What might a community sufficiency planning approach look like? Here are my thoughts on a methodology:
1. Begin by communicating the goal of sufficiency to the community. Explain what it means and why it is important as well as the importance of the developing individual talents and abilities as a means to enhancing individual sufficiency.
2. Identify community members interested in exploring their talents and abilities as well as their needs and wants. Determine priorities and barriers to these objectives.
3. Empower community members to identify their own talents and abilities, needs and wants through a self-assessment tool.
4. Once the assessments are complete, survey members to collect data on a community-wide basis.
5. Collate information and determine the distribution of various talents and abilities, needs, wants and possible barriers to realizing these objectives. Where significant patterns are presented, note them.
6. Identify community resources (financial, educational resources, natural resources, infrastructure, policies, etc.) relevant to supporting the development and expression of talents and abilities.
7. Report out findings on talents, abilities, needs and wants as well as on priorities and barriers. Confirm findings and brainstorm ideas for empowering community members to enhance their sense of sufficiency.
8. Develop a community strategy for empowering community members based on findings. Significant patterns can form the basis for focusing investment of community resources.
9. Report out draft strategies to community and obtain final feedback.
10. A key strategy in all communities would be to strengthen education or training resources and ensure that information about these resources is communicated and accessible.
11. Another key strategy in all communities would be to communicate and facilitate options for members to apply their talents and abilities: self-employment, employment, or volunteering.
Further strategies for empowering individual and community sufficiency are briefly discussed in our last post.
PS. Check www.iamsufficient.ca for other interesting discussions on sufficiency.