It might seem logical that solutions a community develops for its own use would work well locally. But small, innovative groups sometimes have difficulty accessing funding to support their work.
The Obama administration’s Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation funds locally generated programs and ideas. Although the organizations it supports are established groups, not new ones, other groups are looking at smaller-scale solutions.
Parsons the New School for Design has started a project called Amplifying Creative Communities. Their focus is New York City, particularly the Lower East Side. They’re studying and encouraging the growth of urban gardens and other community resource-sharing projects. An article by Cameron Tonkinwise puts this project in an international context.
Kat Friedrich 