FISH 315 - ORGANIZING COMMUNITIES 6.

Resource mobilization
Communities have resources in the form of
WHAT AND WHY COMMUNITY ORGANIZING people, skills, and sometimes finances or local
 Community organizing in project development knowledge. Community organizing helps tap
refers to the process of engaging and mobilizing into these resources, making projects more
members of a community to participate in, resilient and cost-effective
shape, and support a project. often with the 7. Building long-term sustainability
goal of meeting local needs, fostering shared When community members are deeply
ownership, and building a sense of collective involved, the project is more likely to be
investment in outcomes. sustainable over the long term. As they've been
 The approach centers on empowering part of the process, community members are
community members to contribute their ideas, often more motivated to maintain and support
skills, and perspectives, ensuring that the the project even after external facilitators move
project aligns with their priorities and benefits on.
them in meaningful ways.

KEY ASPECTS OF COMMUNITY ORGANIZING PHASES OF COMMUNITY ORGANIZING

1. Building relationships and trust 1. Assessment Phase

Establishing trust with community members is In this initial phase, organizers engage with the
essential for meaningful collaboration. This community to understand its strengths,
involves understanding the community's challenges, resources, and needs. It involves
history, values, and current challenges to build talking to residents, leaders, and stakeholders
build a foundation for partnership. to gather information and build relationships.
2. Identifying and Engaging stakeholders Listening and observing are crucial here to
Effective community organizing involves understand the community's culture, history,
identifying key community stakeholders, such as and goals.
local leaders, organizations, or active residents, 2. Planning and Strategy Phase
who have influence and can rally others to After understanding the community's priorities,
participate. this phase focuses on setting shared goals and
3. Listening to community needs and Ideas developing a plan. Together with community
Community members often have valuable members, organizers outline what they want to
insights and firsthand knowledge of local issues. achieve and how they'll get there. This phase
Listening to their concerns and suggestions includes identifying available resources, roles,
helps ensure that the project addresses real timelines, and specific actions
needs and is more likely to succeed. .
4. Empowering Local leadership 3. Recruitment and Capacity-Building Phase
A successful approach often involves Organizers encourage local leaders and
encouraging and supporting community interested community members to get involved
members to take leadership roles within the in the project. Training, workshops, or
project. This builds capacity within the discussions might be offered to build skills and
community, enabling sustainable change and ensure everyone has the knowledge they need.
fostering a sense of ownership over the This phase focuses on empowering the
project's direction and outcomes. community so that members feel confident in
5. Collective decision-making their roles.
Community organizing emphasizes collaborative 4. Action Phase
decision-making, ensuring that all voices are With a clear plan and team in place, the project
heard and that project decisions reflect the moves into action. Community members work
group's consensus rather than external together to carry out the project activities, solve
priorities imposed by outsiders. problems, and make adjustments as needed. It's
 often the most hands-on phase, where the SKILLS OF A CO
community sees tangible progress.
 Vital to the success of community organizations
5. Evaluation Phase
is the ability of the CO to help communities in
Here, the team reflects on what's been done
realizing their goals. Thus, the CO must possess
and assesses the outcomes so far. They might
the following skills:
ask questions like: Are we meeting our goals?
a) Interpersonal skills - skills that have to do with
What's working, and what could be improved?
relationship with individuals and groups. This
This phase helps to identify successes and areas
include conflict management.
for improvement, guiding adjustments to the
b) Analytical skills - skills that have to do with fact-
project.
finding/data gathering and interpretation of
6. Recognizing Success
data or information for decision-making,
Celebrating progress and successes is important
problem solving and conflict handling
for maintaining morale and motivation. This
c) Organizational development skills - skills that
might involve community events, ceremonies,
have to do with setting-up and sustaining
or simply recognizing the hard work and
organizations, among which are: planning and
dedication of everyone involved. It reinforces
policy-making, organizing or determining
the sense of accomplishment and unity within
appropriate organizational structure design,
the community.
political and legislative skills, administrative
7. Sustainability and Follow-Up Phase
skills, strategy design and implementation and
The final phase focuses on ensuring the
communication.
project's long-term success. It involves planning
for how the project will continue without ROLE OF THE CO
external help, including creating a plan for local
leaders or organizations to take over, and 1) AS A GUIDE
ensuring that the community has the resources a. The CO helps the community establish and
to sustain it. find means to achieve its own goals
effectively. This connotes that he helps the
THE COMMUNITY ORGANIZER AND DIFFERENT community move effectively in the direction
APPROACHES TO THE COMMUNITY it chooses to move.
b. He takes the initiative in creating conditions
 A community organizer has the key role in
that will stir, encourage awareness of
driving the motivation for the community for
problems, and stimulate the organization to
the successful foundation and skills
channel and focus desires for action.
development
c. He identifies himself with the community as
 The community organizer (CO) has three sets of
a whole and accepts that his role is only to
goals in community organizing:
guide and not to lead, and that it is
understood by the community.
a) Task goals - concerned with the identification of
2) AS AN ENABLER
objectives and development of the means and
a. The CO facilitates the community
resources to carry out and implement them
organization process through listening and
b) Process goals - refer to the enhancement and
questioning to stimulate insights;
strengthening of the competence of community
identification of community group leaders
members for participation, self-direction, and
to lead; and by giving consistent
cooperation
encouragement and support to indigenous
c) Relationship goals - focus on changing certain
striving with common problems.
types of social relationships and decision-
b. His role is consistently directed at freeing
making patterns in the community.
the community (through its leaders) from
its problems and to realize its potentialities
and strengths in cooperative work by
 nourishing people's good interpersonal he most widely felt problems in the community
relationships. which could range from poor water supply and
3) AS AN EXPERT lack of access to health services to low prices of
a. The CO provides data and direct advice in farm procedure, unjust tenancy relations, illegal
many areas which he may speak with fishing, etc.
authority, but these are given for 3. Institution-based organizing (or congregation-
consideration and not as final solution. based or faith-based organizing) that is rooted
b. He may serve as an "expert" in community in and brings together local religious institutions
analysis and diagnosis, which the to work on behalf of a community. Usually it
community members may need to begins with the parishes, dioceses or those who
understand to secure cooperative work. work within the structures of the church, or as a
c. He should be skillful in research methods to component of the church's mission
be able to speak with confidence on some
needed information on the community.
d. He must be able to give information derived
from other experiences as well as resource
materials on technical plans.
e. He must also have expert knowledge of
methods of organization and procedure like
ensuring that women are represented in
the decision making of the organization.
f. He is able to assess the process of
cooperative work being carried out and
interpret it to the community to enhance
their understanding and ability to operate
as a group.
4. AS A CATALYST
a. One who hastens the process of change,
whose sign of success is the coming of the
time when organizing process has been fully
internalized by the people.

HOW DO WE APPROACH A COMMUNITY?

There are various ways to bring social and economic

changes, but they may be categorized under three
major approaches:

1. Direct or individual membership groups that

are typically small and geographically based
efforts to organize individual low and moderate
income people. The members may be broadly
focused on improving their village/community
or working on a specific issue like improving
community literacy or workers' rights.
2. Issue-based coalitions that mobilize public
interest groups, unions, and other already
established groups to affect a public policy or to
address a common concern, such as
environmental degradation in near shore
resources. The CO process begins by developing