While City and Neighborhood politics seem to be in a clash of sorts these days making it even more challenging for neighbors to often obtain answers and insights on issues impacting their neighborhood, it’s good to revisit the critical role of Neighborhood Advocacy.
We recently stumbled on this great read by Michigan State and believe it encapsulates many key points worth sharing.
You can read the post in its entirety here.
Local community activists have the respect of the communities where they live. It is this local clout that allows them to encourage other residents to participate in neighborhood redevelopment efforts. Effective activist can get strong local participation in neighborhood planning and development meetings.
While community advocates cannot guarantee greater participation, experience has shown me that they can help increase resident involvement in community development processes. Community advocates can be the difference between a successful project with strong community input and buy-in or an unsuccessful one with limited community involvement and neighborhood indifference.