National Civic Review 90:4
Note from the President
Events over the past year, from the election of 2000 to the tragedy
of September 11, have changed how we think about and practice politics
in this country. Easy assumptions of endless economic expansion amid
ever-rising stock prices, ensured by an end to history, belong to another
time. We have been forcibly reminded of the imprudence of complacency
and the necessity of continuous engagement in a world where such hazards
breed. We have learned again that politics, as it has always been, is
a collective activity in which what is at stake extends to the most
basic and ultimate of values and ends.
It has often been said that in light of September 11 everything is now
different. In some sense this must be true, but we are still closer
to the beginning than the end of what has begun. Whatever else has changed,
each of us has been led to reassess the value we place on the things
we regard as important. New circumstances change our sense of the relative
importance of our various desires, objectives, and ends in comparison
with one another.
This refocusing on the things that matter seems to have reconfirmed
for many that, although they are not rescue workers and not in the military,
what they do nevertheless makes an important contribution to the overall
richness of our democratic society. There have been recurring anecdotes
in the media about people from diverse vocations coming to this viewpoint
after wrestling with their sense of how what they do matters in these
times. People who are actively involved in community improvement efforts
may not have previously experienced quite the same degree of concern
about the value of their particular work. But the changed world we now
inhabit and the new level of urgency conferred upon our politics should
encourage us all to think more deeply about the kind of society we want
to create and about how we can improve our efforts to do so.
In some small way, we hope that this issue of the National Civic Review
makes a contribution to this process. Civic participation, community
engagement, and collaborative decision making are all important values
that guide the work of the National Civic League, as well as that of
numerous other organizations concerned with reenergizing a dynamic and
vibrant civil society and democratic polity. This issue of the Review
recognizes some of the most interesting work being done by community
movements and contains articles by leading practitioners on the promise
heralded by convergence among these movements.
Community-level reform movements of all kinds have become a significant
part of the political landscape across the United States. With the benefit
of generous assistance from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, the National
Civic League and the Coalition for Healthier Cities and Communities
convened a series of dialogues over the past year in six locations around
the country. The purpose of this project was to assess the prospects
for convergence among several of the community movements that have been
most influential over the last decade. There are important differences
among these groups, as is indicated by their descriptors: healthy communities,
sustainable communities, livable communities, and so on. But there are
areas of commonality as well that are the basis for sharing ideas and
practices and that might lead to something that could be called a "communities
movement."
The framing article by Kesler and O'Connor describes the communities
project and gives some interesting detail about a new developmental
stage, something they call the next stage of the civic sector. Community
change work often requires both a neutral convener who can bring people
together and a safe space for dialogue among participants. As the civic
sector becomes more developed, this combination is being institutionalized
in ways that enable communities to consolidate the advances they make
and develop the capacity needed to sustain and extend their work.
Jacksonville Community Council Inc. (JCCI), in Florida, is one of the
most well-established community organizations in the country; it is
an excellent example of this next stage in the development of the civic
sector. The article by David Swain, associate director of JCCI, takes
an insightful look at the obstacles and opportunities encountered in
a community improvement project and draws on JCCI's experience to illustrate
these observations. An ongoing JCCI project deals with community indicators,
which is a topic of widely shared concern across community movements.
The article by Randa Gahin and Chris Paterson presents a historical
overview of community indicators work and assesses where the field is
today. Finally, the article by Becky Miles-Polka details an innovative
model being developed in Des Moines, Iowa, that takes an investment-based
approach to human service delivery.
Taken together, the articles in this issue showcase the innovative
activity of community movements and chart the path of future development.
The public deliberation and civic participation that these movements
engender are essential resources for our democratic republic.
Governments at all levels-federal, state, and local-confront problems
that they cannot resolve on their own even if there is political agreement
to act upon them. Citizen engagement, through deliberation and action,
can bring new ideas and capacities to bear. As politics is about shaping
the society in which we live, an active citizenry can enlarge the scope
of what is possible and help create a desirable world. The strength
of community movements, acting independently and in concert with one
another, is an encouraging sign of collective rededication to our enduring
political ideals.
CHRISTOPHER T. GATES
PRESIDENT, NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE
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