Beyond Participation: Relationships, Power and Community Wealth
One of the things I enjoy most about sharing ideas online is that the conversation rarely ends with the post itself.
My recent post exploring the relationship between Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD), community organising and economic development generated a remarkable discussion. What stood out wasn’t disagreement with the framework, but the thoughtful ways people expanded and strengthened it.
A number of people highlighted the importance of relationships, trust, belonging and what some described as the “relational fabric” of community. Others spoke about the need to focus more intentionally on power, ownership and influence. Several suggested that “community wealth building” may be a more useful term than “economic development” because it focuses not simply on growth, but on who owns assets, who benefits from them and who gets to make decisions about them.
As I reflected on the conversation, it struck me that many of these ideas are deeply connected.
For more than three decades, I’ve been fortunate to work alongside communities across Australia and around the world. One of the most consistent lessons I’ve learned is that community development is fundamentally relational. It’s something we teach regularly in our workshops and training. We often encourage people to be relational rather than transactional because communities are not built through projects, services or funding programs alone. They are built through relationships.
Strong relationships create trust. Trust creates the conditions for people to work together. Through working together, communities begin to identify shared aspirations, tackle common challenges and take collective action.
This is where the comments pushed the conversation further. Relationships matter enormously, but they are not the destination. They are the foundation.
The real question is what those relationships make possible.
When people connect around shared interests and concerns, they begin to build collective voice and influence. They become better able to shape decisions, advocate for change and steward the things that matter most to them. In other words, relationships become a pathway to community power.
This is one of the reasons I continue to see such a strong connection between ABCD, community organising and what many people call community wealth building.
- ABCD helps communities recognise and mobilise the gifts, strengths, relationships and assets that already exist.
- Community organising helps people build collective voice, agency and influence.
- Community wealth building helps communities translate that influence into ownership, opportunity and long-term prosperity.
These are not competing approaches. They are complementary pathways that become most powerful when they work together.
The comments also prompted me to think more deeply about the distinction between economic development and community wealth building. Traditional economic development has often focused on attracting investment, creating jobs and stimulating growth. While these things can be important, community wealth building asks additional questions.
- Who owns the assets?
- Who controls the resources?
- Who benefits from the wealth that is created?
- Who gets to make decisions about the future of a place?
These questions bring us back to power, not power over others, but power with others. The power for communities to shape their own future, steward local assets and create opportunities that benefit current and future generations.
During our recent work in the UK, we were introduced to Ambition Community Energy in Bristol. What began as a resident-led community planning process evolved into a community-owned renewable energy project designed to generate long-term benefits for local people.
Closer to home, Totally Renewable Yackandandah has brought together residents, businesses and organisations around a shared vision of achieving 100% renewable energy. Rather than waiting for solutions to arrive from elsewhere, local people have worked collectively to influence and shape their own energy future.
In Melbourne’s west, Pride of Our Footscray provides another inspiring example. Local people came together around a vision for a community-owned LGBTQIA+ venue and social enterprise, creating not only a place of belonging and connection but also a community asset that is collectively owned and shaped by the people it serves.
At first glance, these examples may seem very different. One focuses on renewable energy. Another focuses on community ownership and LGBTQIA+ inclusion. Yet they share a common thread. People came together around a shared vision, built relationships, organised collectively, developed influence and created assets that generate ongoing social, cultural and economic value. For me, this is where the conversation has naturally progressed.
For decades, many of us in community development have argued that relationships matter. We have encouraged people to invest in trust, connection and belonging because we know that communities are strengthened through relationships rather than transactions.
The comments on my recent post reminded me that there is another important step in that journey.
Relationships are where it begins.
But the goal is not simply stronger relationships.
The goal is communities with the power to shape decisions, steward assets, build wealth, create opportunities and influence the futures they want to see.
Perhaps that is where ABCD, community organising and community wealth building find their greatest point of connection.
Not simply in helping people participate, but in helping communities build the power, ownership and influence needed to thrive.
What do you think?
