Our 13 Staging Posts in Learning and Developmpent

What the community animators at UK-based consulting and research organization Nurture Development have learned in the 21 years since its founding.

In Search of the Tie That Binds

What is the tie that binds people on a block? How did most North Americans in a very short period of time become isolated in space? For people interested in collective/communal decision making, several communities in the U.S. and Canada are experimenting with ways to create ties among their citizens.

How Community Action Shapes Health

Deborah Puntenney has been a colleague of John McKnight and Jody Kretzmann at the Asset-Based Community Development Institute for 25 years. In this transcribed conversation, John and Peter talk with her about how her work focuses on engaging citizens to become effective co-producers of their own health and well-being.

Announcing a new phase of the Open Streets movement!

As part of the 2016 International Open Streets Summit in Portland, OR, The Street Plans Collaborative – founder of the Open Streets Project – is excited to announce a new phase in the evolution of the movement. To expand capacity and deepen our expertise, we’re thrilled to welcome 8 80 Cities as our primary non-profit [...]

The Body of Research on Open Streets is Growing – come hear about it at the 2016 International Open Streets Summit!

Charles Brown MPA, Senior Researcher with Rutgers University will present findings from the first-ever survey of a university community aimed to increase their overall diversity, inclusion, and sustainability. The survey highlights nearly 2,000 surveys from a focus group with Black and Hispanic Residents. Come discuss different strategies on how to use this information to remove [...]

Ottawa Canada expert will share 45 years of experience running NOKIA Sunday Bikedays at the 2016 International Open Streets Summit

Ottawa enjoys two seasons of open streets/canals with 7.8 km of Rideau Canal Skateways and 52 km of car-free NOKIA Sunday Bikedays throughout the capital city Ottowa and Gatineau Park. Come hear Bruce Devine with the National Capital Commission speak at the 2016 International Open Streets Summit about their innovative and data-driven analysis of how [...]

Research Validates Collaborative Crime Strategies

In some communities, there is a sense that crime is insurmountable. As part of our occasional series on community development research, LISC's research chief, Chris Walker, says that the data tells another story. “The sense of futility that pervades some conversations about safety is wildly misplaced,” he writes in his latest blog. He points to outcomes research that details the success of place-based strategies. The challenge, he says, lies in cutting them to fit local circumstances.

ESPN and LISC Reopen Gym in Harlem

Will the next great NYC ball player start here? Who knows but for this summer, middle and high school kids in Harlem and across the city will have a new gym for a 12-week hoops clinic and basketball tournament. The basketball court, inside Democracy Prep Harlem Charter School in New York City, was renovated with a new floor as part of ESPN and LISC’s Home Court program, which aims to improve the quality and accessibility of neighborhoods gyms. The NBA and NBA Cares joined in to provide equipment and uniforms for the grand re-opening.

Bridging the Opportunity Gap

The unemployment rate is at a record low, but millions of Americans still have difficulty finding a living wage job. The challenge is especially acute for people returning to their communities after incarceration. A new $4.5 million grant to LISC from the U.S. Department of Labor will expand services at LISC's Financial Opportunity Centers to address the particular challenges they face and, in the process, reduce recidivism, make communities safer, and boost local economic activity.