This paper investigates the process of how actions of community groups are initiated and carried out. It also identifies key characteristics of participation in community action projects. Social actions in two communities in North Carolina are studied from a 10-year period. (Author/CT)

Fifteen older women involved as volunteers faced several barriers to participation: pain, disability, family obligations, assumptions about age, transportation, and different patterns and pace of life. Structural changes that would enhance older people's contributions to community life were suggested. (SK)

This booklet presents ideas based on actions taken by community leaders to recruit new and emerging leaders to join in the improvement of a community. The discussion includes: (1) asking the question "who's not here?" to make sure the community organization is representative; (2) looking for skills, not names to discover leadership…

One hundred ninety-seven volunteers were surveyed to assess community development knowledge and skill gains and community involvement and community building behavior from participation in a Master Gardener program. Though the program was intended to disseminate horticultural information, it was found to have a serendipitous effect on community…

Reports results of a study of the Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement in Sri Lanka. Sarvodaya is a nonprofit, nongovernment community education-cum-development movement working in nearly 3,000 villages in Sri Lanka. "Sarvodaya" means universal awakening and "Shramadana" means sharing of one's time, energy, and thought for the good of…

This guide for the public provides information on ways to address homelessness within the context of community development. The following articles issued by the Homelessness Information Exchange are included as Sections 1, 2, and 3: (1) "The Problem of Homelessness Nationwide"; (2) "Ways You Can Help the Homeless"; and (3) "Building a Coalition in…

This collection of briefs comprises a guide to minority-activity planning designed by the Steering Committee for Minority Communications of the Westinghouse Foundation. They are intended to further the following Westinghouse goals: (1) to encourage youth to pursue careers in technology; (2) to develop strong links with the minority community; (3)…

This study investigates how 40 working-class women participate as volunteers in the service, political, and social action arenas of their community--Carondelet, on the South Side of St. Louis. The purpose is to show that working-class women who live in transitional areas are capable of politically addressing the urban problems intruding into their…

This volume presents information from a social indicators project designed to shed light on factors affecting civic health in twenty-six communities where John S. and James L. Knight published newspapers and provided grants to improve quality of life. Seven chapters discuss research results: (1) "Listening and Learning" (e.g., growth of…

Proceedings are presented of hearings before the Senate Subcommittee on Child and Human Development concerning proposed legislation (S. 239 and S. 374) to revise, improve, and extend certain provisions of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act. Testimony from administrators of current programs under the act and from public witnesses focuses on the…

Opened in 1963, the Swaneng Hill School in Serowe, Botswana, was an experiment for its untrained founders whose objectives were to reduce the exclusiveness of secondary education, equip students with skills and knowledge needed for development, make the school a focal point for community development, and instill a sense of social justice in the…