Capacity Building and Community Power

Abstract

Capacity building in the United States of America is defined by its own unique history and cultural circumstances. As such, it can be seen as distinct from the principles and practices of capacity building as they are often understood outside of the United States. While community capacity building in places other than the United States often focuses on the community itself (McGinty, 2002; Murphy and Thomas, 2005; Public Health Agency of Canada, 2008; United Nations Development Program, n.d.), the dominant use of the concept in the United States focuses on non-governmental organisations (US Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2009; Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, n.d.; Regional Housing and Community Development Alliance, 2008). And while community capacity building outside of the US is often quite broad, including interventions for everything from a financing infrastructure to a community culture and a professional support system for community development, in the United States community capacity building is highly technical and specialised. This chapter begins with a discussion of the history of capacity building within the United States and contrasts this with a non-US typology of capacity building. The chapter then discusses some of the problems that exist in the current practice of capacity building in the United States and explores an alternative model of capacity building that hold more promise.