This research project aimed to further knowledge regarding the relationship between community capacity building (CCB), community development and health within the context of the Health Issues in the Community (HIIC) programme. CCB refers to the development of capabilities to identify and address community issues and was conceptualised using four dimensions: participation, resource mobilisation, links with others and role of outside agents. HIIC is a learning resource supported by NHS Health Scotland, the national health promotion agency. The main objective of HIIC is to help students explore the processes involved in tackling health-related concerns in the community. The main concepts in this study were explored by referring to a range of academic literatures and five research questions were formulated. ‘How did HIIC tutors and students understand the concept of community and was this understanding influenced by completing HIIC?’, ‘How did stakeholders and tutors understand the notion of CCB?’, ‘Was CCB evident in the experiences of the students after their involvement with the course?’, ‘Did participating in the HIIC course contribute towards furthering students’ understanding about health?’ and ‘Did participating in HIIC have any other impact on participants?’ Face-to-face, semi-structured interviews were conducted across Scotland with three participant groups: stakeholders, tutors and students. This involved a total of thirtyfive interviews with students and tutors from eleven different courses. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. Four key themes emerged: community, CCB, health, and impact of learning. Tutors and students suggested that people could be members of multiple communities. Community was understood as a geographical location, a common interest and as a sense of belonging. Tutors also considered the community as a site of professional practice. Some participants had an expectation that community members should act collectively to help one another. Completing HIIC appeared to influence students’ understanding about their own circumstances, issues within their community and how it functions, rather than informing how they defined the concept of community. CCB was seen by tutors as a process that develops competencies to address community issues. Stakeholders and tutors differed in their views about whether CCB was an individual level or a collective process. Participants likened CCB to community development, but stakeholders questioned if it shared the same value base or if it was an outcome of community development. Tutors expressed a range of opinions about their understanding of CCB. It was viewed as a potentially helpful idea in terms of understanding the work of community / health-based practitioners. However, others were unable to give a definition of CCB and some tutors considered CCB a concept with little meaning or an indicator to fulfil in the context of a funding application. The manifestation of individual aspects of CCB were identified in the accounts of some participants, but the data did not support the contention that HIIC promoted CCB, within the timescale of this study, although, it could be argued that latent CCB was developed. The data did indicate that participants’ understanding about the concept of health was reaffirmed, broadened or changed and that participating in HIIC could increase an individual’s awareness of social and health issues, develop interpersonal skills and widen social networks. This study indicated that by exploring the concepts of CCB, community and health, a contribution was made towards understanding the processes by which participating in a HIIC course influenced students to address health-related concerns.

In the past decade a rapid increase has been seen in the number of organizations using sport as a development tool in majority world communities. Specifically, Sport for Development programs have been promoted as a means to promote peace, a forum for social mobilization efforts and health initiatives, and a tool for sustainable community development (SDP IWG, 2008; UNIATF, 2003). Often, a fundamental goal of such programs is community capacity building. However, despite this increase in attention, data regarding benefits of these programs remains anecdotal, without a strong body of reliable evidence on the impact of Sport for Development programs on community capacity building. Informed by this context, the purpose of this study was to understand the effectiveness of a Sport for Development program in community capacity building in a refugee camp in Tanzania.<p> The research was accomplished using a qualitative case study approach with 12 key stakeholders involved in the program. The principal method of data collection was a participatory workshop methodology using Laveracks (1999) nine domains to assess community capacity. This qualitative workshop methodology also employed a quantitative tool vis-à-vis Laveracks nine domains which acted as a participatory guide to evaluate the level of community capacity in the program. An initial workshop held with key stakeholders assessed current status, which was followed by the development and implementation of strategic plans for action by stakeholders based on the workshop assessment. A second workshop was held one year later to re-assess community capacity. Additional methods of data collection included individual interviews, observations, and field notes. Member checking, a prolonged time in the field, and triangulation were the primary procedures for verifying the accuracy of the findings.<p> The results showed that community capacity was increased in eight of the nine domains. Specifically, these eight were community participation, local leadership, organizational structures, problem assessment capacities, resource mobilization, ability to ask why, role of outside agents, and program management. The findings from this study demonstrate that a Sport for Development program can be effective in increasing community capacity; this was attributed to the specific participatory methodology used to assess community capacity, structural changes in the program, and a change in approach to programming by project coordinators.

In the past decade a rapid increase has been seen in the number of organizations using sport as a development tool in majority world communities. Specifically, Sport for Development programs have been promoted as a means to promote peace, a forum for social mobilization efforts and health initiatives, and a tool for sustainable community development (SDP IWG, 2008; UNIATF, 2003). Often, a fundamental goal of such programs is community capacity building. However, despite this increase in attention, data regarding benefits of these programs remains anecdotal, without a strong body of reliable evidence on the impact of Sport for Development programs on community capacity building. Informed by this context, the purpose of this study was to understand the effectiveness of a Sport for Development program in community capacity building in a refugee camp in Tanzania.<p> The research was accomplished using a qualitative case study approach with 12 key stakeholders involved in the program. The principal method of data collection was a participatory workshop methodology using Laveracks (1999) nine domains to assess community capacity. This qualitative workshop methodology also employed a quantitative tool vis-à-vis Laveracks nine domains which acted as a participatory guide to evaluate the level of community capacity in the program. An initial workshop held with key stakeholders assessed current status, which was followed by the development and implementation of strategic plans for action by stakeholders based on the workshop assessment. A second workshop was held one year later to re-assess community capacity. Additional methods of data collection included individual interviews, observations, and field notes. Member checking, a prolonged time in the field, and triangulation were the primary procedures for verifying the accuracy of the findings.<p> The results showed that community capacity was increased in eight of the nine domains. Specifically, these eight were community participation, local leadership, organizational structures, problem assessment capacities, resource mobilization, ability to ask why, role of outside agents, and program management. The findings from this study demonstrate that a Sport for Development program can be effective in increasing community capacity; this was attributed to the specific participatory methodology used to assess community capacity, structural changes in the program, and a change in approach to programming by project coordinators.

This thesis analyzes the impact of the political decision to broaden the scope of the Government of Canada's 3-year National Homelessness Initiative (Human Resource Development Canada, NHI, 2002) from an urban focus to one that includes smaller communities. This change provided the opportunity to study the phenomenon of homelessness and how rural responses are formed. This author postulates that this focus of attention on an almost invisible phenomenon—rural homelessness—and the accompanying community planning processes funded by the Supportive Community Partnership Initiative (SCPI) will impact local social policy development. A multi-dimensional analytical approach was adopted and considered three components: first, a policy review, a broad look at the policy agenda framework in Canada; then, a case study to illustrate implementation issues related to the National Homelessness Initiative; and, finally, a reflection on current practice in order to realize a holistic critique of public policy. The influence of socio-economic, political, and cultural factors on local planning and capacity building will be highlighted. Various models of governance were adopted across the country and guided the collaborative processes. This thesis presents an in-depth look at the community action plans and activities of the Simcoe County Alliance to End Homelessness (SCATEH) in both the rural and urban settings of Simcoe County. The processes adopted, capacity building components identified, and outcomes over the 7 years covered by the SCPI agreement are examined. The limitations of using participatory local action planning to respond to complex issues such as homelessness are detailed along with a modified community-based policy development model recommended as a learning tool to be used by those volunteers acting as agents of change. It is widely recognized that safe, affordable social housing is a fundamental need, and one that is extremely difficult to meet. The contribution this research makes is to reveal how effective government-community partnerships can be in a rural setting.

This thesis analyzes the impact of the political decision to broaden the scope of the Government of Canada's 3-year National Homelessness Initiative (Human Resource Development Canada, NHI, 2002) from an urban focus to one that includes smaller communities. This change provided the opportunity to study the phenomenon of homelessness and how rural responses are formed. This author postulates that this focus of attention on an almost invisible phenomenon—rural homelessness—and the accompanying community planning processes funded by the Supportive Community Partnership Initiative (SCPI) will impact local social policy development. A multi-dimensional analytical approach was adopted and considered three components: first, a policy review, a broad look at the policy agenda framework in Canada; then, a case study to illustrate implementation issues related to the National Homelessness Initiative; and, finally, a reflection on current practice in order to realize a holistic critique of public policy. The influence of socio-economic, political, and cultural factors on local planning and capacity building will be highlighted. Various models of governance were adopted across the country and guided the collaborative processes. This thesis presents an in-depth look at the community action plans and activities of the Simcoe County Alliance to End Homelessness (SCATEH) in both the rural and urban settings of Simcoe County. The processes adopted, capacity building components identified, and outcomes over the 7 years covered by the SCPI agreement are examined. The limitations of using participatory local action planning to respond to complex issues such as homelessness are detailed along with a modified community-based policy development model recommended as a learning tool to be used by those volunteers acting as agents of change. It is widely recognized that safe, affordable social housing is a fundamental need, and one that is extremely difficult to meet. The contribution this research makes is to reveal how effective government-community partnerships can be in a rural setting.

I investigated the experiences of teachers as co-researchers in a long-term partnership with university researchers in an asset-based intervention project known as STAR1. The goal of STAR is to investigate how teachers can promote resilience in scare-resource and high need schools. To inform participatory research methodology, I explored and described how coresearchers (teachers) experience power relations. I conducted the participatory reflection and action (PRA) study by using feminist standpoint theory as guiding epistemological paradigm, Gaventa’s power cube as theoretical framework and participatory research as methodological paradigm. I conveniently chose two cohorts (schools) in the STAR project to partner as the unit of analysis. I thus applied convenience sampling to select information-rich cohorts. The schoolcohorts included a primary school in the Eastern Cape Province and a secondary school in a remote area in the Mpumalanga Province. I then purposefully selected participating coresearchers (n=15: 14 females, 1 male) from the participating schools. Over a two year period, I employed multiple PRA data generation techniques (observation, four focus groups and two semi-structured interviews) and documentation procedures (field notes, research journal, visual data and verbatim transcriptions). I used thematic analysis and categorical aggregation for data analysis, with three themes emerging. In terms of the nature of power in participatory partnerships, co-researchers expressed factors which influenced power and partnership in a participatory project. For co-researchers, these factors enabled them to experience a sense of power-sharing. Regarding the role of agency in relation to power and partnerships, co-researchers indicated that agency resulted from power-sharing and partnerships they had established. The agency meant that they took action through leadership to empower others in school-communities. Co-researchers’ meaning-making of power and partnerships culminated in their construction of power in a participatory project as both a way in which their working environment enabled them to do what they wanted to do, and also as a personal space where they felt capable and had initiative to coordinate project activities. Findings of this study correlate with existing literature where (i) power is seen as the ability of actors to express and act on desires, (ii) power can be redistributed as action for inclusive benefits, (iii) partnerships imply balancing time, and (iv) partnerships evolve over time, are dynamic and involve issues of trust and confidence. In contrast to existing knowledge on power in participatory research, I found that teachers did not view power as dominance or as exclusively owned. I developed a framework of power sharing partnerships to extend Gaventa’s power cube theory. This framework, and its five interrelated elements (leadership as power, identifying vision and mission, synergy, interdependent role of partners, and determination), provide insight into the way co-researchers shared their experiences of participatory research methodology. I posit an evidence-based conceptualisation of power as leadership where community partners play influential roles as co-researchers. I theorise power sharing partnerships as a complimentary platform hosting partners’ shared strengths, skills and experience, creating synergy in collaborative projects. I argue that synergy in power sharing partnerships relies on recognition, appreciation and mutual respect inherent in interdependent roles of partners. Furthermore, the power sharing partnership framework explains how power and partnership depends on determination amongst partners which manifests as agency to drive social change. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Educational Psychology / unrestricted

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As the church focuses on people’s spiritual development, there is growing realisation that the church should be holistic in its approach and participate in resolving urban poverty issues through the implementation of community development projects. This study looks at the way in which traditional theories of community development concentrated on stimulating economic growth and ignored the social aspects involved. It suggests that despite the massive injection of donor funds to some communities, the situation of the poor has deteriorated over the years and sustainability of projects has been minimal. The study finds that projects implemented by the Church of the Nazarene in Orlando East, while improving the lives of the community, are not in line with community development principles and the sustainable livelihoods approach primarily because the community was not involved in the assessment of needs or designing of interventions, and the community members were only the implementers. The evaluation of these projects through this study suggests an alternative developmental paradigm that has been used with success in other similar circumstances – the sustainable livelihood approach (SLA). The SLA contends that urban communities should become planners, initiators and executors of community development interventions so that transformation can occur. The study recommends that urban communities such as that in Orlando East have to change their behaviour and attitudes, be willing to accept change, and take ownership of their own projects. The facilitators, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and government have to be willing to unlearn their traditional ways, to listen, and to accept that they are not the only experts in community development as they attempt to embrace indigenous knowledge systems. / Development Studies / M.A. (Development Studies)

A Freedom Charter statement regarding land is highlighted as follows: “The land shall be shared among those who work it, demands a redistribution of the land and state assistance for the peasantry, as well as the abolition of any restrictions on movements of people, access to land, and stock holdings.” The quest for inclusive and participatory governance enshrined in the South Africa’s Land Reform Programme resonates with efforts to develop and strengthen an active and critical rights based citizenship. The need to boost local community awareness of land reform challenges necessitates continuous evaluations of the lived realities of poor communities through participatory and collaborative methodologies in order to articulate their socio-economic problems. Land is regarded as a resource that gives people access to certain basic needs necessary for them to lead a dignified life. This research explores the participation of the Catholic Church on land reform programmes in South Africa between 1994 and 2014. It also looks at the Catholic Church’s land ownership policy and how it has been using its land in two decades of democracy (1994-2014). This research further explores the Catholic vision for land reform in South Africa. It also highlights some key theological criteria which may assist to achieve the intended objectives. In the light of this reality, the research shows that there is lack of meaningful progress in enabling those who are impoverished to assert their right to own land. Even the majority that have benefited from various land reform programmes and have become land owners have not received sufficient support to enable them to use and care for the land in such a way that benefits them. This leads to an unproductive and demeaning lifestyle. More emphasis needs to be placed on proper financial support from the government. Further emphasis needs to be placed on training for skills development as a condition for receiving Church assistance on the part of the beneficiaries. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / M. Th. (Church History)

As the church focuses on people’s spiritual development, there is growing realisation that the church should be holistic in its approach and participate in resolving urban poverty issues through the implementation of community development projects. This study looks at the way in which traditional theories of community development concentrated on stimulating economic growth and ignored the social aspects involved. It suggests that despite the massive injection of donor funds to some communities, the situation of the poor has deteriorated over the years and sustainability of projects has been minimal. The study finds that projects implemented by the Church of the Nazarene in Orlando East, while improving the lives of the community, are not in line with community development principles and the sustainable livelihoods approach primarily because the community was not involved in the assessment of needs or designing of interventions, and the community members were only the implementers. The evaluation of these projects through this study suggests an alternative developmental paradigm that has been used with success in other similar circumstances – the sustainable livelihood approach (SLA). The SLA contends that urban communities should become planners, initiators and executors of community development interventions so that transformation can occur. The study recommends that urban communities such as that in Orlando East have to change their behaviour and attitudes, be willing to accept change, and take ownership of their own projects. The facilitators, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and government have to be willing to unlearn their traditional ways, to listen, and to accept that they are not the only experts in community development as they attempt to embrace indigenous knowledge systems. / Development Studies / M.A. (Development Studies)