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COURSE ON UNDERSTANDING THE COMMUNITY

MODULE I: UNDERSTANDING THE COMMUNITY

 Read through the module to get a sense of the flow and to gain
understanding of what happens
 Work through the exercises as if you are a Participant to develop
examples or samples for explanations.
PREPARATION  Understanding community,
 Types of community
 Community mapping
 Community needs.
In this session, Participants will be able to understand and to know

 Understanding community,
OUTCOMES  Types of community
 Community mapping
 Rwandan community
 Community needs.
Individual activities, group discussion, group discussion and group
METHODS activity

The purpose of this module is for participant to know and describe the
community
 Understanding different types of communities
PURPOSE  Know and understand more on Rwandan community ,
 The role and the contribution of the people to map their community,
 To understand the needs of community
MATERIALS flip chart, post notes and markers
 Iriburiro,
 Understand community,
MODULES  Types of community,
SECTIONS  Mapping your community
 Rwandan community
 Community needs
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MODULE I: UNDERSTANDING THE COMMUNITY

1. INTRODUCTION

For those of us who work in community, it's important to understand community -- what a
community is, and the specific types of the communities we work in. Anything we do in a
community requires us to be familiar with its people, its issues, and its history. Carrying out an
intervention or building a coalition are far more likely to be successful if they are informed by
the culture of the community and an understanding of the relationships among individuals and
groups within it.

Taking the time and effort to understand your community well before embarking on a
community effort will pay off in the long term. A good way to accomplish that is to create a
community description -- a record of your exploration and findings. It's a good way to gain a
comprehensive overview of the community -- what it is now, what it's been in the past, and what
it could be in the future. In this module, we'll discuss how you might approach examining and
mapping the community in some detail and setting down your findings in a community
description.

Purpose: in this section participant will understand that Community is a group of people living
close together, or a group of people sharing something in common, moving toward a positive
goal of growth and improvement is a way of strengthening civil society by prioritizing the
actions of communities, and their perspectives in the development of social, economic and
environmental policy. It seeks the empowerment of local communities, taken to mean both
geographical communities, communities of interest or identity and communities organizing
around specific themes or policy initiatives.

It strengthens the capacity of people as active citizens through their community groups,
organizations and networks; and the capacity of institutions and agencies (public, private and
non-governmental) to work in dialogue with citizens to shape and determine change in their
communities. It plays a crucial role in supporting active democratic life by promoting the
autonomous voice of disadvantaged and vulnerable communities. It has a set of core
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values/social principles covering human rights, social inclusion, equality and respect for
diversity; and a specific skills and knowledge base.

ICEBREAKER

The trainees chose the eldest in the class, this one tell others why he choose to get married; what
was his mission, his vision, his target, and in his explanation he/she answer to have a family, to
be able to increase his family in the community, etc. with different answers the lecture will write
on the flip chart and at the end we will discuss in group brainstorming and get the meaning of
community.

2. DEFINITION OF COMMUNITY

Community is a word commonly used in the English language. The meaning of the word varies
depending on the person using it and the circumstances in which it is being used. Community
tends to mean different things to different people. For some it is simply a group of people who
have something in common; for others it is an area of residence; and for still others the meaning
of community may be much more personal (religion, race, shared blood, language, history,
territory and above all, culture). Helps to identify some form of community in which individuals
come together.

2.1. What is a community?

While we traditionally think of a community as the people in a given geographical location, the
word can really refer to any group sharing something in common. This may refer to smaller
geographic areas -- a neighborhood, a rural area -- or to a number of other possible communities
within a larger, geographically-defined community.
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2.2. What do we mean by understanding and describing the

community?

Understanding the community entails understanding it in a number of ways. Whether or not the
community is defined geographically, it still has a geographic context -- a setting that it exists in.
Getting a clear sense of this setting may be key to a full understanding of it. At the same time, it's
important to understand the specific community you're concerned with. You have to get to know
its people -- their culture, their concerns, and relationships -- and to develop your own
relationships with them as well
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3. TYPES OF COMMUNITY
3.1. Geographic Community or a Neighbourhood
It is the only type of community about which there is agreement amongst scholars. It has
physical boundaries by which make it distinct or separate, such as a river, a street. In a town
there might be several neighbourhoods, each with some special attributes: caste, religion, rich
and poor; urban and rural area. In addition, a neighbourhood usually has a diverse population
with individuals and groups occupying different physical space.
3.2. Community of Identity
It implies common identifiable characteristics or attributes such as having in common a culture.
By culture we mean: language, music, religion, customs, etc. Identity can be based on age,
gender, and sexuality. It does not mean that an individual necessarily identifies with the
community to which s/he is perceived to belong. A woman may not feel any thing in common
with other women except that all women are female. Community of identity may or may not be
geographically bound. For example, I as a woman identify with women in my immediate
location but may not feel an affinity with women in Russia, partly because I do not know them or
their culture.
3.3. Community of Interest or Solidarity
It incorporates social movements such as women’s rights, political party, peace, and
environment, saving group (ikimina, umuryango remezo…) or public education. A community
of interest is present concurrently in different geographical spaces. Individuals may be connected
to their interest community at the local, and or global level.
Community of interest can be formal or informal or both. In all cases, individuals become a part
of this community voluntarily. Individual level on involvement may vary from being very active
to being sporadic or passive. See Box 6.1 about what you need to consider while thinking about
your community of interest.
Do you have a group of people you meet, see, and speak to, e-mail, share information, or phone
on a regular basis? · What do you get out of these contacts? · What do you give in return? · How
long have you been part of this group?
3.4. Intentional Community In addition to the above three types of community, there
is what observer calling an intentional community. In this type of community, individuals
come together voluntarily and are supportive of each.
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Icebreaker: question in group brainstorming: What kind of society do we want to live in?

How can we work together to create the conditions in which individuals are fulfilled and
communities are both resilient and inclusive?

People want to live in healthy communities. These are communities in which they:

 feel able to be who they are

 have positive prospects for their future
 experience respect and equal and fair treatment

Focus: To achieve this people want to be in a community that:

 creates wealth and gives everyone access to its benefits

 cares for all its members, when they need it, throughout their life span
 provides an environment that is safe and attractive
 enables people to express and celebrate their creativity and diverse cultures
 enables everyone to participate in decisions that affect their lives

4. WHY MAKE THE EFFORT TO UNDERSTAND AND MAP YOUR

COMMUNITY?
4.1. The purpose
The purpose of this section is to help participants to understand that community resource
mapping is a process that can be and should be tailored to respond to the specific challenges,
problems, strengths, and context of any community, whether that community is at local level,
villages (imidugudu) or sectors.. When you think of your community, do you see a geographic
map in your mind? Or perhaps you see a retail and residential map that tells you what
opportunities are and where people live.

Asset mapping, drawing a map of what is valuable in our communities, is an exercise in

community development. If you are looking for a way to begin work towards organizing local
people to take an active role in the place where they live, it is a good idea to start with what you
know. If you don’t know the place where you live, how will you know how to take advantage of
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all there is to offer? How will you know how to build a strong, active community without the
foundation of assets that are already right there?

We have to sit down and think about who and where we are as a first step in getting to where we
want to go. You may at this point be thinking, "Can't I work effectively within this community
without gathering all this information?" Perhaps, if it's a community you're already familiar with,
and really know it well. If you're new to the community, or an outsider, however, it's a different
story. Not having the proper background information on your community may not seem like a
big deal until you unintentionally find yourself on one side of a bitter divide, or get involved in
an issue without knowing about its long and tangled history.

4.2. Some advantages to taking the time to understand the community

and create a community Mapp include:
 Gaining a general idea, even before an assessment, of the community's strengths and the
challenges it faces.
 Capturing unspoken, influential rules and norms. For example, if people are divided and angry
about a particular issue, your information might show you an event in the community's history
that explains their strong emotions on that subject.
 Getting a feel for the attitudes and opinions of the community when you're starting work on an
initiative.
 Having enough opportunities around you in the community so that you can start a small business.
 Having enough familiarity with the community to allow you to converse intelligently with
residents about community issues, personalities and geography. Knowing that you've taken the
time and effort to get to know them and their environment can help you to establish trust with
community members. That can make both a community assessment and any actions and
activities that result from it easier to conduct.
 Being able to talk convincingly with the media about the community.
 Being able to share information with other organizations or coalitions that work in the community
so that you can collaborate or so that everyone's work can benefit.
 Providing background and justification for grant proposals.
 Knowing the context of the community so that you can tailor interventions and programs to its
norms and culture, and increase your chances of success.
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4.2.1. Asset
An asset is everything valuable such as: condition, behavior, knowledge, or skill that a person,
group, or an entity possesses and which serves as a support, resource, or source of strength to
one’s self and others in the community

4.2.2. Individual Assets – Assets which can also be referred to as gifts of individuals, such
as skills, training, education, specific talents, networks, and monetary resources.

4.2.3. Community Assets – Citizen Associations, which can include informal and formal
institutions found within a community, such as social groups, recreation programs,
churches, and block clubs. Local Institutions, which include institutions that reach
into the community, such as businesses that create local job opportunities, social
service agencies, health services (hospitals and clinics), libraries, schools (children
and adult schools), colleges or universities.
4.2.4. Asset Mapping
The general process of identifying and providing information about the strengths and resources
of a community on a map. It supports strategic planning efforts to address community issues by
building on resources and strengths.
4.2.5. Community-Engaged Mapping
A group mapping exercise designed to answer specific research questions and gather
neighborhood-level primary data from community members (who live, work or attend school in
the area), for the purpose of developing place-based planning, policy, and interventions
Asset mapping is an empowering approach that identifies what exists rather than what is missing.
You will be leading Participants through an exercise to record assets at three levels:
1. Personal
2. in the room
3. Larger community
Exercise: The flow for this module is as follows:
1. Participants complete their Personal Asset Maps individually.
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2. Participants post their Personal Asset Maps on the wall and tour other people's maps. As they
tour, they make note of any assets they see on their peers' maps that connect or complement their
own. This might result in possible co-ops or partnerships.

3. The third level of the Asset Map is completed as a group activity, where the large group
brainstorms and builds a large map of the community assets. This larger map might be something
that Participants continue to develop in their communities.

4. In the final stage, Participants complete the Three Circle Asset Map based on the notes they
have taken throughout this process. The result should be an individual perspective asset map
which takes into account the Participant's own relevant assets, the relevant assets of others in the
room, and the relevant assets in their communities.

We have generalized these assets into 8 categories:

· Network
· Physical
· Financial
· Businesses
· Services
· Cultural
· Commitments
· Expertise
4.3. Community mapping assets
When you hear the word asset, what do you think of?
Our definition is: anything useful; something of value.
Icebreaker: We all bring different experiences into a group. These experiences all have value,
even when others might not see the value at first.
What kinds of assets does a mother have who cares for five children?
She is able to juggle a lot of needs and priorities.
She probably has budgeting skills and time management skills.
She may have influence skills to get the children to work and play well together.
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What about a young man who is able to walk the five miles between his house and workplace in
an hour?
What kinds of assets might he have?
He is able to pace himself to accomplish the long task.
He may be able to plan a route that is the fastest path between two points.

We all value different things and so may have different opinions about what assets are. All assets
are valuable, even if others don't see them as valuable as we might. While we may see different
experiences and abilities as more valuable or less valuable, we need a variety of assets in the
community. For example, if everyone liked to talk, there would be no one to listen. Financial
assets are 'Only as useful as one's expertise to use them wisely.

4.3.1. WHAT KINDS OF ASSETS DO YOU HAVE PERSONALLY? / PERSONAL

ASSETS

Make the point that we value assets based on our personal experience. A mother might naturally
value different assets than a young man. However, taking a broader perspective may reveal
valuable assets that we wouldn't normally consider.

4.3.2. EXERCISE: WHAT ASSETS ARE PRESENT IN THIS ROOM/

COMMUNITY ASSETS

In this exercise participants start working with room assets and they will be working in groups
according to their villages and map on flip chart different assets/opportunities that they have in
their villages which can be useful as individual or as a group. For example (schools, hospitals,
roads, fertility soil, forests, etc.)

Reveal the 8 asset types flip chart. As Participants provide examples, categorize answers into the
8 categories. Use the explanations and create your own localized examples for each of the
categories.

1. Networks: this represents the people you are connected to or have partnership with.
2. Expertise: this is the knowledge and experience you have or that is available for you
3. Commitment: these are the promises that we make to each other, which include unstated
promises, like a commitment to being a parent or a life partner, as well as what we say we
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stand for. You may need to bring Commitment examples up yourself if they aren't
volunteered by Participants. It's a very strong asset, especially at the community level. A
Rwandan example might be the clean-up day on the last Saturday of the month. Or
someone might agree to coach a school football team.
4. Culture: these are the rich assets of our history and include knowledge of local stories and
history, cultural language, theatre, dance, art, ceremonies, etc.

Give some examples of how women have played important roles in your community.

5. Services - these are the services that you can deliver and are willing to barter or trade. For
example, childcare or mechanic or construction skills.

The services category definition differs slightly for each level of asset-personal, in the room,
and community. At the level in the room, this category represents the services that
Participants are willing to offer to each other. At the community level, it represents the
services associated with mind, body, and spirit-education, health, and religious or spiritual
services that can be found within the community. In the first two levels the services are
normally "free" or not at a financial cost. That restriction need not apply at the community
level.

6. Businesses: these include formal and informal business as well as household businesses
you know of
7. Financial: these include things like grants or loan agencies of promises to pay, like
contracts or sources of savings.
8. Physical: these are non-financial material assets (e.g. garden or tools at the personal level
or recreational assets, like parks or vacant land or buildings, at the community level).

What questions do you have about the-categories listed here?

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Personal and community assets types

Expertise
Commitments

Physical
Culture

Network
Business

SERVICE
Financial

4.4. What is Participatory Asset Mapping?

Group brainstorming: in this icebreaker, the lecture have helped participants to discover
and understand assets/opportunities/ challenges/strengths/weaknesses in the class to be mapped so
that they can discover opportunities around them in their villages later.
 Have you identified the goals/opportunities to be mapped?
 Have you set priorities in mapping your goals?
 Have you determined how to collect the information (assets)?

 What collection process will be used?

 How do the resources collected relate to your goals/outcomes?

 Are existing resources (opportunities/problems/solutions) effectively targeted and used to meet

the goals of the community?
 Are your findings reliable and credible?
 Are the products developed responsive to the needs of the critical stakeholders in the community?
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To achieve this, the lecture use this icebreaker and exercise below:
ICEBREAKER:

To go out of the class, the lecture ask the trainees to write 5 things by choose that they see;
different what they already see home or what they see now. After 2 munities tell them to return
back in the class; arrive in the room, on each wall must be a paper on which written people,
agriculture, technology, development activities. Ask everyone to put his stick notes on the wall.
Give them another stick note and ask them to write 5 things but in the class; tell them to put it on
the wall too. So ask them what is the difference between the things they have written? Ask them
what they think on the icebreaker and what they think might be the meaning? Explain them that
we are going to see the assets and they might understand their own assets and community assets.

EXERCISE:

Imagine moving into a new neighborhood. As a new resident of this neighborhood, you may want to
know the location of the closest major grocery store or the larges library, the best local restaurant or
elementary school. You may have many options for finding this information but your best option would
be to ask someone who lives there. Your new neighbors could direct you to the location of
The grocery store or elementary school, as well as offer a Wealth of information, contacts, and personal
experiences about them.
Now, imagine working with a group of your neighbors to identify the locations of these local resources
and places on a map, with information and personal experiences about each. This would be the
beginnings of your own Participatory Asset Mapping activity. Participatory Asset Mapping combines the
concepts of participatory mapping and asset mapping.
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Participatory Mapping is the process Community assets can be easy to identify, locate, and map,
especially when community residents are the sources of the information. For example, you can plan and
hold a Participatory Asset Mapping event that brings together a group of community residents to identify
and discuss the assets in their community. The discussion may begin with community members defining
the term “asset” or confirming and enhancing a proposed definition. Using their definition and through
facilitated dialogue, they can identify the places that fit this definition on a map, in the process, finding
out about assets they may not have been familiar with or that their neighbors have similar perspectives
about.
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Mapping: Planning an Asset Mapping for information about planning this type of event.
Exercise: help the participants to continue mapping their assets/opportunities in their villages and help
them to represent what they have been fund; explain that mapping our communities help us to know more
where we live and to know each opportunity so that we might explore it as individual or as a group.

Wo
rking and growing together as a group or community

Community resource mapping can be used to improve education, workforce development, and
economic development in a community by aligning available services and resources,
streamlining those services and resources, and identifying areas of need. The idea of resource
mapping builds on the community’s strengths by increasing the frequency, duration, intensity,
and quality of services and supports in the community. It is a way to organize information and
give direction to meet a common community goal.

In short, community resource mapping can help communities to accomplish a number of goals,
including: • Identifying new resources; • Insuring that all youth /citizen have access to the
resources they need; • Avoiding
duplication of services and
resources; • Cultivating new
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partnerships and relationships; • providing information across agencies that work with people;
and encouraging collaboration.

Asset mapping can be a tool at many stages of community building processes, and involve many
different participants. In this graphic, the lecture help participants to understand the circle of the
community unity, the teamwork in community mapping and how the community set the goals
together, to prioritize what are necessary, and to set different ways which will help them to get
the best solutions.

THE UNITY AND TEAMWORK IN THE COMMUNITY.

5. Rwandan community development

Vision 2020 aspires for Rwanda to become a modern, strong and united nation, proud of its fundamental
values, politically stable and without discrimination amongst its citizens.”(Vision 2020). To achieve this,
Vision 2020 set out the aim for Rwanda to become a middle income country by the year 2020.

5.1. THE PURPOSE

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The purpose of this section is to promote the engagement of the Rwandan community in action
to:
 Analyze their environment;
 Define their individual and collective needs and problems;
 Define their individual and collective potentials;
 Design individual and collective plans to meet their needs and solve their problems in a
prioritized manner;
 Implement those plans by drawing from the resources of the community;
 Add to those resources if necessary, with support services and resources from
government or private organs or any other stokeholds outside the community;
 Monitor and evaluate the implementation of the plans;
 Sustain the activities and make them productive
 Create a Rwandan community development

5.2. RWANDAN COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

During the last decade, Rwanda has made tremendous efforts and registered tangible
achievements towards Community Development.

For Community Development, the strategy especially aims to

mobilize and empower the Rwandan community to
exercise its powers in decision making and participate in
the development of the local community from the villages
(umudugudu)

Exercise: in this section the lecture ask

participants to work in group of 10 according to
their sectors and answers those questions:
 What the meaning of country development to
them?
 When can we say the community is developed?
 What is the different between your community now and 5 years ago?
 What are the goals of your villages?
 What about health insurance, leadership in your village?
 Are there some activities (hospitals, schools, markets etc.) that shows the development of
the village?
 What are the assets/opportunities in the village that other villages don’t have?
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Explain the groups that those questions will help them to understand their communities’ needs and wants
and they will be able to start analyzing their problems, solutions and what are their contributions to solve
those problems.

5.2.1. Community Development in the Rwandan Context

Community Development in Rwanda can be traced back to the 1970s, but a top-down and highly
centralized approach limited initial efforts. A number of initiatives in the years after the 1994
genocide against the Tutsi have contributed more positively to Community Development.
The list below outlines a number of these 4:

 GOOD GOVERNANCE FACTORS

 ECONOMICAL FACTORS
 HEALTH FACTORS
 SOCIAL FACTORS

Those factors are shown in different types of activities/goals that have been set in the country in
Rwanda Vision 2020 such as

 Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy

 Gender Equity initiatives
 Mutual health insurance scheme
 Civic Education Academy/ Itorero
 The Community Rehabilitation and Development project
 Agricultural programs including the Girinka Program
 Umurenge SACCO
 Education programmers including increasing teacher training colleges and
Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET)
 Infrastructure improvements
 A number of home-grown initiatives related to Rwandan traditions have enjoyed
some success including Umuganda – Community public works; Ubudehe.
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 Community policing; Abunzi; Imihigo; Inteko y’Abutarage; and the Gacaca

courts.

Those are some activities that show the development of the community

With all those activities, the participants will understand that Rwanda is their people so that they
have to start working for their villages, they have to think on their groups in what they plan, they
have to find different problems in their villages and find solutions which will help the villages.

5.2.2. Successful community development

Community development is difficult to do well. It requires activities that are technically complex
and must be sustained over time to achieve a meaningful impact. As community development
has matured from a movement into a small industry of sorts, both funders and researchers have
become increasingly interested in the factors that contribute to a successful, identify five types of
organizational capacity important for successful. They must have the ability and capacity to do
the following:
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• Plan effectively. This includes developing (with community input) an understanding of

community assets and needs that inform a strategic vision for change, and internal planning to
match its resources, programs, etc., to the requirements of implementing that vision.

• Secure resources. This includes acquiring grants, loans, contracts, fees or earnings, and
technical assistance.
• Develop strong internal management and governance. This includes establishing good
working relationships between board and staff and representation of the community on the board.
• Deliver programs. This includes erecting systems to deliver the full range of programs
undertaken.
• Network. This includes building relationships with other entities, both public and private,
inside and outside the community.
6. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PLANNING: NEEDS AND PRIORITIES

The purpose of this section is to help participants to understand that a good community
development is action that helps people to recognize and develop their ability and potential and
organize themselves to respond to problems and needs which they share. It supports the
establishment of strong communities that control and use assets to promote social justice and
help improve the quality of community life. It also enables community and public agencies to
work together to improve the quality of government.

6.1. Personal needs and community needs

Leaders
Citizen Safe life

Partnership Development
community

Security Culture

Skills/ Vision
knowledge assets

6.2. Community need assessment and community assets mapping

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It is very normal to focus on “what is wrong” or “they don’t have this or that”. However, it is
important to remember that while communities have needs, they also have assets. It is much
harder to get at the assets as these are usually not visible and self-evident. In these situations
adult educator can play a crucial by facilitating the process of community discovering its
strengths and riches in skills and resources in order to obtain a map of community assets.

6.3. ANALYZE YOUR COMMUNITY

(Strengths, weaknesses, opportunity and threats)

 Understand and meet the actual needs of the whole community. Community
engagement can lead to a deeper understanding of the unique and diverse needs of a
population, including its demographics, values, norms, community structures,
networks, and relationships. The more we know about our communities, the better
we can understand their real-life safety and sustaining needs and their motivations to
participate in emergency management-related activities prior to an event.
 Engage and empower all parts of the community. Engaging the whole community
and empowering local action will better position stakeholders to plan for and meet
the actual needs of a community and strengthen the local capacity to deal with the
consequences of all threats and hazards. This requires all members of the community
to be part of the emergency management team, which should include diverse
community members, social and community service groups and institutions, faith-
based and disability groups, academia, professional associations, and the private and
non-profit sectors, while including government agencies who may not traditionally
have been directly involved in emergency management. When the community is
engaged in an authentic dialogue, it becomes empowered to identify its needs and the
existing resources that may be used to address them.

 Strengthen what works well in communities on a daily basis. A Whole

Community approach to building community resilience requires finding ways to
support and strengthen the institutions, assets, and networks that already work well in
communities and are working to address issues that are important to community
members on a daily basis. Existing structures and relationships that are present in the
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daily lives of individuals, families, businesses, and organizations before an incident

occurs can be leveraged and empowered to act effectively during and after a disaster
strikes.

1. EXERCISE: GROUP DISCUSSION in Plan for my community with participants

will work on 5 problems they meet in their villages, the solutions needed by
community/villages, opportunities around, different solutions that are available and what
are their contributions to solve those problems.
6.4. BRIEFING
The importance of a social organization for which the individual feels responsible is very basic.
The need for social climate which encourages individual growth and development, the right and
responsibility of the individual to participate in the affairs of own community, the practicability
of discussion, meetings, and consultation as methods for the solution of individual and social
problems, and “self-help” as the essential base for community organization are some of the value
orientations which constitute the basis of community organization process.
In the successful community we find various sets of principles.
 Democracy and social welfare,
 Community roots for community programmers,
 Citizen understanding, support, and participation and professional service,
 Cooperation, partnership
 Social Welfare Programmers,
 Adequacy, distribution, and organization of social

Key elements of Community Development needs include building active and sustainable
communities, based on social justice and mutual respect; changing power structures to remove
the barriers that prevent people from participating in the issues that affect their lives; supporting
individuals and groups in this process on the basis of certain values and commitments.