Part III - Rural Development Handbook

Glossary of Terms

Community...

Community is self-defining, based on a sense of shared purpose and common goals. It may be geographic or a community of interest, built on heritage and cultural values shared among community members.

Community defined in this way is not always synonymous with municipality. In some cases, communities may cluster together beyond their municipal boundaries, based on their assessment of the value in working together. A community might also identify itself on a smaller scale, such as a neighbourhood.

Community of Common Interest/Common Bond...

Generally, a community of common interest are persons who voluntarily associate with each other due to self-identified common concerns/purpose (i.e., social justice, environmental protection). A community of common bond are persons who have inherent commonalities (i.e., same sex or age group, ethnicity, disability, etc.)

Community Development...

Community Development is the process of the community coming together around its shared goals. It involves community members developing a sense of common vision and priorities for action. It is an inclusive process which reaches out to all segments of the community to ensure everyone participates in community decisions and actions. Community development is based on the following principles:

* wide-spread participation
* self-reliance
* broad-based leadership
* sustainable development with long-term perspective (25+ years)
* innovative partnerships between government business and community groups
* community planning
* cultural, economic, social and environmental goals

Community Economic Development...

Community economic development means locally-initiated activities which seek to develop the economy of a community and to improve the quality of life for the benefit of its members. It is the community helping itself and investing in itself. It is a participatory process involving all community interests, founded on the development of a long-term community plan and commitment of community resources.

Community economic development must involve all groups and stakeholders, including those traditionally excluded from existing power structures and economic activity. It is a way to bring all community members into the social and economic life of the community. It incorporates social and environmental goals defined by the community, as well as economic matters such as investment and business development.

Community Profile...

Community profile is a complete description of the location, population, services, climates, facilities (financial, medical, education, utilities), and contact names and numbers of municipal and economic development personnel and community development practitioners.

Community Strategic Planning...

A community with the capacity to guide its own development will be able to do the following:

* assess its economic, social and environmental conditions and challenges
* define a vision for its future
* assess the resources available in the community
* determine priorities and set social and economic goals
* take action within the community to achieve its goals
* evaluate its progress and make adjustments to both actions and goals as the need arises

These are the steps commonly understood to be a strategic planning process with a special emphasis on the participation of all community members. By participating in such a process, individually and collectively, community members build their own capacity for development and that of the community as a whole.

Entrepreneurship...

The ability of individuals to come up with a business idea and to assemble necessary resources and factors of production to translate the idea into a viable business.

Learning Styles...

The way an individual approaches the learning process based on hereditary equipment, life experiences, and the demands of present environment.

Networking...

Networking is the facilitating of linkages between individuals and organizations. Community networking involves both individuals and groups working together and sharing their knowledge and skills with one another. Network vehicles include conferences, seminars, workshops, newsletters and bulletins.

Operational Planning...

Operational planning is a comprehensive planning system that establishes goals and objectives for the day to day operational aspects of a community. Operational plans are based on the community's strategic plan and usually have a one year time horizon.

Sustainable Community Development...

Sustainable community development involves community residents shaping their own environments to enhance their quality of life by developing and undertaking strategies that are:

* compatible with the natural environment
* acceptable socially and culturally
* economically feasible

When a community becomes deeply involved in a project(s) there is the potential for the project to have a long-term lasting impact. Therefore the project is sustainable.

Wide-Spread Participation...

Wide-spread participation relates directly to sustainable community development (see above). It involves the cooperation and of all community residents, local corporate representation and all levels of municipal government (if required - provincial and federal governments also).

Wealth Creation...

This is the end result of inclusive, broad-based community development as a result of effective community strategic planning and action. The term wealth goes beyond the traditional economic focus. It implies welfare or prosperity in the holistic sense with respect to all elements of community; the economy, the environment, and social and human resources.

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