Community Work is a powerful tool for social inclusion, promoting an intercultural dialogue between different target groups of society, fostering our community values, such as communication, tolerance, social dialogue, an active work combating isolation, exclusion and marginalization of individuals and all parts of society.

Community Work stimulates different economic opportunities, fosters local and regional networks and aims to specifically support small local enterprises and business development schemes.

Community Work is an instrument in order to generate alternative forms of local employment/labour markets and sets an initiative to link business, municipalities and inhabitants.

Community Work networks local interests in between various stakeholders and understands itself as an incubator for local development, participation, contributes to urban and territorial planning and seeks to build a platform open to all local actors and activists.

Community Work is an interdisciplinary approach, using experiences from social work, local economic development tools, cultural work, communication techniques and other disciplines.

Community Development is…

Community Development is an urgently needed approach, raising awareness by supporting individual self-conscious, responsibility and knowledge regarding its unique individual needs, interests and expertise and how to cooperate and collaborate with society and its systems.

Aims

  • Strengthening communities per se!
  • Fostering local change-management.
  • Training community developers and developing a strong network of professionals.
  • Empowering existing local communities – setting a concept of best practice.
  • Popularizing the idea of community capacity building and the need for action.
  • Commonly design a community work training program.
  • Collaboratively setting national guidelines for the future of Latvian community work.

What could communities expect of us

  • 12 workshops over 16 months, a roadshow rotating through Latvia, visiting each community twice during the program time. On average one workshop per four weeks (with breaks in summer and winter). Each workshop lasts 2,5 days.
  • Free accommodation and food during workshops as well as free transport to and from the workshop venue to your local destination.
  • Two to three weeks of internship at your related municipality and all together one month of field work in your local community. The field work will be supported with technical costs for meetings, gatherings and necessary material.
  • Monitoring and supervision during your local field work by experts and trainers.
  • Individual support in preparation of the final community development plan.
  • Scientific evaluation of the program.

What do we expect from the communities


Prospective trainees should be deeply rooted in their respective communities as well as they should provide a previous record of active community issues related initiatives. Both formal and informal activities and projects will be recognised for the application.

We do not require any previous knowledge related to subjects addressed in the study course, however we do expect your full involvement and readiness to complete the program, study ad work hard.

The main feature we are aiming for is the SPARK INTEREST and curiosity – an honest wish to bring change and improve your surroundings by active participation.

They will have to work in English while the paperwork will be done mostly in Latvian.

What will it mean for the students to take part in the project

Trainees have to spend 3 days (including travelling) on average of four weeks for the workshops (see schedule). However, the training program will ask everybody to work, concept and design local activities during the program period outside the regular workshop time.

The program asks every community to elaborate a local community development plan. This plan should follow the principle: Planning for Real!, meaning, all six communities aim to finish the program with a clear perspective of their future development and to implement the plan. The program will support and lobby this implementation process after finalizing the training program with all its partners.

Generally we’re asking for an active contribution to the aims of this pilot-program.

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