This paper explores the informal and social learning dimensions of activists as they learn skills and knowledge through participating in social action. In doing this I draw on Lave and Wenger's epistemology of situated learning and Bourdieu's theory of "habitus". I argue activists learn an array of community development skills in the…

The 21st century has seen renewed interest in activism, community development and social change globally (Kenny 2006). This paper outlines the educational significance of the learning practices of activists as they engage within and against the state. In an era of adult education which emphasises lifelong learning and learning in the workplace,…

Since the 1980s, community development in Australia has become professionalized and operates in a milieu of deregulation and privatization. Development workers struggle with questions of integrity and compromise and the contradictory pulls of modernism and postmodernism. (SK)

Interviews with 55 British and 40 Australian community development practitioners identified common phases experienced under New Right governments: retreat/isolation, adaptation/defense, and rebuilding. Britain's experiences suggest that community development practice is resilient, but reliance on government funding may restrain activism. (Contains…