Local community

A community has been defined as a group

of interacting people living in a common
location. The word is often used to refer to
a group that is organized around common
values and is attributed with social
cohesion within a shared geographical
location, generally in social units larger
than a household. The word can also refer
to the national community or global
community. The word "community" is
derived from the Old French communité
which is derived from the Latin
communitas (cum, "with/together" +
munus, "gift"), a broad term for fellowship
or organized society.[1]
A sense of community refers to people's
perception of interconnection and
interdependence, shared responsibility,
and common goals.[2][3][4]

Understanding a community entails having

knowledge of community needs and
resources, having respect for community
members, and involving key community
members in programs.[5]

Benefits of local community

The author Robert Putnam refers to the
value which comes from social networks
as social capital in his book Bowling Alone:
The Collapse and Revival of American
Community. He writes that social capital
"makes an enormous difference in our
lives", that "a society characterized by
generalized reciprocity is more efficient
that a distrustful society" and that
economic sociologists have shown a
minimized economic wealth if social
capital is lacking.[6]

Putnam reports that the first use of the

social capital theory was by L. J. Hanifan,
a practical reformer during the Progressive
Era in the United States of America. The
following description of social capital is a
quote from L.J. Hanifan in Putnam's Book:

Those tangible substances [that]

count for most in the daily lives
of people: namely good will,
fellowship, sympathy, and social
intercourse among individuals
and families who make up a
social unit…. The individual is
helpless socially, if left to
himself…. If he comes into
contact with neighbor, and they
with other neighbors, there will
be an accumulation of social
capital, which may immediately
satisfy his social needs and
which may bear a social
potentiality sufficient to the
substantial improvement of
living conditions in the whole
community. The community as a
whole will benefit by the
cooperation of all its parts,
while the individual will find in
his associations the advantages
of the help, sympathy, and
fellowship of his neighbors.[7]

Employment
Putnam reported that many studies have
shown that the highest predictor of job
satisfaction is the presence of social
connection in the workplace. He writes
that "people with friends at work are
happier at work." And that "social networks
provide people with advice, a bonus, a
promotion, and other strategic
information, and letters of
recommendation."[8]

Community engagement has been proven

to counteract the most negative attributes
of poverty and a high amount of social
capital has been shown to reduce crime.[9]

Local community and health

"Social connectedness matters to our lives

in the most profound way." -Robert
Putnam.[10]
Robert Putnam reports, in the chapter
Health and Happiness from his book
Bowling Alone, that recent public research
shows social connection impacts all areas
of human health, this includes
psychological and physical aspects of
human health. Putnam says "...beyond a
doubt that social connectedness is one of
the most powerful determinates of our
well being."[10] In particular it is face to
face connections which have been show
to have greater impacts then non-face to
face relationships.[11]

Specific health benefits of strong social

relationships are a decrease in the
likelihood of: seasonal viruses, heart
attacks, strokes, cancer, depression, and
premature death of all sorts.[10]

Online initiatives
There are online initiatives to improve local
community's like LOCAL
(www.localchange.com).

Community sustainability
Sustainability in community programs is
the capacity of programs (services
designed to meet the needs of community
members) to continuously respond to
community issues.

A sustained program maintains a focus

consonant with its original goals and
objectives, including the individuals,
families, and communities it was originally
intended to serve. Programs change
regarding the breadth and depth of their
programming. Some become aligned with
other organizations and established
institutions, whereas others maintain their
independence. Understanding the
community context in which programs
serving the community function has an
important influence on program
sustainability and success.[12][13] See
table:
Middle-
Sustainability range
Ultimate res
elements→ program
results→
Leadership
competence.
Effective
collaboration.
Understanding
Participant
the
needs met.
community.
Confidence
Demonstrating
in program
program Sustainability.[
survival.
results.
Effective
Strategic
sustainability
funding. Staff
planning.
involvement
and
integration.
Program
responsivity.
Local economy
According to Washington State's Sustain
South Sound organization, the top ten
reasons to buy locally are:[14]

1. To strengthen local economy: Studies

have shown that buying from an
independent, locally owned business,
significantly raises the number of times
your money is used to make purchases
from other local businesses, service
providers and farms—continuing to
strengthen the economic base of the
community.
2. Increase jobs: Small local businesses
are the largest employer nationally in the
United States of America.
3. Encourage local prosperity: A growing
body of economic research shows that in
an increasingly homogenized world,
entrepreneurs and skilled workers are
more likely to invest and settle in
communities that preserve their one-of-a-
kind businesses and distinctive character.
4. Reduce environmental impact: Locally
owned businesses can make more local
purchases requiring less transportation
and generally set up shop in town or city
centers as opposed to developing on the
fringe. This means contributing less to
greenhouse gas emissions, sprawl,
congestion, habitat loss and pollution.
5. Support community groups: Non-profit
organizations receive an average 250%
more support from smaller business
owners than they do from large
businesses.
6. Keep your community unique: Where we
shop, where we eat and have fun—all of it
makes our community home.
7. Get better service: Local businesses
often hire people with a better
understanding of the products they are
selling and take more time to get to know
customers.
8. Invest in community: Local businesses
are owned by people who live in the
community, are less likely to leave, and are
more invested in the community's future.
9. Put your taxes to good use: Local
businesses in town centers require
comparatively little infrastructure
investment and make more efficient use of
public services as compared to nationally
owned stores entering the community.
10. Buy what you want, not what someone
wants you to buy: A marketplace of tens of
thousands of small businesses is the best
way to ensure innovation and low prices
over the long-term. A multitude of small
businesses, each selecting products
based not on a national sales plan but on
their own interests and the needs of their
local customers, guarantees a much
broader range of product choices.

Suggested reading
A Guide to Community Visioning; Hands-
On Information For Local Communities.
Oregon Visions Project.

See also
Local history
Local museum
Local purchasing

References
1. Beck, U. 1992. Risk Society: Towards a
New Modernity. London: Sage
2. Melissa M. Ahern, Michael S. Hendryx,
Kris Siddharthan Medical Care, Vol. 34, No.
9 (Sep., 1996), pp. 863-986
3. Chavis DM, Wandersman A. Sense of
community in the urban environment: A
catalyst for participation and community
development. Am J Community Psychol
1990;18:55.
4. McMillan DW, Chavis DM. Sense of
community: A definition and theory. J
Community Psychol 1986;14:6.
5. Sustaining Community-Based Programs
for Families: Conceptualization and
Measurement Jay A. Mancini, Lydia I.
Marek. Family Relations, Vol. 53, No. 4 (Jul.,
2004), pp. 339-419.
6. Putnam, Robert D. Bowling Alone: the
Collapse and Revival of American
Community. New York: Simon & Schuster,
2000. pp.21,289-290.
7. Lyda Judson Hanifan, "The Rural School
Community Center," Annals of the American
Academy of Political and Social Science 67
(1916): 130-138, quotation at 130. Found in
Putnam, Robert D. Bowling Alone: the
Collapse and Revival of American
Community. New York: Simon & Schuster,
2000. Print.a
8. Putnam, Robert D. (2000), p.90.
Referencing: Jeanne S. Hurlbert, "Social
Networks, Social Circles, and Job
satisfaction," Work and Occupations, 18
(1991): 415-438; Randy Hodson, "Group
Relations at Work: Solidarity, Conflict, and
Relations with Management," Work and
Occupations 24 (1997): 426-452; Ronnie
Sandroff, "The power of Office Friendships,"
Working Mother (November 1997): 35-36,
and the works cited there.
9. Putnam, Robert D. (2000), pp.297-308.
10. Putnam, Robert D. (2000), p.326.
11. Putnam, Robert D. (2000), p.332.
12. LaFond, A. K. (1995). Improving the
quality of investment in health: Issues on
sustainability. Health Policy and Planning
(Suppl. 10), 63-76.
13. Sustaining Community-Based Programs
for Families: Conceptualization and
Measurement Jay A. Mancini, Lydia I.
Marek. Family Relations, Vol. 53, No. 4 (July,
2004), pp. 339-419.
14. Top Ten Reasons to Buy Local
Archived 2010-03-07 at Archive.today,
Sustain South Sound, Washington, USA.

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