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CHFT Publications Developing Our Community Return to Bookstore Developing our community A guide to how our co-op can build a healthy community Introduction A housing co-op, more than other types of housing, can create a healthy community to meet the needs of its members. Co-op communities can become healthy and stay healthy when the members work together toward goals that they themselves have set. How we reach the goals is just as important as reaching them. This booklet outlines the steps that members can take to become such a community through community development. What is community development? Community development is a way for us, as co-op members, to gain control over different aspects of our lives while, at the same time, becoming a community that meets our needs. Community development is a process that recognizes the following: • Developing the community begins where the members are. The work begins from where the members think they are and not from where others think they should be. • The members decide the needs of their community. The members decide what the present needs of the community are, and the community develops its own solutions for meeting those needs. • Community development involves everyone. All members, not just the leaders, are involved in planning and making important decisions that affect their community. • Community development is based on interaction among members. Doing things together, both formally and informally, encourages members to be open, spontaneous and creative. • All groups in the community are represented. The community values social and cultural diversity. Members treat each other with tolerance and respect, and value the opinions of every group in the community. Steps to creating a healthy community We decide what we want. Each member is unique. This means that each person sees their personal needs and the needs of the community differently. We decide what we want from: • the buildings and grounds • other members • the board and committees • our larger neighbourhood and community. We talk to each other about our needs and what we want. We then decide what is realistic and what we might not get from the co-op community. We write a vision statement. We create a vision statement together that states what we, as a group, believe in and what we want to achieve. A vision statement will help the group make decisions, and it will attract new members who agree with the statement. Our co-op's vision statement will include: • our purpose • what makes our co-op unique • how we will achieve our goals. Visions can change. Our co-op can always choose a new direction and work on a new vision statement when the time comes. We get to know each other better. It takes time and effort for us to get to know each other. We make time for this at meetings, social events, and educational activities. We do this because we have to live and work together. Getting to know one another means that we: • welcome everyone • talk to and are open to everyone, not just those who are like us or with whom we are most comfortable • include everyone, no matter what their background • show a personal interest in others • have fun. Our trust of each other will grow when we get to know other members. Warmth between members will grow. Our confidence in building new relationships will grow also. We practise co-operative principles and values. Co-ops all over the world have adopted the co-operative principles. These principles make co-ops different from all other types of housing. The principles talk about open membership, democratic control, shared economic benefits, education, co-operation and community. We will learn how we can apply these principles in our co-op. The principles will guide us in how we manage our housing and how we will relate to one another as members. We make plans together for the future. We all plan, even when we are not aware of it. The co-op community must plan, too. We need to know before we make a plan: • where the co-op came from • where the co-op is now • where the co-op wants to go. The first step is to review the way we do things in the co-op. What is working and not working? What things do we want to change and what things should stay the same? Then we can plan and reach our goals. We learn how to solve problems and make decisions so that the needs of the community and the needs of individuals stay in balance. Community development is ongoing. This booklet describes the process that continues for the life of the co-op. Our community's needs will change as the needs of the members change. The community will always have to be open and flexible to meet these needs. 24 hour housing information (416) 465 - 1309 Email: info@coophousing.com