but also to create connections with childcare facilities.

Overview: 
This panel will explore the challenges, opportunities, and transformative potential of community engagement as a cornerstone of neighborhood development. Using Franklin Park, Allentown, as a case study, the panel will share how intentional, place-based collaboration across sectors can address systemic challenges and create thriving communities. Presenters will share lessons learned, practical strategies, and the role of community engagement in achieving lasting impact. 
Panel Description: 
Why community engagement? This panel will delve into why meaningful, resident-centered engagement is critical to effective community development. Through real-world examples, presenters will highlight the challenges of building trust, navigating cross-sector collaboration, and aligning diverse perspectives. They will also share the opportunities community engagement creates for fostering civic infrastructure, amplifying local voices, and driving systemic change. 
Using frameworks such as Vital Conditions and neighborhood-centered approaches, the panel will showcase the layered strategies employed in Franklin Park and how they have successfully linked grassroots efforts with institutional support to amplify impact. 
Panel Presentations: 
1. Why Neighborhood Engagement is the Way Forward 
This presentation will focus on their organization’s role in leveraging the Fellowship for Health to empower cross-sector capacity building. By aligning healthcare, education, and housing initiatives beginning in one geographic space, they will demonstrate how engagement creates a foundation for addressing systemic health disparities while fostering a culture of collaboration. 
2. The Slow Work of Trust: Challenges and Lessons from Franklin Park They will highlight the challenges of building relationships in Allentown neighborhoods, including Franklin Park. This presentation will detail the trust-building process, including navigating skepticism, fostering resident leadership, and maintaining momentum in the face of slow progress. They will also share how community engagement has unlocked opportunities for civic participation and systemic influence. 
3. Layering Approaches: What South Atlanta Teaches Us About Community Engagement 
They will share its neighbor-centered methodology honed in South Atlanta, emphasizing
the importance of listening to residents, building civic infrastructure, and layering initiatives for long-term transformation. They will highlight how they have come alongside and influenced the partnerships in Franklin Park for systems change. 
Key Discussion Topics: 
● Challenges of Community Engagement: Building trust, overcoming institutional silos, and aligning diverse stakeholder priorities. 
● Opportunities Through Engagement: Fostering civic infrastructure, amplifying resident voices, and bridging gaps between grassroots and systemic change. 
● Frameworks for Success: Practical insights from Vital Conditions, cross-sector capacity building, holistic neighborhood development, and collaborative partnerships. 
Learning Objectives: 
Participants will: 
1. Understand the challenges and benefits of prioritizing community engagement in development work. 
2. Learn practical strategies for navigating trust-building and fostering cross-sector collaboration. 
3. Explore frameworks like Vital Conditions and their application in addressing systemic disparities. 
4. Gain actionable insights for replicating these approaches in their own contexts. Program Structure: 
● Introduction (10 minutes): Why community engagement matters, led by Samantha Shaak. 
● Presentation 1: (10 minutes): Cross-sector capacity building 
● Presentation 2: (10 minutes): Navigating challenges and unlocking opportunities in Franklin Park. 
● Presentation 3: (10 minutes): Lessons from South Atlanta and their application to Franklin Park. 
● Interactive Discussion (20 minutes): Audience Q&A and reflections on applying these strategies in other contexts. 
Theme Alignment: 
This panel aligns with the conference theme, “Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities”, by emphasizing: 
● People-Driven Solutions: Empowering residents to lead change through meaningful engagement. 
● Place-Based Collaboration: Linking grassroots efforts with systemic partnerships to maximize impact. 
● Cross-Sector Innovation: Combining institutional resources, community leadership, and shared frameworks to address complex challenges.
Conclusion: 
Through this panel, attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the “why” behind community engagement, the challenges that arise, and the transformative opportunities it creates. By sharing the journey of Franklin Park, this session will inspire participants to embrace community engagement as a key pathway to building thriving, equitable neighborhoods.

An overall description of the program/project. 
In northern Indiana, Intend Indiana is spearheading a regional approach to increasing affordable housing supply using the NeighborWorks model of resident centered and place-based comprehensive community development. Taking the lead as “community quarterback” Intend Indiana is leveraging its expertise in real estate development and lending to build capacity in smaller communities, setting them up for success as stewards of much-needed workforce housing and supporting the growth of small contractors through their Build Fund along the way. Attendees will learn about the factors Intend uses to assess and build regional partnerships and consider opportunities for their own communities.  
An explanation of how your program/project relates to the theme Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities.  
This presentation focuses on the regional partnership between three NeighborWorks organizations led by Intend Indiana. This emerging partnership, which also includes South Bend Heritage Foundation and Pathstone Corporation, is facilitating knowledge sharing across a wide swath of Indiana, amplifying the efforts of the individual organizations to build stronger, more equitable communities as they tackle an urgent challenge – increasing the supply of affordable workforce housing.  
In recent years, community development corporation and CDFI Intend Indiana expanded its reach from the city of Indianapolis to state-wide. To accomplish this, they have prioritized establishing partnerships in new communities. Attendees will learn from this replicable model of regional collaboration which utilizes a comprehensive community development approach to center resident voice, leverage strategic partnerships, and layer strategies. Factors utilized in  identifying and advancing regional partnerships will be unpacked, including assessing local  community support, future economic outlook, resident engagement strategies, and property  availability to ensure a strong and stable foundation for region-wide collaboration.  
As a member of the NeighborWorks America network, Intend Indiana benefits from the unique peer connections, funding, and technical assistance support provided by NeighborWorks to accomplish this work. Regional partners South Bend Heritage Foundation and Pathstone Corporation (Muncie) are also members of the NeighborWorks network, which provides a supporting framework to anchor their partnership and alignment around regional community development challenges and approaches. Attendees will understand the role regional and national intermediaries can play in supporting and amplifying the impact of localized solutions. 

Affiliation:  
University of Johannesburg, Department of Social Work and Community  Development 
ABSTRACT 
The ability of the practitioners in the community development sector to work effectively  and improve communities is essential to social development. Community development  practitioners, social workers, and community development workers are stakeholders  in communities, with communities as key role players in the community development  sector. Changing conditions that affect communities requires a broad collaborative  partnership among various key players at the community level. How stakeholders can  best work together remains the challenge in communities. This paper examines the  tensions, challenges, opportunities, and innovative ways for inclusive practices and  approaches to fostering and hindering collaborative partnerships in matters that affect  communities. A qualitative research approach and an explorative-descriptive research  design are adopted. Data will be collected using interviews. Implications for  practitioners and practice will be presented based on the findings in this paper.  
Key words: Community development, Collaboration, Partnership, Social  development and Social service practitioners.

An overall description of the academic paper (word count: 100) 
This study explores the sustainability of local railroads through place-based collaboration in  Pennsylvania from 1974 to 2024, a period marked by macroeconomic shifts and technological  advancements that challenged local economies and transportation systems. Despite these  challenges, collaborative efforts among diverse stakeholders have conserved local resources and  fostered community resilience. Using frameworks of Collaborative Governance and Public– Private Partnerships (PPP), the research examines the evolution of a specific railroad,  emphasizing policy development and practical collaboration. Content analysis of public  documents, government reports, and citizen interviews reveals the importance of collaborative  policy implementation and active community engagement in sustaining resources and promoting  prosperity. 
An explanation of how your academic paper relates to the theme Place-Based  Collaboration. (word count: 246) 
This research examines the importance of collaborative efforts and systemic implementation to  sustain local resources, emphasizing place-based collaboration to revitalize communities. Many  regions face challenges such as industrial and population decline that cannot be resolved by a  single actor or jurisdiction. Multi-level governance provides a framework to understand how  diverse stakeholders address shared issues across different governance levels, where central and  local governments collaborate with public and private actors (OECD, 2010). 
Focusing on Bellefonte in Pennsylvania's SEDA-COG region from 1974 to 2024, this study  employs content analysis to explore how legislative policies and collaborative practices have  influenced community development. Findings highlight the strategic importance of partnerships  that transcend geographic boundaries and individual initiatives, promoting regional development  while enhancing networks and social cohesion. Activated multi-level governance alliances  strengthen community resilience through shared projects, ensuring the sustainability of local  resources. 
This study also integrates Public–Private Partnerships (PPP) into the multi-level governance  framework to emphasize their role in local implementation. While multi-level governance does  not explicitly address the private sector's role, PPP offers insights into how local communities  engage in and benefit from development initiatives. By addressing issues such as resource 
allocation and stakeholder collaboration, this approach provides practical insights grounded in  empirical case studies. 
Legislative measures promoting inter-city collaboration and the involvement of community  volunteer organizations or local companies further underscore the importance of active  community engagement. These efforts significantly shape governance landscapes, influencing  the roles and interactions of diverse actors in fostering regional resilience.

Community Development as a practice, has evolved into a recognised discipline for practioners  and scholars alike. The discipline is about building social capital, leveraging networks and  mobilising resources. In a world increasingly defined by diversity and interconnectedness, the  leadership of NGOs and community organisations is pivotal in fostering innovation, and a sense  of belonging, while valuing the difference. By exploring the importance of leadership, and how  it serves as a driver for inclusive, people-centred innovation, the paper will elaborate on how  community leaders and communities alike, can leverage technological tools and stakeholder  collaboration to address complex community challenges, and foster community strengths.  Furthermore, the paper will examine the importance of fostering equitable participation, with  the intention to amplify marginalised voices, by creating networks of shared knowledge, and  resources. Perspectives on strategies that encourage belonging, and inclusivity in communities,  while addressing challenges of exclusion and inequity will be unpacked. The paper thus aims  to engage practitioners, scholars and activists to recognise the importance of leadership in  forging pathways towards thriving, sustainable communities. The research approach adopted  will be qualitative research. A descriptive research design will be applied in this study, and data  collected through interviews. Findings of the study will be presented at the 2025 CDS annual  conference.  
Keywords: Leadership, NGOs, community organisations, innovation, Diversity, Equity and  Inclusion (DEI), belonging, collaboration, participation, sustainable communities, community  development 

Description: This paper illuminates lived experiences of housing informality in an unincorporated North Texas subdivision. Theoretical literature describes housing informality as transgression against, or lack of protection from, regulations; thus, housing informality is a product of the relationship between state and society (Harris, 2018). Housing informality occurs in one of five regulatory regimes: property rights, property transfer, land use and zoning, subdivision regulations, and building codes (Durst & Wegmann, 2017). Drawing on three years of participatory action research–observational methods, household surveys, oral histories, and photovoice–we reveal real-world examples of the relationship between state and society through different regulatory regimes. 
Conference Theme: This paper illuminates how an informal subdivision in North Texas moved from latent informality to straddling between diffuse and embedded informality over multiple decades (Harris, 2018). I also highlight how residents’ lived experiences of regulatory regimes result in housing informality and precarity in the subdivision. In this sense, we connect directly to the conference by describing the outcomes of changing regional economic and social dynamics. Likewise, we highlight how residents enact housing informality as an innovative—though often precarious—response to regional lack of affordable housing and speculative land markets. This relates directly to the theme of people-driven solutions. The paper, like past research (Bayat, 2000; Harris, 2018), shows that housing informality is not always an act of conflict with the state, but rather acts of non-compliance emerge from resident desires for affordable home ownership, ignorance of confusing and complicated regulations, and efforts to navigate poverty and government restrictions. This research pushes the field of U.S. housing informality to root theory in the lived experiences of residents. This again focuses on the conference theme of people-driven solutions by empowering diverse voices in description of problems and solutions. Likewise, we recommend that U.S. policymakers and planners learn from the participatory policies of the Global South to assist resident-driven informal housing and improve residents’ living conditions.
References
Bayat, A. (2000). From ‘Dangerous Classes’ to ‘Quiet Rebels’: Politics of the Urban Subaltern in the Global South. International Sociology, 15(3), 533-557.
Durst, N.J., & Wegmann, J. (2017). Informal Housing in the United States. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 41(2), 282-297.
Harris, R. (2018). Modes of Informal Urban Development: A Global Phenomenon. Journal of Planning Literature, 33(3), 267-286.

Affiliation:  
University of Johannesburg, Department of Social Work and Community  Development  
ABSTRACT 
The street vendors contribute significantly to the economy and sustain their livelihoods  through income-generating activities. Poor rural and urban communities often  experience various challenges in their unique settings, including a lack of income generation opportunities, the scourge of poverty, unemployment, inequality, low  education levels, and limited access to socio-economic services (Njaya, 2014).  Finding pathways, innovative practices, and collaboration are critical for community  development practitioners and street vendors to mitigate challenges and enhance the  socio-economic development of communities. The paper seeks to explore innovative  practices and collaborative partnerships for street vendors engaged in income 
generating acting activities. A qualitative research approach and descriptive research  design are the methodologies used in this paper. Data will be collected using  interviews with the street vendors. The findings and recommendations will be  presented to inform policy and practice implications in the community development  sector.  
Key Words: Street Vendors, Sustainable Livelihood, Income Generating Activities,  Social Development, Partnership, Community Development.

This project reflects an ongoing collaboration commenced in 2022 between a nonprofit organization and  a university. The collaboration is focused on innovative technologies to enhance neighborhood  revitalization and community self-reliance. Through this collaboration we are developing and evaluating  a community-based infrastructure that combines artificial intelligence (AI) technology, facilitated by a  smartphone app, with community engagement through direct engagement of residents and a  community advisory board.  
Big data is often aggregated at a scale that masks or dilutes the significance of more refined data at the  neighborhood level. This often results in data analysis and decisions that do not reflect the needs,  wants, and desires of citizens at the neighborhood level. This project is informed by the perspective that  AI projects must be authentically and meaningfully grounded in the lived experience of those who are  meant to benefit from the innovation. Further, this project is about enhancing ordinary citizens' data  collection and data analytics skills. We aim to connect citizens in the community with a data and  applications ecosystem, especially to encourage residents to evaluate service delivery mechanisms and  service gaps. Residents, without requiring expertise in statistics and computer programming, will be able  to create, share, and take advantage of urban data science applications for their neighborhood through  an app developed for mobile devices. Community residents become co-innovators in this process and  are driven by community priorities. The project will culminate in a digital platform that will be  transferred from to the nonprofit for continued use. Organizations that promote social change are well  situated to support citizen-driven data collection and analysis and are natural partners in promoting the  democratization of data.

Rural communities are transforming due to various socio-technical changes, including  deployment of land-intensive renewable energy technologies like large-scale solar (LSS)  facilities (20MW+). Much is speculated but little is known about how landowners in places set to  host LSS facilities perceive community change from LSS, how perceptions may differ depending  on place-based context, and how these insights can inform community development practice.  Drawing on a survey of 1,500 landowners in three New York State counties, this study explores  landowners’ level of support, beliefs about, and experiences with LSS development in their  communities.  
Land-intensive renewable energy technologies, like large-scale solar (LSS) facilities, are being  installed in rural areas at a pace and scale not seen before in the U.S. Specifically, New York  State (NYS) has accelerated siting processes for LSS facilities to meet their climate policy goal of generating 70% of electricity from renewable sources by 2030. It remains to be seen if  deployment of LSS represents an “innovative pathway” for the rural communities set to host  these installations to thrive. To understand the challenges and opportunities in leveraging LSS  development for community benefit, this paper presents quantitative social science data from  NYS landholders about LSS projects in their communities, including their support levels and  perceptions of future community prosperity after LSS development. Our paper advances place based research focused on the potential for LSS to act as an innovative pathway to rural  prosperity and to generate ideas about community development practice in the context of LSS. In  that way, our paper speaks to the ‘technological integration” conference track, as LSS is an  emerging technology that will soon be deployed widely in NYS and beyond, but also the “place based collaboration” track since our work promotes place-based research and reports on regional  variation, local context, and impacts across communities.

Research Poster Presentation: Stern Hall Lobby
Exhibitors: Stern Hall Lobby
Silent Auction Items: Stern Hall - Room 101

Scientific research in the field of livelihoods in Sub-Saharan Mountain communities has been progressing slowly since 2002. This scientometric analysis paper shows trends in livelihood research in Sub-Saharan Mountain communities. The main aim of this paper is to show (1) the status of livelihoods research, (2) the current research directions of livelihoods in Sub-Saharan Mountain regions and the main areas of focus, and (3) the future of livelihoods research within the Sub-Saharan Mountain regions. Finally, it also provides a comparative analysis of livelihood research with other mountain regions in the world.
Mountains are precarious environments replete with cultural, biodiversity and other ecological resources. Despite this precarity, there is a dearth of research on the livelihood futures of mountain communities, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. By engaging in a scientometric analysis, this paper presents a discussion of the state of livelihood research on Sub-Saharan African communities. It explores the knowledge repositories and documented community development pragmatisms essential for sustainable mountain communities. A scientometric analysis amplifies the livelihood capabilities of mountain communities and provides opportunities for a transformative mountain livelihood scholarship located in the knowledge repositories of mountain communities. An emphasis on mountain livelihoods in Africa is therefore important to “…shift the geography and biography of knowledge and to begin to articulate the experience of development from Africa as a privileged epistemic site capable of formulating its own development trajectory” (Ndlovu-Gatshen, 2019:46). This paper, therefore, undertakes an expansive scientometric review of livelihood strategies and approaches of mountain communities in Sub-Sharan Africa to envision the livelihood futures in the same communities. It also analyses how mountain communities thrive in these difficult environments, hence contributing to the theme of innovative pathways to thriving communities.
Key Words:
Scientometric review, mountain communities, livelihood research and Sub-Saharan Africa.

INTRODUCTION/ BACKGROUND 
In the past three weeks from 6 to 20 October 2024, I’ve decided to attend Willows Methodist Church (WMC) services at its premises, 821 Meerlust Rd, Equestria, Pretoria, 0184 for my ethnographic research. 
Willows Methodist Church (WMC) is a denominational church under the Global Methodist Church and Southern Methodist Church in South Africa which is a "spirit-filled" ministry in Gauteng, Pretoria. This Willows Methodist Church is one-hundred-year old and started at Hartfield area near the city centre of Pretoria which is the capital city of the Republic of South Africa. 
The reason for me to choose this particular congregation is because the church house was built and pastured by Rev. Jim Ramage who was my pastor at Sinoville Methodist Church (SMC) where my wife (Jackie Bongo) was part of his worship team and I served under the Christian education for children ministry at the Sunday school. He (Jim) served this particular congregation for nearly 20 years and built the church house which became one of the most leading congregations within the centurion circuit who carries other churches in terms of finances and different church programs. But most importantly, this particular church has positioned itself to reflect the desired demographic setting of South Africa that embraces the diversity. 
I was very excited to know that Rev. James Ramage was the one who built this particular church and therefore I became curious to know whether his ultimate goal to have all people saved from their sins regardless of their background including his dedication to reach out the most vulnerable people among ourselves through “feed a friend” still exists but more importantly to research on any topic that emerges as a potential theme during my field work.
The demographic of the church has dramatically changed over the past decade to count 40% black, 30% White, 15% coloured, and 15% coloured/Metis in an area which was previously known as a white suburb. The church has the potential to grow exponentially because of its demographical composition of the youth which stands at 80% black, 15% white, and 5% coloured. 
The change can be interpreted to be the result of the migration of black people moving to an upper socio-economic class’ suburb which constitutes a positive movement for a significant fraction of the majority of population including diplomats to settle down in this high market area. Through my interactions with few parishioners and church leaders, they told me that the people are coming here because the church is responding well to the needs of this social class of people by the convenience of the location, affiliation to the denomination including its diversified liturgical expressions of praises for God which are comparable with those of Charismatic and Pentecostal churches. The young people are more excited to sing the new popular songs instead of the reading from hymn books as it is done in mainline churches.   
The resident pastor of the church is Rev. Graeme Mercer (White man) who is retiring the end of November 2024 and serves also as a Superintendent of the Centurion Circuit. Charmain Fourie is the Deacon (White female) of church was ordained this year in June 2024 at the National Methodist Synod held at the Eastern Cape in South Africa. With the growth of the youth group mentioned above, the church has recently hired a vibrant youth pastor (David Stryers) who is at his late forties (coloured man). 
According to the constitution of the church, the stewards serve at the highest organisational structure of the church which constitutes the board of the church and have the deciding power on the direction of the congregation (Andre Van der Bergh, personal interview, October 30, 2024).
I didn’t just walk in the church to do my ethnographic research which in my view couldn’t constitute a major challenge but out of respect and concern of the right procedure, I went the previous week to announce my visit of which I wanted a consent from the pastor on behalf of the board to carry out my research. But unfortunately, the Resident Minister (Mercer) who is retiring this November 2024 travelled to Cape Town to look for a retirement home. Subsequently, I met the Deacon instead who didn’t have a problem about it since according to her, the prospective information gathered through this study, if revealed can explain different perceptions of parishioners in the way they run the church activities.  
The Methodist churches in South Africa are mostly built on their own private premises where they house both Sunday and church schools, kitchens and other facilities for social events gatherings. This church building is not different from others especially because it has been built by the same Pastor (Jim) who is gifted and established himself as a church house builder at the district’s level. Willows Methodist Church is housed in a modern building, spacious which accommodates more less 750 hundred congregants, and have a modern orchestra for a vibrant worship team led by the Youth Pastor (David). WMC has a corporate bloc office next to the assembly hall including a nursery for infants of one mirror view that enables parents follow the proceedings of the church service while attending to their children. 
At the entrance, the ushers hand out welcoming pack including an extract of the sermon as they greet the incoming worshippers. There is a Bible on each seat/pew to follow Bible references given during the sermon. The altar is spacious enough to accommodate the worship team to perform and to allow people to congregate when they partake the Lord’s super.  
On the day of my research process, some people wanted to know what I was doing because they saw me with a board and a paper so that I can write everything I was watching and hearing, and I told them the purpose of my visit which was to conduct an ethnographic research.  I took this opportunity to tell them that I was a student and that the research was just for the academic purpose only.
In those days of my research, I used participant-observation approach which is part of a qualitative research method where I (researcher) collected observational data during three (3) direct observations which were conducted at the church’s building. I was present in three (3) consecutive church services on Sundays from 09:15 a.m. to 11:15 p.m., and went before the normal time and remained for social hour after each service to talk to various people on what happened in the church service to gather more information. Handwritten field notes in a book was a way I documented my observations made during fieldwork. I conducted three (3) loosely structured interviews with the youth Pastor (David Streyers); the leader of “Ransom foundation” which is the Church outreach ministry (Andre Van der Bergh), and the Sunday School Superintendent (Lidy Van der Bergh) including informants (I didn’t change the names of leaderships’ members as they agreed not to use anonymous names because they are public figures of the church). However, I used anonymous names for informants. 
Each of these interviews lasted more less 45 minutes, semi-structured in its forms, and were recorded in my phone. Additionally, in those loose structured interviews, I engaged few church members in informal talks after services in an in-person gathering of people for the purpose of promoting friendship. I gathered available tools and products designed for the public including church announcements.  
Methodist church is known to serve the poor, the disadvantaged, the elderly, and the jailed through the outreach ministry called “feed a friend.” As a ministering body, they have found their niche to reach out the surrounding communities. This study focussed on conditions which might account for their growth by highlighting-mainstream, strong beliefs to reach out the lost through their love for the neighbour which constitutes the quality of their leadership.

ABSTRACT 
South African communities have a high rate of unemployment. Graduates, skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled people in communities are still in an unstable situation as they look for work, jeopardizing their social, financial, and economic stability and creating a ripple effect of social issues in communities. This study aims to explore the experiences of communities with high unemployment and assets that are inaccessible to the community. These assets can be used to address the social issues in the community.  This study will employ a qualitative research approach to understand the experiences of communities in South Africa about the barriers to employment and existing assets in the community. Participants who will take part in this study will be selected through the snowballing technique. Semi-structured interviews will be used to collect data from participants face-to-face. Data will be analysed using thematic analysis whereby codes were generated from the responses of the participants the after themes were created. The findings of this study revealed that the lack of access, lack of experience and skills development results to high unemployment of people in the community. 


Key words: unemployment, social issues, skills development, community development practitioners. 

An explanation of how your presentation relates to the conference theme (250 words or less):
Pulaski County, Georgia is a long-term community in the [university information retracted for blind review] program, part of [university]’s Public Service and Outreach Division. This [university program] empowers communities to address long-standing, critical community and economic development needs through an executive committee of local leaders, who prioritize the community’s needs and identify projects that benefit the community. Priorities come from diverse, local listening sessions and projects are submitted via local work groups for each priority. The [university program] then acts as a connection point between the community and students and faculty at the university and other higher education resources, who work on selected projects.
In 2020, the local Pulaski County [university program] Executive Committee decided to address their failing downtown. They participated in [university information retracted for blind review]’s Renaissance Program, with huge community buy-in and 400+ surveys on what community members wished to see their community become in the future. They also participated in a design charette collaboration through the [university information retracted] to visualize what several blighted downtown spaces could be. This process took place during the COVID-19 pandemic, which created unusual challenges and identified new best practices. Using these innovated pathways, Hawkinsville has been able to help their downtown thrive again by reimaging the corridor. Several spaces in the charette process have been renovated into new spaces since 2020, and in just five years, the community is seeing positive change in their small, rural townscape.

Overall Description:
In 2020, Hawkinsville, Georgia participated in a design charrette collaboration with the [university information retracted for blind review], to reimagine several blighted downtown spaces. Identifying new best practices during a global pandemic to obtain a diverse array of responses on what types of spaces local citizens desired to see, the charrette process was a success in tackling the challenge of helping citizens see spaces in a new way. Five years later, several spaces have been renovated by local stakeholders and stewards, including a new pocket park, restaurants, lofts, and an anchor park that has become the community’s centerpiece.

Abstract: The Institute for Peoples, Territories, and Pedagogies for Peace (IPTP), founded in 2023, emerged from transnational processes of “peoples diplomacy,” foregrounding the role of Indigenous and Afro-descended community members in advancing ecological justice and peace-building internationally. This undergraduate research contributes to these dialogues related to people-driven solutions to the climate crisis by exploring global discussions on collective practices to uphold the rights of nature. It explores the challenges faced in recognizing these rights and explores how legal frameworks can adapt to embrace community self-determination, building on Indigenous ontologies. The study proposes the enhancement of justice through Lyons’ (2021) “cosmopolitical co-presence.” 
Lyons, K. (2021) Mejorar los conflictos: derechos de la Amazonia en mundo cosmpololiticos. Revista de Antropologia Y Sociologia: Virajes, 28(2), 105-139. 
https://doi.org/10.17151/rasv.2021.23.2.6 
Relation of research poster to the theme Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities: The research poster exhibits citizen-led initiatives for protecting the autonomy of Indigenous and Afro-descendant communities, ecological justice, and transnational collaboration for the defence of these rights. Rooted in collaborations between communities in Colombia, Canada, Bolivia, and Ghana, these initiatives are innovative in their transnational reach, and emphasis on the protection and promotion of Indigenous knowledge systems, and the continued transmission of Indigenous knowledge and ontologies to future generations, and building understanding across difference. These initiatives reflect community-driven solutions that forego waiting for state or business interests to drive policy, and focus on building a groundswell of understanding and 

Poster Summary: Diversity, equity, inclusion, and antiracism initiatives have come under  fire locally and nationally. Resistance from within the institution and from the surrounding  community has thwarted some momentum with achieving educational equity. This political  moment calls for a more collaborative way of engaging resisters and/or saboteurs. This  poster presentation will summarize qualitative case study research about a PreK-12 racial equity implementation project at an institution that has a reputation for doing it well.  Unique findings about leadership practices and the multiple reasons for community  resistance will be presented. Implications will be outlined for future research, future  practice, as well as responsive research methodologies to better dissect community  resistance and its nuanced solutions. 
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this poster presentation, listeners will be able to  identify some factors that underlie community resistance, understand leadership behaviors  that are shown to be effective at managing resistance, learn the impacts that community  resistance has on an exemplar equity implementation initiative, and identify strategies to  manage community resistance to racial equity.  
Poster Connection to CDS 2025: For communities around the United States of America,  PreK-12 school districts are cornerstone institutions. Schools do more than educate  children and employ community members. School-based initiatives broaden the social  consciousness of children, families, community members, and community-serving  institutions. Implementing racial equity initiatives is one trend toward raising a  community’s social consciousness and improving its practices. However, the political  capital from the George Floyd Awakening has waned. Consequently, diversity, equity,  inclusion, and antiracism initiatives have come under scrutiny, locally and nationally. In our compassion-fatigued political climate, a new approach is needed. That new approach  requires collaboration among stakeholders with diverse viewpoints. This poster  presentation illuminates the nuanced reasons for resistance, clarifies the need for  collaboration with resistant community members, and brings forth evidence-informed  strategies to work in community to implement racial equity initiatives.  
Principles of Good Practice: 
1. Social justice 
2. Collaboration 
3. Dignity within Diversity 
4. Community-driven Practice

Description:
This research poster explores how applying human factors and ergonomics principles can improve Community Centered Entrepreneurial Development Systems (CCEDS). While these systems often focus on economic metrics, this approach emphasizes the human side: how entrepreneurs, community members, and other stakeholders interact with and make sense of these systems. Drawing on lessons from fields like healthcare and aviation, the poster identifies core challenges related to understanding complex information, tracking progress, ensuring usability, and clearly defining roles. Examining real examples, it offers practical strategies to make CCEDS more accessible, resilient, and responsive to the communities they aim to serve.
“Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities” invites us to explore new ways of fostering local growth. Rather than viewing CCEDS strictly through an economic or structural lens, this poster highlights the everyday human elements that shape these systems. By examining how community members, entrepreneurs, and other stakeholders interact with and make sense of these environments, we can better understand why certain problems emerge, why tasks become confusing, and why important information might get overlooked.
This poster doesn’t claim a ready-made solution or a proven new method. Instead, it identifies common stumbling blocks and shows how human factors—cognitive load, clarity of roles, ease of tool use—can influence how systems perform in real-world conditions. By recognizing these underlying issues, communities and practitioners may be better equipped to ask the right questions, gather the right data, and think more critically about what’s working and what isn’t. Over time, this awareness could guide the development of more user-friendly, accessible systems that support vibrant entrepreneurial activity. In this way, the poster adds a needed perspective to the conversation about building thriving communities— not by offering quick fixes but by revealing where we need to look more carefully.
References:
Carayon, P. (2006). Human factors of complex sociotechnical systems. Applied ergonomics, 37(4), 525- 535.
Dul, J., Bruder, R., Buckle, P., Carayon, P., Falzon, P., Marras, W. S., & van der Doelen, B. (2012). A strategy for human factors/ergonomics: developing the discipline and profession. Ergonomics, 55(4), 377- 395.
Feld, B., Hathaway, I. (2020). The Startup Community Way: Evolving an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem. John Wiley & Sons.
Flach, J., & Voorhorst, F. (2019). A Meaning Processing Approach to Cognition: What Matters?. Routledge.
Patorniti, N. P., Stevens, N. J., & Salmon, P. M. (2017). A systems approach to city design: Exploring the compatibility of sociotechnical systems. Habitat International, 66, 42-48.
Rubin, H. J. (1988). Shoot anything that flies; claim anything that falls: Conversations with economic development practitioners. Economic Development Quarterly, 2(3), 236-251.
Shorrock, S., & Williams, C. (2016). Human factors and ergonomics in practice: Improving system performance and human well-being in the real world. CRC Press.
Smith, J. H., Cohen, W. J., Conway, F. T., Carayon, P., Derjani-Bayeh, A., & Smith, M. J. (2002). Community ergonomics. Macroergonomics: Theory, methods, and applications. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Earlbaum Associates.

The study delves into the social and solidarity economy (SSE) ‘s pivotal role in localization efforts to achieve sustainable development goals (SDGs). It seeks to answer the following questions: With society's overarching issues and complexities, how can development be achieved where “no one is left behind”? What could be the proven model to include the poor and marginalized participating in economic and social pursuits? The study explores the efforts and initiatives and the contribution of these organizations in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The SSE played an important role in poverty alleviation and improving the quality of life. Cases and examples based on the literature are included to elaborate further on aligning the social and solidarity economy (SSE) with sustainable development goals. It also examines the critical role of the state in supporting and empowering SSE. 
Furthermore, the study explores the various integration of SSE in local communities. The different types of  SSE can address the pressing and long-standing concerns. The strategies and approaches, lessons, and hallmarks created by the SSE ecosystem in the country.  The transformative power of social and solidarity economy must be appreciated and recognized at the local, national, and global levels. 

Theme: Placemaking, the process of creating vibrant, inclusive, and sustainable public spaces, is significantly enhanced through cross-sector collaboration and robust community engagement. By involving diverse stakeholders, including government agencies, nonprofits, businesses, and most importantly, community members, placemaking initiatives can harness a wider range of resources, expertise, and perspectives. All of these partners are bound together by geography and the ability to pool resources to benefit the community.
This poster explores the benefits and guiding principles of cross-sector collaboration and community engagement in the context of placemaking. It considers how these aspects come together in both rural and urban communities. A key aspect of successful placemaking is the active participation of community members. By engaging residents in the planning, design, and implementation of placemaking initiatives, practitioners can ensure that projects are responsive to local needs and aspirations. Furthermore, the authors discuss the importance of building strong partnerships between different sectors to achieve shared goals.
By fostering collaboration between government, business, and nonprofit organizations, placemaking initiatives can leverage resources, expertise, and networks to create more impactful and sustainable projects. Ultimately, the success of placemaking depends on the active involvement of the community. By empowering residents to shape their neighborhoods and public spaces, placemaking can lead to more equitable, vibrant, and resilient communities. The work builds on the existing literature on placemaking and provides practitioners with a framework through which to consider the role of collaborations in their own placemaking initiatives.
Overview: Placemaking, the art of creating vibrant public spaces, thrives on community engagement. By involving residents in the planning and implementation process, community leaders can ensure projects align with local needs and aspirations. Cross-sector collaboration, including government, businesses, and nonprofits, is crucial for leveraging resources and expertise. This poster explores the benefits and guiding principles of cross-sector collaboration and community engagement in the context of placemaking.

Students enrolled in a service-learning First-Year Seminar gained an understanding of the social power structures that support or inhibit community building, and how that impacts individual and collective well-being.  “Exploring Community” has been taught 3x by two instructors, and leveraged the work of former US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, and co-authors of “The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness,” Robert Waldinger, MD, and Marc Schulz, PhD.  Panelists will include instructor(s), student, and a community partner, and examples of how the principles of good practice were embedded, as well as an assessment tool, will be shared.  

Puerto Rico’s enduring challenges with resource access and equitable distribution are deeply rooted in its colonial history as a U.S. territory. Federal policies and systemic inequities have left the island under-resourced and impoverished, with significant disparities in education and public health outcomes. Public schools, already struggling with inadequate funding, face ongoing challenges in meeting the diverse needs of their communities.
This case study examines how innovative, place-based educational models can foster community resilience and collaboration in addressing systemic inequities. Specifically, it highlights the LEAP Social Enterprise model, a charter school system in Puerto Rico that re-imagines schools as community hubs. By integrating educational services with broader programs addressing social determinants of health, LEAP provides a holistic approach of support for students and their families. Programs include access to health and nutrition resources, extra-curricular opportunities, workforce development opportunities, and other place- and community-based solutions to enhance the educational outcomes of students as well as the well-being of students, their families, and the surrounding community.
Through qualitative methods, this research explores how place-based collaboration within the LEAP model enables knowledge sharing, resource pooling, and collective impact. It demonstrates how geographically situated institutions such as schools can act as corridors of regional prosperity by addressing interconnected social challenges and fostering community development. This study offers insights into the potential of education systems to drive sustainable, collaborative pathways toward equity and resilience.

Poster Description
This poster explores the perception of our research team on the dynamics of a university partnering with a small, resource-constrained community in climate resilience efforts. It will examine our research team's observational data and reflections to identify the challenges and opportunities regarding academic institutions partnering with resource-constrained rural communities to build climate resilience. The presentation will highlight the distinct dynamics of working in such a community and how to leverage community knowledge and resources to develop scientific solutions. Looking at the experiences of our researchers, we will offer more insights into the mutual benefits of universities partnering with small communities to build climate resilience. 
How the presentation relates to the conference theme
Our poster presentation aligns with the conference theme, specifically the sub-theme on Place-Based Collaboration, which is vital in building partnerships that address unique community challenges. Our partnership with the Niobrara community to build climate resilience against future climate-related disasters is a testament to our  unwavering commitment to supporting communities to thrive. 
The presentation will highlight the perceptions of our research team regarding adapting and integrating research methods with local knowledge to develop community-driven resilience strategies. This approach enhances the effectiveness of climate resilience initiatives while contributing to community development. It demonstrates how localized collaborations can create innovative pathways leading to thriving communities.

We invite conference attendees to learn about the Mobility Experiences, which are the 28 experiences that have a proven, measurable impact on lifetime income. Camber Collective’s Mobility Experiences research is grounded in more than 230 economic mobility studies and a survey of over 4,000 Americans and their lived experiences.

This workshop is designed to help local decision-makers integrate diverse perspectives, center community-driven practice, and foster sustainability in community development. The Mobility Experiences combines both quantitative research and Americans’ lived experiences. The Mobility Experiences framework will help facilitate collaboration and shared decision-making that aligns with community priorities. By fostering partnerships across regions and strengthening economic autonomy by leveraging shared resources, this process seeks to enable a holistic approach to driving sustainable economic mobility and community development. During the session, participants will:

• Understand how economic mobility can be measured through key life experiences that impact lifetime income 
• Explore practical applications to design programs that increase economic activity while respecting community power and promoting sustainable development
• Identify key activities and partners to promote access to intersectional Mobility Experiences

An overall description of the program/project. 100 words or less.
Learn how Neighborhood Action Tables (NATs) build thriving communities by fostering neighborhood-scale collaboration.  A key initiative in CDAD’s strategic plan, NATs bring together residents, CDOs, schools, businesses, and faith-based institutions to strengthen social infrastructure, build shared visions, and find local solutions to big challenges.  The session explores NATs as a replicable model for place-based collaboration, offering practical tools to enhance social cohesion and sustainable impact.

An explanation of how your program/project relates to the theme Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities. You may also include an explanation of how your program/project relates to the conference track(s) selected. 250 words or less.
 Neighborhood Action Tables (NATs) exemplify place-based collaboration by bringing together diverse neighborhood stakeholders – residents, CDOs, schools, local businesses, and faith institutions – to co-create solutions to shared challenges. NATs build social infrastructure at the neighborhood scale, strengthening networks of trust, shared vision, and social cohesion.  The model is part of CDAD's overall capacity building work and serves as an example of an intermediary working with community to build capacity to increase social cohesion. 
Neighborhood Action Tables (NATs) are a powerful example of place-based collaboration, designed to address systemic challenges while strengthening community power at the neighborhood scale.  NATs bring together residents, CDOs, schools, local businesses, and faith institutions in a collaborative network to build social cohesion, shared vision, and locally driven solutions.  
The importance of building robust neighborhood networks has never been clearer.  As funder’s priorities shift – sometimes misaligning with the needs of communities – NATs provide a grassroots framework to build and sustain social infrastructure where it matters most: at the neighborhood level.  By connecting residents and aligning resources, NATs will help communities retain agency over their futures, regardless of external pressures.  

Key words
Youth empowerment, vulnerable groups, refugees, ethnic minority, sustainable development
Issue
Formal education system is not in such capacity to architect Human Rights Education in our society. In order to bring social change in any society, grass root level civil societies could play a vital role in human rights promotion and protection. In this regard, total 13 youth-led educational institutions serving in non-formal education, English language sectors for promotion of peace education, non-violent social behavior change, human rights development to youth (12-35 age grps) in Quetta. Lack of proper educational lead the youth towards extremism and violence.
Methodology
These have been providing formal, non-formal education, leadership training, awareness on HRE. The programs are designed to involve youth male/female from diverse communities for behavioral change, leadership, economic sustainability; entrepreneurship & HR awareness. Educational experts, intellectuals, NGOs members are invited to project concepts on peace education, social democracy, community participation, human rights promotion & development.
Program intervention
Information on social change, sustainable development with literature on positive citizenship, teacher-students meeting, inters debate competition, social gathering with community leaders, cultural activities and workshops on inclusive community development.
Recommendations
These institutions are making positive impact enabling the youth for proactive participation for community and social activism thus minimizing communal violence at family level. For more meaningful involvement of positive youth needs on-going process and resources. Follow up efforts needed to be effective towards formation of more positive youth groups. They shall be able to provide peer support and replicate the acquired skills, once trained in community development sector.

An overall description of the program/project. The Place Action Working Group's project, "In Pursuit of Place: Developing Resilient & Meaningful Communities," aims to harness the transformative power of place action within rural communities. This initiative aligns with the NCRCRD’s mission to foster resilient communities and economies, leadership and civic engagement, and community health and wellness. The project focuses on developing and sustaining systems for culling, creating, accessing, training, and applying place action knowledge. Key activities include establishing a core community of practice, launching an inaugural summit, creating a virtual repository, and producing new scholarship, all designed to bridge gaps and identify overlaps within place action realms.
An explanation of how your program/project relates to the theme Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities
Join us for an engaging session on the Place Action Working Group's initiative, "In Pursuit of Place: Developing Resilient & Meaningful Communities." This session aligns with the conference theme, "Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities: People, Technology, and Place-based Collaboration," by showcasing how place action can transform rural communities through collaborative and innovative approaches.
Learn about our mission to harness the power of place action to foster resilient communities, enhance leadership and civic engagement, and promote community health and wellness. Discover our efforts to develop and sustain systems for culling, creating, accessing, training, and applying place action knowledge. These initiatives include establishing a core community of practice, launching an inaugural summit, creating a virtual repository, and producing new scholarship.
Understand how our collaborative approach bridges gaps and identifies overlaps within the realms of place knowing, place keeping, placemaking, and place management. We bring together academicians, practitioners, and local change agents to foster a dynamic exchange of ideas and strategies.
This session will emphasize People-Driven Solutions, highlighting inclusive practices that empower diverse voices and talents. Attendees will engage in Co-Learning, participating in mutual learning and capacity building among professionals and community members. The session will also focus on Collaboration, integrating diverse perspectives and resources in shared decision-making, and Community-Driven Practice, centering those most impacted in planning and implementation.
Attendees will be invited to join and contribute to the Place Action Working Group's ongoing efforts and attend the inaugural "In Pursuit of Place" summit the following year. This summit will provide a platform for deeper engagement, collaborative learning, and knowledge dissemination, setting the stage for innovative community development solutions.

Relation to the Conference Theme (250 words or less)
This presentation examines the efforts of non-profits in the Delta Regional Authority states to address questions and significant gaps in foster care training. Our research focuses on training programs that prepare foster and adoptive families to step into parental roles. It also looks at training to equip youth aging out of the system with essential life skills. Because no federal standards exist for such training, these organizations play a critical role in creating localized solutions that reflect the unique needs of their communities. Literature about this is sparse; additionally, the fact that it does exist is not generalizable, and it fails to show any evidence that these trainings impact outcomes.
The study connects to the conference theme by highlighting the importance of collaboration between academics, non-profits, state agencies, and communities. These partnerships are necessary to understand community needs, enhance resource access, and foster innovative approaches. By understanding what training is being used, we can help create practices that will improve the stability of foster care placements. While also helping foster youth better prepare for adulthood. By centering community-driven practices, this research underscores the role of local voices in shaping solutions and building sustainable pathways for families and youth.
This work also emphasizes the need for equity and dignity within diversity by addressing the lack of evidence-based practices in foster care training. Expanding the strengths and identifying the gaps in existing programs, this study aims to inspire new opportunities for co-learning and capacity building in child welfare systems.
Overall Description (100 words or less)
This presentation explores the efforts of non-profits in the Delta Regional Authority states to improve foster care training for families and prepare youth aging out of care. It examines how these organizations collaborate with communities to create sustainable, localized solutions in the absence of federal standards. The research emphasizes equity, community-driven practices, and the need for evidence-based approaches in child welfare, offering insights into how regional collaboration can address systemic challenges and foster thriving communities.

An explanation of how your presentation relates to the conference theme (250 words or less);  
The conference theme highlights collaboration and networking as an key pathway to community development.  This observation builds on the now well established role of social capital in helping communities to move ahead.  Unfortunately, the continuing erosion of many foundations of social capital, parallelled by a loss in trust in a wide array of American institutions, has been documented for decades.  Coming to the foreground in the context of this erosion, attention has been increasingly riveted to the political polarization that has steered these trends in increasingly disruptive directions. While most prominent in relation to national politics, many communities have experienced growing gulfs between different factions within their communities.  Interventions that are intentional, programmatic, and effective have the potential to help arrest this deterioration of this vulnerable form of capital, and a wide array of  organizations and academics are increasingly focused on what approaches hold promise.   Our presentation, about one such intervention based on a collaboration between Cooperative Extension and Braver Angels, fits best under  the People Driven Solutions label as it helps build the capacity of community members to create social capital themselves.  This case was implemented programmatically in a state, not in a single community of place. However, the basic inspiration for the approach has equal resonance for the them of place based collaboration as well, and is explicitly designed to focus on creating forms of inclusion and connection where belief in the possibility of  these things may seem most frayed.
An overall description (100 words or less) for the conference program
Polarization impacts civil discourse and, to an uncertain but evident extent, community development work. Systemic forces drive polarization, but interventions can build social capital. We describe a pilot program that grew into a series organized by University of Wisconsin’s  Division of Extension. The programming involved a partnership with Braver Angels, a national organization applying research-based skills to building bridges. We argue that Extension has untapped potential to address division and lack of civility by building civic infrastructure and skills for constructive dialogue. We report on the series and evaluate its impacts on participants.  

​For PDF Version of Slideshow Proposal: CLICK HERE​​​

Description
Join a practitioner to learn how one community is increasing sense of belonging.  Through activities that encompass local government priority setting, organizational development, and resident engagement, sense of belonging and community connectedness develop. People-driven solutions are emerging through collaborative leadership and shared power to implement approaches that uniquely consider local strengths. By including multiple avenues for development, the approach to increase belonging enhances interdisciplinary collaboration across sectors. Learn how long-term sustainability is built into the model at the community level through skill development and education and awareness.  

Conference Theme Explanation
Within a local context, this presentation explores how principles of community development support increased belonging (Brennan & Israel, 2008; Cramer & Pawsey, 2023; Ramos et al., 2024; Scorsolini-Comin & Dos Santos, 2010). The presenter will share how local people make a difference in their community to support increased belonging and how local organizations are supporting that work through policies, opportunities for connection, and relationship building. Developing social change and solutions at the local level is built on the specific community needs and residents’ assets (Shier & Handy, 2015).  Interdisciplinary/sectoral collaboration is taking place between social services, government, health care, business, and social profits with residents from diverse backgrounds having a lead role in guiding change.
The project was established in part to address potentially limiting factors such as the need to manage budgets, staffing levels, and competing priorities, while delivering on community goals related to service excellence and stewardship.  In practice this means ensuring that actions taken are thoughtful, well-planned, likely to reach their outcome, and produce long-lasting impacts.  It means developing an understanding of community assets (Schellenberg et al., 2018) and allowing people’s voices to emerge.  It means providing opportunities for solutions to grow through innovative pathways. Opportunities for connecting increase the connection points among residents, and with thoughtful planning around inclusivity and the principles of public participation, provide a space to strengthen ties (Granovetter, 1973) across the community.
Essentially, the community would not be the same without each member in it and the sense of belonging that people experience is a microcosm of this experience.  The reflection of themselves and the community around them help people to place themselves within the community and actively participate. 

Bibliography
Brennan, M. A., & Israel, G. D. (2008). The power of community. Community Development: Journal of the Community Development Society; Columbus, 39(1), 82–98.
Cramer, K. M., & Pawsey, H. (2023). Happiness and sense of community belonging in the world value survey. Current Research in Ecological and Social Psychology, 4, 100101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cresp.2023.100101
Granovetter, M. S. (1973). The strength of weak ties. American Journal of Sociology, 78(6), 1360–1380.
Ramos, D., Wright-Mair, R., Sifuentez, B., Bennett, C. B., Blicharz, M., & Elmes, A. (2024). Panacea or purposeful blanket statement for disrupting oppression? A critical review of sense of belonging literature 1950–2021. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000582
Schellenberg, G., Lu, C., Schimmele, C., & Hou, F. (2018). The Correlates of Self-Assessed Community Belonging in Canada: Social Capital, Neighbourhood Characteristics, and Rootedness. Social Indicators Research, 140(2), 597–618.
Scorsolini-Comin, F., & Dos Santos, M. A. (2010). The scientific study of happiness and health promotion: An integrative literature review. Revista Latino-Americana de Enfermagem, 18(3), 472–479. https://doi.org/10.1590/s0104-11692010000300025
Shier, M. L., & Handy, F. (2015). From advocacy to social innovation: A typology of social change efforts by nonprofits. VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 26(6), 2581–2603. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-014-9535-1

An explanation of how your presentation relates to the conference theme (word count: 250):

While community members drive innovation, how do we obtain innovative/inclusive solutions if the voices of our community are not explored nor captured? While evidence-based practices should inform community health decisions, challenges arise when recruiting a large, diverse, and representative sample in research. If a sample is not representative, the study’s external validity (generalizability) is threatened (1), presenting potential biases, and questioning the data’s accuracy to answer research questions with accuracy and rich meaning (2). When considering vulnerable or marginalized populations, recruitment becomes even more critical; without representation of these populations, the potential for even poorer health outcomes increases (3) or potentially even threatens community health due to inadequate evidence (1).

Barriers to participating in community research include a lack of participant interest or relevance (1, 4), lack of perceived community change (4), significant financial costs and time commitments (1, 5-6), communication issues between researchers and participants (1, 7-8), etc. Overall, participation fatigue (4, 6) has significant plagued community-based research, leaving participants feeling exploited (9, 10), undervalued, dissatisfied (6), and/or oversampled (11). 

Scholars and practitioners present innovative solutions to address or mitigate these challenges, including: creating partnerships with community organizations (12), increasing the study’s awareness and transparency (4, 13-14), sharing results throughout the research process (4, 15), acknowledging negative past participant experiences with research (4, 16), considering time burdens and site location/accessibility (1, 5, 17-19), building rapport and trust with the community and their networks (18-21), etc. Ultimately, there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to research recruitment (1), where flexible strategies are essential (22). 

Overall for the conference program (word count: 76)

Drawing from researcher reflections on challenges with recruiting for a mixed methods community health research project, this presentation highlights recent trends that build on these common barriers in recruiting a diverse, representative sample in community- and health-related research. The presentation then explores several of the innovative, inclusive strategies to enhance participant recruitment shown in the literature, concluding by inviting participants to share their own experiences and solutions with research recruitment, further contributing to quality community health. 


References:

1. Axen et al., 2021
   
2. Pedersen, 2023
   
3. Winter et al., 2018
   
4. Patel et al., 2021
   
5. Archibald et al., 2015
   
6. Clark, 2008
   
7. Ellard-Gray et al., 2015
   
8. Newington & Metcalfe, 2014
   
9. Goodman et al., 2018
   
10. Koen et al., 2017
    
11. Szabo et al., 2018
    
12. Dwarkanathan et al., 2018
    
13. Glendhill et al., 2008
    
14. Patel et al., 2003
    
15. Kmietowicz, 2016
    
16. Crowley, 2013
    
17. Crawford Shearer et al., 2010
    
18. Garnett & Northwood, 2022
    
19. Negrin et al., 2022
    
20. Involve, 2020
    
21. Wood et al., 2016
    
22. Bonisteel et al., 2021
    

Proposal Overview
Cooperative Extension operates under a national system in every U.S. state and territory as an extended arm of land grant universities. Cooperative Extension has a history of providing community development educational programs that engage rural communities. The mission of Cooperative Extension is to transform research into practice through community development program implementation (Gagnon et al., 2015).  Henning et al. (2014) indicated that there has been a major shift in the U.S. population over the last 115 years from rural communities to urban communities.  Henning indicated that 85% of the U.S. population lives in metropolitan counties with the overall population continuing to grow more diverse. Cooperative Extension has struggled to align community development programs with this major change. Harder et al. (2009) recommended that Cooperative Extension must work to understand the growing urban population and respond with valued programming.  Franz and Cox (2012) argued that Cooperative Extension has a role to play in disruptive innovation and leading change to enhance community development relevance in urban cities.
This paper will survey the literature and identify key themes that may help Cooperative Extension enhance innovation through community development programming in urban areas.  The literature review will focus on how Cooperative Extension can engage with community members in cities to create innovation and empower diverse residents and their skill sets resulting in people centered community development solutions using Daffron and Cafarella’s (2021) program planning and implementation theoretical framework. This focus aligns with the Community Development Society’s principles of good practice such as co-learning, collaboration, community driven programs, enhancing diverse outreach, and engaging people in shared programming and outcomes.
Abstract
The Smith Lever Act of 1914 resulted in the development of Cooperative Extension, the largest nonformal education organization and largest youth development (4-H) organization in the United States. Cooperative Extension has utilized a consistent program delivery model that includes program planning, design, implementation, and evaluation that engages people in learning throughout their life spans. Cooperative Extension has a long history of providing  community development programs that engage rural communities. This paper based on a review of the literature will focus on how Cooperative Extension can engage with community members in cities to create innovation and empower diverse residents and their skill sets resulting in people centered community development solutions using a program planning and implementation theoretical framework that informs how to transform a rural community development program approach. 
References
Daffron, S.R., & Caffarella, R.S. (2021). Planning programs for adult learners: A practical guide. Jossey-Bass.
Franz, N. K. & Cox, R. A. (2012). Extension’s future: Time for disruptive innovation. The Journal of Extension, 50(2), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.34068/joe.50.02.38
Gagnon, R.J., Franz, N., Garst, B.A., & Bumpus, M.F. (2015). Factors impacting program delivery: The importance of implementation research in Extension. Journal of Human Sciences and Extension, 3(2), 68-82. https://doi.org/10.54718/LABZ3003
Harder, A., Lamm, A., & Strong, R. (2009). An analysis of the priority needs of Cooperative Extension at the county level. Journal of Agricultural Education, 50(3), 11-21. https://doi.org/10.5032/jae.2009.03011
Henning, J. Buchholz, D., Steele, D., & Ramaswamy, S. (2014). Milestones and the future for Cooperative Extension. The Journal of Extension, 52(6), Article v52-6comm1. https://archives.joe.org/joe/2014december/comm1.php

Our tribal nations act as key economic engines, having an immense impact and influence on tribal citizens as well as the surrounding non-indigenous community. Such economic revenue and placemaking efforts rely on tribal lands, languages, and cultures. However, there is a need for an increased focus on indigenous-led community development theory and practice. When local indigenous knowledge systems and languages are incorporated into community planning efforts, they not only increase the self-determination efforts of local Indigenous peoples, but they foreground language and culture into the community experience. Our iyadvnelidasdi (“lifeways” in the Cherokee language) are inherently place-based. This paper addresses the question of how indigenous lifeways and knowledge systems can be centered to develop diverse and unique place-based community development strategies led by indigenous community members. Themes gleaned from indigenous participatory action research (IPAR) undertaken with community members in the tribal jurisdiction of the Cherokee Nation in Tahlequah, OK, will be highlighted alongside global examples of localized indigenous-led planning efforts. This paper seeks to highlight modern indigenous-led efforts planning and development efforts and how culturally-specific values and practices can be embedded in the overall planning strategies. 
Short description: 
When iyadvnelidasdi (“lifeways”) are incorporated into community development efforts, they not only increase the self-determination efforts of local Indigenous peoples, but they foreground language and culture into the community experience. This paper addresses the question of how indigenous knowledge systems can be centered to develop place-based community development strategies led by indigenous community members. Themes gleaned from indigenous participatory action research (IPAR) undertaken with community members in the tribal jurisdiction of the Cherokee Nation will be highlighted. This paper seeks to highlight indigenous-led community development efforts and how culturally-specific values and practices can be embedded in overall planning strategies.

Affiliation:
University of Johannesburg, Department of Social Work and Community Development

ABSTRACT
South Africa has made notable progress in broadening human rights issues in communities since 1994. However, there is still more to be done if the human rights are to be fully achieved as per Constitutional requirements. The right to equality, human dignity and social welfare are entrenched as fundamental rights in the South African Constitution. Thus the ability of community development practitioner, social workers and civil society organisations such as NPO’s to address human rights issues within the context of community development is regarded as vital to improve the well-being of communities, including the most vulnerable members in society. It is therefore important that these stakeholders should work collectively to address human rights deficiencies in communities to achieve social justice instead of working in silos. This paper will extensively examine the human rights challenges and dynamics within the context of community development, particularly the right to equality, human dignity and social welfare. The study adopted a qualitative approach and an exploratory-descriptive qualitative (EDQ) research design. One-on-one interviews and a semi-structured interview schedule will be used as a data collection tool. Implications for practitioners and practice will be presented based on the findings in this paper.

Key words: Community Development, Constitution, Equality, Social Justice, Human Dignity and Social Welfare

This paper explores healthcare disparities in rural and indigenous communities of Jharkhand, India, focusing on Giridih, Deoghar, and Pakur districts. Using the Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) method, it investigates structural factors such as inadequate sanitation, limited access to clean water, and cultural barriers that contribute to poor healthcare outcomes. The study emphasizes the importance of community-driven solutions and regional collaboration to address these disparities. By engaging local residents, the research advocates for place-based, inclusive healthcare interventions that empower marginalized communities and align with global health initiatives like the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 
Explanation: 
This research examines the structural drivers of healthcare disparities within the rural and indigenous communities of Jharkhand, India, with a focus on Giridih, Deoghar, and Pakur districts. Despite global health initiatives like Health for All (HFA) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), health outcomes remain poor in these marginalized regions. The study employs the Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) methodology to understand the complex factors contributing to inequities in healthcare access, particularly issues related to sanitation, clean water, and health literacy. 
Aligned with the conference theme of "Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities," this study emphasizes the importance of community-driven solutions and regional collaboration. By engaging local residents through focus group discussions, interviews, and community mapping, the research gathers both qualitative and quantitative data to explore the root causes of healthcare disparities. Preliminary findings reveal significant gaps in healthcare infrastructure and access, alongside cultural and linguistic barriers that further hinder effective service delivery. 
The study advocates for place-based solutions that involve local communities in healthcare planning and decision-making. These approaches, rooted in inclusivity, can address structural barriers to care while empowering marginalized communities. The research aligns with the conference's goal of fostering regional knowledge alliances and contributing to equitable healthcare development. By focusing on structural factors and promoting community engagement, this study offers valuable insights into how inclusive healthcare interventions can contribute to achieving the SDGs and addressing health disparities in Jharkhand.

We present a meta-analysis of climate change-related articles and content in the Journal of the Community Development Society over the course of 55 years of publication.  Specifically, our objective is to shed light on the scholarly and research focus of various climate-related articles, the theoretical connection of climate change and community development, and the gaps in the content, specifically focused on praxis related to climate justice.  The goal is to inform the CDS of contemporary scholarship on the topic of climate change and suggest how the Society can better address this most critical issue facing communities.
Our topic relates to the Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities theme as well as the sub-theme of People-Driven Solutions in that our analysis highlights the role of communities, be they communities of place, interest and/or identity, in confronting the challenges of climate change, as well as climate adaptation, mitigation, and resiliency strategies.  Climate change remains a dangerously consequential issue affecting communities now and in the future.  In fact, most scientists and scholars warn climate change is the definitive issue facing humanity.  It is incumbent on community development scholars and practitioners to have a clear understanding of how this issue has been represented in the literature base of our journal in terms of theory and practice and how this scholarship can in turn influence communities.  By presenting our meta-analysis of climate change scholarship within the Journal of the Community Development Society, we hope to highlight the critical role that individuals and coalitions can play as community members driving innovative climate solutions.   We plan to suggest areas for future research and scholarship through a new Current Issues Series publication focused on our review of the climate change-related articles and content with the drafting of several chapters in this synthesis issue. We also intend to follow with an additional meta-analysis on the topic of Sustainability broadly and/or the Sustainable Development Goals more specifically for an additional future issue.  Our ultimate intent is to shed more light on the inclusive practices that empower diverse voices, particularly those who are most vulnerable to the impacts of a changing climate. 

This presentation examines how Community Schools, funded through the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), support foster youth and other vulnerable student populations. Focusing on the West Kern Consortium in California and schools in Iowa and Boston, this study explores how these community schools collaborate with local organizations to address the educational and socio-emotional challenges foster youth face.
The research investigates the operational strategies of these schools, with an emphasis on mentorship programs, behavioral health services, and equity-focused decision-making. This study highlights the impact of place-based collaboration and community-driven initiatives on improving educational outcomes by examining schools from three diverse regions. Through interviews and surveys with educators, community leaders, and students, the research explores how local partnerships enhance student success and foster a supportive school climate.
This presentation aligns with the conference theme by demonstrating how community schools serve as a model for innovative, collaborative approaches to education. The study emphasizes the importance of local, community-driven solutions to systemic educational challenges and offers practical recommendations for replicating these models in other regions. By showcasing how schools in diverse locations address the unique needs of foster youth, the research argues for the expansion of community schools as a pathway to sustainable educational equity and community empowerment.
Overall Description (100 words or less)
This presentation explores the role of Full-Service Community Schools in improving educational outcomes for foster youth, focusing on case studies from California, Iowa, and Boston. By analyzing mentorship programs, behavioral health integration, and community partnerships, the study highlights how these schools create supportive environments for marginalized students. Based on interviews and surveys with key stakeholders, the research offers recommendations for expanding community school models to promote educational equity and strengthen community-driven support systems.

Relationship of presentation to the conference theme (227 words) 
This presentation connects with the conference themes of innovation, thriving communities, and place-based collaboration for shared regional prosperity. 
We will present the Center for Integrative Leadership’s tool to support community leaders to tackle common challenges by recombining existing resources (relationships, knowledge, money, institutions, natural and human capital, infrastructure, etc.) to craft innovative pathways through collaboration. The foundation of our approach is the belief that cross-sector collaboration is not only necessary but also a strategic pathway to innovative problem-solving and collective impact in our interdependent world. Our agenda-setting tool - known as the Minimum Viable Benefit (MVB) process - is a structure for community leaders from the business, government, and nonprofit sectors to collaborate to identify, test, and refine an initiative. The MVB is an adaptation, for the social entrepreneurship space, of the Minimum Viable Product approach commonly used in the business sector to accelerate innovation through prototyping and LEAN processes. 
We’ve been implementing this approach with teams of leaders from small towns and rural and urban regions throughout Minnesota since 2019. Our approach is very much about place-based collaboration for collective impact and creating thriving communities with an emphasis on advancing shared prosperity. Our process is also well-suited to the conference theme of people-driven solutions because the foundation of the MVB process is the the diverse experiences, identities, values and commitments, sectoral and professional backgrounds of the community leaders. 
Overall description for the conference program (100 words) 
I will present the Center for Integrative Leadership's process to support cross-sectoral initiatives for shared community prosperity. The Minimum Viable Benefit (MVB) process is an agenda-setting tool for community leaders from the business, government, and nonprofit sectors to both launch an impactful project and build their collaborative leadership capacity. IT consists of a series of questions that help communities manage the overwhelm of facing outstanding challenges or opportunities by identifying, testing, and refining interventions. The MVB process adapts business innovation prototyping approaches for the social entrepreneurship space. We will share a free, online guide and case study examples from Minnesota.

Abstract 
Community development projects have in fact claimed a better way in contributing to socio-economic development and peacebuilding in the conflict affected societies around the globe. Pakistan, since last couple of decades faces civil and militant conflict in number of regions particularly bordering Afghanistan. Simultaneously, the government of Pakistan and national/international nongovernmental organizations planned and implemented many socio-economic development projects not only for the welfare of the affected population but also to bring sustainable peace through development interventions. This study aims to examine the contribution of the community development projects on socioeconomic development and peacebuilding in the conflict affected merged districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The study applied ethnographic approach and collected primary data through interviews, focus group discussions and participant observations. The sample is composed of 85 participants from various locations in four affected merged districts as well as the government and Nongovernment organizations officials involved in implementation of aid and community development projects.  Over 70% of the respondents agreed that development projects including livelihood improvement, skills enhancement, Vocational Training Centers for Women, micro credits, economic revitalization program for men, and the Sabaoon program for youth rehabilitation and agricultural development have significantly contributed to fulfillment of the basic necessities of the affected population. The social sectors including health, education, political awareness, human rights and social safety have received major focus and aid to motivate the public and bring peace in the society. However, at grassroot level, the participation of the common public, gender consideration and access of poor class remained a question mark. Because of the low participation of the various categories of population, the results of the development interventions in the context of peacebuilding continued to be minimal. The finding indicates that lack of professional skills and the influence of local elders in peacebuilding measures has largely affected the goals of projects. Similarly, the least focus to the revival of local cultural practices for peacebuilding disrupted the sustainable peace in merged districts. The suggestions emphasize the need for integrated, participatory and context-specific community development strategies to achieve long-term stability and peace in conflict affected regions.
Key Words: Development projects, Peacebuilding, Sustainable peace, conflict affected regions, community development 
An explanation of how your academic paper relates to the theme “Innovative Pathways to Thriving Communities: Technology, People, and Place-based Collaboration.”
The research focus on practices of community development projects contribution in socioeconomic development and peace building on the conflict affected merged district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province of Pakistan. The communities in these landscapes have been highly affected by the militant conflicts for the last couple of decades. Community participation in rural areas of Pakistan particularly in development projects are highly constrained. The social, cultural, political and religious sensitivities are considered as resilient to participation of marginalized population, particularly women, minority and even user groups in community development programs. Similarly, the government institutions and elite community are highly resilient to participation of general population in the development projects. 
The post conflict community development interventions have improved the socio-economic condition of the affected population, however, the goal of achieving peace remained a dream. This is because of noninvolvement of the stakeholders in the implementation of the aid and development projects. How lack of participation of various groups have impacted the collective solution of sustaining peace in the affected regions. These questions of research particularly relate to the conference theme of ‘People-Driven Solutions – Emphasize the central role of community members in driving innovation, focusing on inclusive practices that empower diverse voices and talents.
Similarly, the research also analyzes the social and cultural aspects of the communities which were resilient to community participation in development programs, but the government and NGOs paved least focus to revival of social and cultural practices of the community in the context of conflict resolutions.  This aspect of the research belongs to the third theme of the conference “Place-Based Collaboration”.  Therefore, the research covers the broader themes of the conference and would contribute to theoretical discussion of the community participation practice in development program.

​For Full Paper Proposal: CLICK HERE​​​

Local and regional economic development leaders and organization face several headwinds when it comes to sustaining and growing their economies. This session will showcase valuable work being done to inform and guide communities/regions of creative ways to grow and diversify economic development activities. One project focuses on the expansion of  entrepreneurial opportunities among women and minorities – two under-tapped assets in rural and urban places.  The second project offers insights on the mix of talent/workforce skills needed to support the sustainability and expansion of core industry clusters in regions in the U.S. The final project notes the growing opportunities for recreation and tourism as a component of local and regional economic efforts. It makes notes of the significant opportunities that exist for the land-grant university Cooperative Extension System and researchers to work in partnership with communities to grow their recreation economies in a sustainable manner. 
The proposed session aligns well with the theme of the 2025 CDS Annual Conference.  It offers new ways to build and/or sustain thriving economies – building on the place-based assets of places.  
PANEL PRESENTATIONS: 
Session Organizer/Moderator:  Lionel “Bo” Beaulieu, Purdue University
Project 1: Factors Affecting Female and Minority Entrepreneurs and Rural Economic Vitality
Heather Stephens & Xiaoyin Li, West Virginia University 
Women and Blacks experience lower self-employment rates in rural regions, despite their significant contributions to local economic prosperity. This project examines this under-explored issue and offers new insights into the set of factors influencing entrepreneurship among underrepresented groups. Results highlight the importance of place-based and group-focused programs to foster entrepreneurial ecosystems. 
Project 2: Exploring Skills-based Occupation Clusters in U.S. Regions
Indraneel Kumar, Purdue University 
Regional industry clusters have been popular in the U.S. for many years. Now, it’s  workforce development, talent attraction, and retention have emerged as critical to long-term economic vitality. This project sheds light on the skills-based occupational needs of key regional industry clusters, information vital to supporting regional economic development innovations.  
Project 3: Growing Recreation Economies: Regional Action Strategies
Douglas Arbogast, West Virginia University
The outdoor recreation economy has become of increasing importance to local communities.  But the capacity of the nation’s Land Grant Universities (LGU) to support local recreation and tourism has been limited.  This project assesses LGU capacity to support recreation economies. Findings show significant opportunities for LGUs to partner with communities.

In the years before this decade is out, small communities in the North Central region, and indeed throughout the United States, will need to prepare for the challenge of declining employment-to-population ratios.  In the communities affected, the population seeking employment is expected to fall while the population who depends on others to produce goods and services will continue to rise.  This imbalance could lead to a decline in living standards if the provision of goods and services is delayed or interrupted.
This paper expands the understanding of this problem by examining a simple mathematical relationship—called the economic wellbeing formula—that establishes a relationship between the standard of living, productivity, and the employment-to-population ratio.  This theoretical framework follows a simple logic and has established precedent in the field of economic growth and prosperity.  The paper uses illustrations to enhance its appeal as a tool of economic education that could serve as an anchor for communities to organize their ideas and formulate strategies in preparation for the demographic and economic changes looming in the near horizon.

These is a breakout meeting for CDS Members that serve on the Membership Committee.  

These is a breakout meeting for CDS Members that serve on the Programs Committee and its subcommittees.  

These is a breakout meeting for CDS Members that serve on the Stewardship Committee and/or Finance Committee Meeting.  

Dinner Served
Awards Presentation
Live Auction