Existing and Emerging Models of Fighting Poverty from the Ground Up

Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD): The Asset-Based Approach- A new paradigm for empowering residents. () The heart of ABCD is a capacities-focused approach that seeks to empower the community and-by extension-mobilize citizens to create positive and meaningful change from within. Rather than simply focusing on a community's needs, deficiencies and problems, it helps a community become stronger and more self-reliant by discovering, mapping and mobilizing all their local assets. Do you realize how many assets a community has? This forum allows Red Hook residents to enter into a shared, open conversation on how best to build Red Hook - as well as other American communities - by tapping into our untapped potential. Among the assets in a typical community include: The skills of its citizens, from business owners to the homeless, youth to disabled people, from thriving professionals to starving artists; The dedication of its citizens associations —ministries, churches, CAC meetings, culture groups, social clubs, neighborhood associations, giving circles; The resources of its formal institutions — businesses, schools, libraries, community colleges, hospitals, parks, social service agencies (many of which are private); Through an asset-based ‘all-in’ approach, we can work together to fill much of these budget gaps in needed social services, mainly by increasing the reach and scope of grass-roots community outreach, philanthropy and common-man volunteerism. This is not just about numbers and budgets, but about proving the idea to our city and the entire country that compassionate conservatism can work when applied from the ground up