Sustainable Livelihoods and Rural Development looks at the role of social institutions and the politics of policy, as well as issues of identity, gender and generation. The relationships between sustainability and livelihoods are examined, and livelihoods analysis situated within a wider political economy of environmental and agrarian change.
This book brings together several systems-level approaches to the consideration of the interaction of livelihood choices, natural resource management and participatory action research on sustainable development. By focusing on these approaches to community change, the volume hopes to encourage readers to consider how they might adopt methods such as Sustainable Livelihoods Approach (SLA), Community Capitals Framework (CCF) and Participatory Action Research (PAR) in their own research, practice and teaching. Thus, this volume will engage readers in reflection about the importance of systems-level approaches that address poverty from the perspective of the poor, natural resource management that maintains the resource for future generations, and the engagement of local people in designing and implementing, and thus owning, strategies that address equity as well as economic security and the environment. This book was originally published as a special issue of Community Development.
This edited volume presents the conference papers from the 1st International Conference on Business, Economics, Management, and Sustainability (BEMAS), organized by the Centre for International Trade and Business in Asia (CITBA) at James Cook University. This book argues that the orthodox methods of external risks, climate change adaptation plans, and sustainable economic growth in cities are no longer adequate. These methods, so far, have not only ignored the ongoing structural changes associated with economic development but also failed to account for evolving industries’ composition and the emergence of new comparative advantages and skills. Specifically, this book looks at the vulnerable communities and exposed areas, particularly in urban areas, that tend to experience higher susceptibility to external risks (such as climate change, natural disasters, and public health emergencies) have been largely ignored in incremental adaptation plans. Vulnerable communities and areas not only require different adaptive responses to climate risk but also possess unlocked adaptive capacity that can motivate different patterns of sustainable development to achieve the goals of the 2030 Agenda. It is essential, therefore, to view transformative growth and fundamental reorientation of economic resources as integral parts of the solution. Social disorganisation and vulnerability are other undesired outcomes of the unpredictable and widespread external economic shocks. This is due to a sudden and tough competition between members of society to acquire precious resources, most of which may be depleted during unprecedented events such as natural disasters or pandemics resulting in an even more chaotic and disorganised conditions.
Bachelor Thesis from the year 2010 in the subject Sociology - Methodology and Methods, grade: Sehr Gut, Management Center Innsbruck (Non Profit- social- and healthcare management), language: English, abstract: As communities around the world are struggling to cope with the changing social, economical and environmental structures, the demand for participation in the planning of policies is raising. Changes in economy, health and agriculture are influencing households, community relations and their livelihoods. Health will be highlighted as major resource for the development of a household and a community. Through the research of different literature this paper reports prerequisites, strategies, principles and values to improve the well-being of local communities and the sustainability of community based initiatives. Through integrating the multisectoral dimensions of livelihoods, the paper discusses capacity building and empowerment. Therefore participation is the core principle of community development to improve the livelihoods of communities and individuals. Furthermore the paper argues participative practices which are focused on cooperative local economies, healthy convivial communities, educational equity and employment opportunities. Moreover community development provides the framework for the community to leap into modernity in its own rhythm. Findings indicate that community development and the enhancement of participation promotes the ability for critical reflection of local problems and their capabilities to react on it. The findings also shed some light into social, environmental and economical capital to provide a sustainable setting for a healthy community. Community development is committed to social and environmental justice and its vision is a peaceful, just and sustainable world.
Agricultural interventions are designed on certain assumptions of empowerment that do not necessarily address the livelihood constraints of the rural women they set out to support. This is a failing that might be due to the omission of women’s voices expressing their understanding of empowerment and its relation to existing gender orders. Using primary data from the Upper East and Northern Regions in Ghana, we explored women and men’s notions of the processes and outcomes of empowerment. We began by understanding the basis of women’s disempowerment and confirmed its location within agricultural production relations that granted women limited access to resources. Respondents recognised all the main dimensions of power: within, with, to and over. The restrictions of women’s empowerment to the provisioning role on condition that it did not usurp male power over women limited intervention’s ability to provide true empowerment for women. But signs of increasing transfer of women’s power within into group action and male acceptance of women’s expanding spheres of influence indicate that some grounds for true transformation in the future exists.
While fashionable rhetoric threatens to overwhelm clear thinking sustainable development, the authors of this study believe that serious and difficult questions need to be asked if we are to move to a concept and practice of development which really integrates the needs of people, the economy, the environment and the practical world of decision-making. In particular, it is too easy to assume a positive relation between poverty reduction and an improved environment. Instead they argue that the alleviation of poverty and sustainable development are only likely if the idea of empowerment and its practical institutionalization in the law, the educational process and the machinery of government becomes a reality. This innovative book explores some of the multiple ways in which this approach could become a reality, as well as the difficulties that stand in the way.
This guidebook is a collection of stories of African development projects that have transformed the lives of individuals and communities through collaborative partnerships. Through the study of these successful collaborations, readers will learn to: - Engage in capacity-building for collective problem-solving at the community level. - Work collaboratively for women's empowerment. - Mobilize culturally diverse communities to plan, implement, and evaluate sustainable community development. - Build meaningful collaborations among university and grassroots partners. - Maximize volunteer skills and match them to community needs. The Women's Global Connection (WGC; www.womensglobalconnection.org) embarked on this journey of cross-cultural engagement and capacity-building with one intention, grounded on three pillars: - Local ownership demanded individual and community involvement and buy-in. - Social empowerment required that each of our endeavors resulted in the local community's capacity to share the knowledge and replicate the training that was offered. - The promise of sustainability curbed our efforts to engage only in projects that held the hope of long-term sustainability by the community itself. Years of collaboration among the women's cooperatives, WGC, a private Catholic university, and countless volunteers has demonstrated the unbounded potential of reaching across boundaries and barriers to build a more responsible sense of global citizenship in today's inequitable world society.
Community planning is starting to include a broader food systems focus, spanning topics such as nutrition and health outcomes, sustainable farming practices, economic and social implications of local food production, distribution, and consumption. Together, these issues are a driving force for the passions of those seeking positive change in their communities through healthy food. The purpose of this book is to explore how and where local food and farms, as part of a local or regional food system, can positively impact both economic development and overall well-being of communities. Across North America, there are good examples of the ways in which innovative local food systems provide opportunities for: increasing job growth and entrepreneurship; retaining local farmers on their land while nourishing their community; and providing communities places to congregate, bond, and become closer-knit. Six such examples are highlighted, each illustrating a novel model offering unique contributions to community economic health and well-being. These important cases offer practitioners, advocates, academics, and students insight into how applications can be built or studied in their own communities.
Bachelor Thesis from the year 2010 in the subject Sociology - Methodology and Methods, grade: Sehr Gut, Management Center Innsbruck (Non Profit- social- and healthcare management), language: English, abstract: As communities around the world are struggling to cope with the changing social, economical and environmental structures, the demand for participation in the planning of policies is raising. Changes in economy, health and agriculture are influencing households, community relations and their livelihoods. Health will be highlighted as major resource for the development of a household and a community. Through the research of different literature this paper reports prerequisites, strategies, principles and values to improve the well-being of local communities and the sustainability of community based initiatives. Through integrating the multisectoral dimensions of livelihoods, the paper discusses capacity building and empowerment. Therefore participation is the core principle of community development to improve the livelihoods of communities and individuals. Furthermore the paper argues participative practices which are focused on cooperative local economies, healthy convivial communities, educational equity and employment opportunities. Moreover community development provides the framework for the community to leap into modernity in its own rhythm. Findings indicate that community development and the enhancement of participation promotes the ability for critical reflection of local problems and their capabilities to react on it. The findings also shed some light into social, environmental and economical capital to provide a sustainable setting for a healthy community. Community development is committed to social and environmental justice and its vision is a peaceful, just and sustainable world.
