Community Development
| Introduction: |
Community development is a many faceted subject which involves the skills of numerous people. These skills include leadership, planning, cross-cultural abilities, language abilities, technical expertise, local knowledge, finance, project development, teaching and health work.
Community development promotes the wellbeing of a community. It stimulates people to be involved at the local level in issues, which contribute to producing a functional society. Basic factors like adequate food supplies, health services, employment and education also contribute to the wellbeing of a community.
Community development begins with the individual where each person is considered a valued member within the community. Each one has a contribution to make, which in turn, sustains the community.
Community development is also a process, which can be stimulated by specialised people often called community workers or facilitators. Their role is to be change agents, people who help facilitate change allowing a community to achieve its goals.
Community development motivates people to develop structures through which they can represent themselves politically, socially and culturally. The development of functional councils and executives provides a mechanism for people to express themselves effectively at all levels.
Community development encourages the creation and ownership of local ideas, technologies and concepts. It also stimulates the transfer and adoption of the same from other cultures.
Ngaanyatjarra, Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara people have been involved with all aspects of community development both culturally and cross-culturally. Over the past 30 years they have been involved in developing their own forms of local government, which has allowed them to achieve land rights as well as the ownership of their own health services, airline and other functions. There have also been many achievements at the community or local level.
The following publications help demonstrate some of the developments and achievements gained by Ngaanyatjarra, Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara people.