Argues that those activities variously called community development, organization, action, or education involve the imposition of the values and beliefs of community workers or agencies upon their clientele and that community work has a strong, albeit unintentional, manipulative or exploitative aspect. (SK)

This article examines some of the reasons why community workers get involved with neighborhood information centers, and shows how unrealistic expectations of these workers can limit and disguise the achievements of these centers. (SK)

Applies optimistic and pessimistic models of government/community partnerships to the situation of Muintir na Tire, the Irish community movement. Recommends an activist model that focuses on the ability of community interests to assert collective agency and negotiate more advantageous partnerships. (Contains 28 references.) (SK)

A case study of a village in Zimbabwe illustrated how collective community actions resulted in learning that enabled sustainable management of a community resource. Educators' role was helping the community ask the right questions in the process of producing useful working knowledge. (Contains 34 references.) (SK)

This case study of one city's efforts to cope with homelessness centers around a conceptual model of consensus as a continuous process the nature of which is determined by the methods used to achieve consensus; the importance of maintaining consensus to the participants; the baseline consensus as interaction begins; and the political and public…

Examines the implications of the Bhopal catastrophe and the organization by the consumer movement of a coalition of community action groups--The International Coalition for Justice in Bhopal--that links action in the developed and developing countries. (JOW)

Presents examples of four communities that successfully organized against a community environmental threat. Profiles the fight against racism in Newtown, GA; efforts to maintain coalitions in Tifton, GA; action against exposure to dioxin in Columbus, OH; and activism against an illegal sludge dump on the Torres-Martinez Reservation (Cahuilla), CA.…

Addresses citizen action taken by African American communities in Pensacola, Florida located in close proximity to a Superfund site. Discusses how the community is organizing to stop site clean-up efforts that residents claim have unjustly increased their already high exposure to toxins such as dioxin. (LZ)

Presents the findings of a survey concerning secondary school students' views on justice. Reveals that most students associated justice with equality and fairness. Reports that students identified the African-American struggle as the most important U.S. justice issue. Describes students' views on improving their communities and coping with…

A group of staff and parents in a Pennsylvania community developed a district strategic plan stressing character education. The original study group found three reasons for involving schools, including schools' historical commitment to character development, recognition of values education as an intrinsic part of teaching, and increasing crime and…

Discusses potential applications of computer technology to enhance participatory democracy and considers the effects of advances in computer technology, including increased power and decreased costs, on political and community activists. Constraints are described, including international inequity and the commercialization of government data; and…

Clarifies the concept of free space--a setting in which people can meet for public talk and contribute to solving public problems--and the need to integrate it into extension leadership and public policy programs. Offers two case studies and insights about how lessons learned from them can be applied to extension education. (JOW)

Describes the humanitarian efforts of St. Luke's Parish to reach out to the community and help others. Its attempts to spread justice and peace have made it a healing presence in southern society. (YKH)

Five case studies of individual and collective learning projects in India demonstrate that (1) the impetus for civic action arises from local conditions; (2) transformative action requires sustained adult learning; and (3) civil society is a complex concept reflecting diverse priorities and perspectives. (SK)

Individualism may hinder or enable community action, depending on whether adult education is offered in a liberal or liberating mode. It also depends on whether adult educators view learning and action as inseparable and decide to emphasize or not behavior geared toward community transformation and development. (SK)