Monday, April 29, 2019

What Is Collective Empowerment And How It Can Help Communities

By Timothy Jackson


Empowering individuals is one of the best ways to alleviate instances of poverty and aid in the overall economic well being of a society. Collective empowerment, otherwise known as community empowerment, is much like empowering individuals but at a larger scale. For those who want to have an introduction to this kind of activity, here is a brief overview with a few points to take note of.

The first impression that one would usually get when he or she hears this term would be giving aid and helping build houses, especially in impoverished districts. Yes, this is a part of community development but it is only the surface of it. The whole goal of community empowerment is to make a community be able to sustain itself through the group effort of every member.

One of the most important ways to empower people is to make them feel confident. One will become more confident in his or her abilities if he or she gains more knowledge and skills in a certain area of expertise that allows him or her to profit. In a way, teaching more skills and providing more knowledge will make communities more independent as they can fend for their own local economy.

After one becomes empowered on a personal level, the next step would be to empower him or her to be a part of the community through inclusion programs. The important thing here is to ensure that all of the people are treated equally so that they can be united no matter what sub group they come from. Whether they come from sub groups of different ideologies, religions, or classes, they should all be able to unite when needed.

Another aspect would be cooperative programs that allow the people to each contribute their own weight to the betterment of their community. First, they must have skills to contribute and second, they must all be united in a sense that they all must look toward the development of the district. These two go hand in hand with the success of cooperative programs that can empower the collective.

Now, some points to take note of would be to develop a sense of community within the individuals. That is by far one of the most important aspects of development because if each individual feels like he or she is part of the local collective, then he or she will also work toward its development. That is also a part of the dimension of inclusion wherein everyone is treated equally.

Of course, the development of a certain culture in the community is crucial in doing so. That is also an effort that most leaders do in order to make all the individuals feel like they are a part of an entire group. From there, overall collective effort may be given to the community.

Community empowerment is a very broad activity that has so many aspects to take into consideration. However, it is a very important concept for local communities to grasp. This is especially true for leaders who are looking toward the betterment of their respective communities.




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