ASSET BASED
COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT
(ABCD)
Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) is an
approach to sustainable community-driven
development. Beyond the mobilization of a particular
community, it is concerned with how to link micro-
assets to the macro-environment. Asset Based
Community Development’s premise is that
communities can drive the development process
themselves by identifying and mobilizing existing,
but often unrecognized assets. Thereby, responding
to challenges and creating local social improvement
and economic development.
This slide will describe ABCD through five key
aspects.
1. Asset Based Approach
2. Deficit Based vs Asset Based Comparison
3. Power of Associations
4. Principles for Facilitating Asset Based Community Development
5. Asset Based Community Development in Practice
Asset Based Community Development (ABCD)
builds on the assets that are found in the community
and mobilizes individuals, associations, and
institutions to come together to realize and develop
their strengths. This makes it different to a Deficit
Based approach that focuses on identifying and
servicing needs. From the start, an Asset Based
approach spends time identifying the assets of
individuals, associations and institutions that form
the community.
The identified assets from an individual are matched
with people or groups who have an interest in or
need for those strengths. The key is beginning to
use what is already in the community. Then to work
together to build on the identified assets of all
involved.
The first key method of the ABCD approach is that
development begins with the recognition of asset
categories that can be uncovered in any community
and place.
When applying ABCD principles, communities are
not thought of as complex masses of needs and
problems, but rather diverse and capable webs of
gifts and assets. Each community has a unique set
of skills and capacities it can channel for community
development.
Asset Based Community Development categorizes
asset inventories into five groups -Individuals,
Associations, Institutions, Place Based and
Connections.
INDIVIDUALS – EVERYONE HAS ASSETS
AND GIFTS.
At the centre are residents of the community
who all have gifts and skills. Individual gifts and
assets need to be recognized and identified. In
community development, you cannot do
anything with people’s needs, only their assets.
Deficits or needs are only useful to institutions.
ASSOCIATIONS – PEOPLE DISCOVER EACH
OTHER’S GIFTS.
Small informal groups of people, such as clubs,
working with a common interest as volunteers
are called associations in ABCD, and are critical
to community mobilization. They don’t control
anything; they are just coming together around
a common interest by their individual choice.
INSTITUTIONS – PEOPLE ORGANISED AROUND
ASSETS.
Paid groups of people that generally are
professionals who are structurally organized are
called institutions. They include government
agencies and private business, as well as schools,
etc. They can all be valuable resources. The assets
of these institutions help the community capture
valuable resources and establish a sense of civic
responsibility.
PLACE BASED ASSETS – PEOPLE LIVE HERE
FOR A REASON.
Land, buildings, heritage, public and green spaces
are all examples of assets for the community. Every
place where people choose to be was chosen for
good reasons, and whilst people remain, those
reasons remain. A place might be a centre of natural
resources, a hub of activity, living skills, transit
connection or marketplace. Whatever the strengths
of a place are, the people of the community will be
the closest to understanding it.
CONNECTIONS – INDIVIDUALS CONNECT
INTO A COMMUNITY.
Asset Based Community Development
recognizes that the exchange between people
sharing their gifts and assets creates
connections, and these connections are a vital
asset to the community. People whose gift is to
find and create these connections are called
connectors.
Deficit Based vs Asset Based
In the past, when a person had a need they
went to their neighborhood for assistance. But
this has shifted today to the belief that the
neighbor does not have the skills to help them.
Therefore, they must seek services and go to a
professional for assistance. In so doing,
reinforcing the form of system that divides
people into providers and recipients.
Deficit Based Asset Based
Problems Possibilities
Blame Shared ownership
What’s missing What’s there
Scarcity Abundance
Risks Courageous leadership
Needs Strengths, capacities, assets
Control-outside in Lead by stepping back
Top-down Inside-out
Do to Do with & enable to do
Clients & passive receivers Co-producers & active creators
Provider-led Citizen-led
Different Perspectives of Deficit Based vs Asset Based
Professionalized deficit based service providers
have made clients of the poor. People are distanced
from the support of their neighbors, who now think
that they are too removed and unqualified to help.
This leads to isolation of the individuals. When in
difficulty, people are pressured to identify
themselves by their special needs that can only be
validated and serviced by outside agency. But within
the ABCD process, this can be changed through the
process of recognizing community assets and
changing assumptions and intent accordingly.
Deficit Based Asset Based
Purpose Changing community through Changing community through citizen
increased services involvement
Method Institutional reform Citizen-centred production
Accountability Leaders are professional staff, Leaders area widening circles of
accountable to institutional volunteer citizens. Accountable to the
stakeholders. community.
Significance of Assets Assets are system inputs. Asset Assets are relationships to be
mapping is data collection. discovered and connected. Asset
mapping is self-realization and
leadership development.
Production Resource Money is the key resource. Falls Relationships are the key resource.
apart without money. Falls apart when money becomes the
focus.
Operating Challenge How do we get citizens involved? How do we channel and build on all
this citizen participation?
System Dynamic Tends to spread itself thinner over Tends to snowball over time.
time.
Evaluation Success is service outcomes, Success is capacity, measured
measured mostly by institutional mostly by relationships.
stakeholders.
Deficit Based Process vs Sustainable Community Development Asset Based Approach
Power of Associations
The second key method of Asset Based
Community Development is that action is
realized through the local associations who
should drive the community development
process and leverage additional support and
entitlements.
Associations Institutions
How Governed Power by consent Directors following policy
How Decisions Made Choice of members Managing executives
How Designed By members for themselves To meet production demands
Who Decides What To Do Members Contractors
Who Runs Member volunteers Employees
Who Are Beneficiaries Members Contractor, employees, directors and
consumers
Function To do more together To do more for less
What drives Capacity of members Drive to meet contractual obligations
Amount of Control Voluntary agreement Tight hierarchical control
Strengths Fun, creative and adaptable Reliable repetitive production
Associations vs Institutions
These associations are the vehicles through which
all of a community’s assets can be identified and
connected to one another in ways that multiply their
power and effectiveness. Users of the ABCD
approach are deliberate in their intentions to lead by
stepping back. Existing associations and networks
(whether formal or informal) are assumed to be the
source of constructive energy in the community.
Community-driven development is done rather than
development driven by external agencies that divide
their capacity and expertise between service
provision and the priorities of their continuing
existence.
ABCD draws out strengths and successes in a
community’s shared history as its starting point for
change. Among all the assets that exist in the
community, ABCD pays particular attention to the
assets inherent in social relationships, as evident in
formal and informal associations and networks.
ABCD’s community-driven approach is in keeping
with the principles and practice of participatory
approaches development, where active participation
and empowerment (and the prevention of
disempowerment) are the basis of practice. It is a
strategy directed towards sustainable, economic and
social development that is community-driven.
Principles for Facilitating Asset Based Community
Development
Most communities address social and economic
problems with only a small amount of their total
capacity. A large amount of the community capacity
is often diverted into meeting the service and
eligibility requirements of external deficit focused
provision. This capacity is needed internally by the
community as it reacts to challenges and seeks to
lead its own development. This is the challenge and
opportunity of community engagement.
EVERYONE HAS GIFTS
With rare exception; people can contribute and want
to contribute. Everyone in a community has
something to offer. There is no one who is not
needed. Gifts must be discovered.
RELATIONSHIPS BUILD A COMMUNITY
See them, make them, and utilize them. An
intentional effort to build and nourish relationships is
the core of ABCD and of all community building.
CITIZENS AT THE CENTRE
It is essential to engage the wider community as
actors (citizens) not just as recipients of services
(clients).
LEADERS INVOLVE OTHERS AS ACTIVE
MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY
Leaders from the wider community of voluntary
associations, congregations, neighborhoods, and
local business, can engage others from their sector.
This form of leadership utilizes relationships,
inclusion, showing and sharing to lead involvement
based on trust.
PEOPLE CARE ABOUT SOMETHING
Agencies and neighborhood groups often feel
trapped by perceived apathetic responses. Apathy is
a sign of bad listening. People in communities are
motivated to act. The challenge is to discover what
their motivation is.
MOTIVATION TO ACT
People act on certain themes they feel strongly
about, such as; concerns to address, dreams to
realize, and personal talents to contribute. Every
community is filled with invisible “motivation for
action” that must be identified. Listen for it.
LISTENING CONVERSATION
One-on-one dialogue or small group conversations
are ways of discovering motivation and invite
participation. Forms, surveys and asset maps can
be useful to guide intentional listening and
relationship building but cannot fill the void left by its
absence.
ASK, ASK, ASK
Asking and inviting are key community-building
actions. It is integral to showing that people have
been listened to and their gifts are recognized. “Join
us. We need you.” This is the song of community.
ASKING QUESTIONS RATHER THAN GIVING
ANSWERS INVITES STRONGER PARTICIPATION
People in communities are usually asked to follow
an outside expert’s answers for their community
problems. A more powerful way to engage people is
to invite communities to address ‘questions’ and
lead finding their own answer, changing the role of
agencies to following up with help.
A CITIZEN-CENTRED “INSIDE-OUT”
ORGANIZATION IS THE KEY TO COMMUNITY
ENGAGEMENT
A “citizen-centred” organization is one where local
people control the organization and set the
organization’s agenda.
INSTITUTIONS HAVE REACHED THEIR LIMITS IN
PROBLEM-SOLVING
All institutions such as government, not-for-profits,
and businesses are stretched thin in their ability to
solve community problems. They can not be
successful without engaging the rest of the
community in solutions.
INSTITUTIONS AS SERVANTS
Local people are better than outside programs in
engaging the wider community. Leaders in
institutions have an essential role in community-
building as they lead by “stepping back,” creating
opportunities for citizenship, letting people show
they care, and engaging in real democracy.
