Each year, on the last Saturday in August Village Earth celebrates the legacy and birthday of one of its founders, the late Dr. Maurice Albertson by honoring a person who exemplifies Maury’s lifelong dedication to sustainability and social justice. This year, Village Earth’s Board of Directors awarded the honor to Judith Kimerling, for her defense of the Amazon rainforest and the human communities that depend on it for their culture and survival. Kimerling received the medal in front of an audience of Village Earth supporters, CSU administration and faculty, local businesses and a host of people from across the region interested in sustainable development. Entertainment included local African dance troupe “Fale” and a live auction featuring items from various locations around the world where Village Earth works. The dinner, prepared by Colorado State University catering service, featured delicious grassfed and field harvested buffalo ribeye steaks sourced from the Lakota Buffalo Caretakers Cooperative on the Pine Ridge Reservation, a grassroots affiliate of Village Earth. The highlight of the evening was slide show presentation given by Kimerling, tracing her 30 years of work in the Ecuadorian Amazon and the pressing issues that still remain to be addressed. All proceeds from the event will go to support Village Earth as it expands its Global Affiliate Program – a support network for grassroots organizations working on some of the most critical issues around the globe.
GSLL 1501 – Approaches to Community Development
This course provides a framework for community development based on a participatory, bottom-up, multi-sector model. Various approaches have been used in community development with varying degrees of success. One approach that has consistently demonstrated effectiveness is the Village Earth model based on participatory practices.
Through personal and structural empowerment, the objectives of economic well-being, environmental sustainability, and socio-cultural vitalization can be met. By looking at an overview of the entire development process and using case studies, this course will prepare participants to work in the field of community development and illuminate how all of the development efforts fit together to support the overall goal of sustainability.
Upon completion of this course participants will be able to:
Compare different development approaches and evaluate their effectiveness.
Understand the basic principles that underlie sustainable development.
Incorporate participatory practices into community development activities
Design a development project based on the Village Earth model
Who should take this course? This course is suited for people who are interested in community development and work or plan to work in this field. This includes people working or volunteering at NGOs, NPOs, governmental organizations, without border organizations, or missionary organizations. In addition, people involved in funding community development projects benefit from this course.
