Building Community: A Tool Kit for Youth and Adults in Charting Assets and Creating Change

Created by the United States (US)-based Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development and National 4-H Council with support from the Ford Foundation, this facilitator's handbook is designed to enable individuals and groups to bring an asset-based approach to creating positive change in their communities. Featuring concrete activities and real-life case studies, the toolkit provides practical information about creating youth-adult partnerships, mapping assets, creating community visions and plans, and mobilising local change.

More specifically, the Building Community process is designed to identify community assets, inspire action, promote partnership between and among youth and adults, and create changes in communities that can be sustained and supported. This practical guide that has resources for each of the 4 phases of the process of youth and community development: building readiness, visioning and planning, taking action, and change and sustainability. The tools and resources found in Section 2 describe these features in detail. Explanations of how the core principles can be used throughout the various phases of the work are provided in Sections 3-6.

The tools in this kit were primarily designed and piloted in rural communities, but most of them are applicable to urban and suburban communities. The tools were designed and piloted with youth in high school but could be adapted for use with younger youth.