Power is Held by Those Who Tell the Story:
The Principles and Practice of Community-based Planning
Winnipeg Inner City Research Alliance Summer Institute /
June 2003
Doug Aberley Ph.D. MCIP
Presentation Organisation
 Introduction;
 Theory of Community-based Planning;
 An Intellectual Lineage of Community-based Mapping;
 Case Studies;
 Lessons Learned.
Being Clear Regarding Perspective…
 From a ‘radical’ or ‘community-based planning’ point of view;
 For application in bottom-up processes that are embedded in communities and/or
regions;
 Focused on capacity and relationship building leading to transformative levels of
change;
 A tool, not a silver bullet…
Prerequisites for the Practice of Community-based Planning…
 To understand the status quo in planning;
 To understand the theory of community- based/radical planning;
 To develop tools that translate community-based/radical planning theory into grassroots practice.
The Status Quo: Centralized Planning
 Limited budgets and overly busy professional staff;
 No mandate and/or little time for community contact;
 Driven by short term goals and time-frames;
 Top down decision making;
 Serves interest groups rather than communities;
 Based upon enforcement of rules rather than collaborative processes;
 Not designed to develop or enhance skill capacity of individuals or communities.
Community-based Planning Concepts Originate from Three Sources:
 Academic planners and social theorists;
 Social justice advocates (anti-poverty, anti-racism; First Nation rights and title,
women’s rights, housing rights, etc.);
 Social change activists (regionalists, bioregionalists, social ecologists, deep
ecologists, etc.).
Key “Radical” Planning Texts by Planners and Social Scientists
 1946/1969 Saul Alinsky. Reveille for Radicals
 1970. Paulo Friere. Pedagogy of the Oppressed
 1973. Grabow and Heskin. Foundations for a Radical Concept of Planning
 1979. John Friedmann and Clyde Weaver. Territory and Function
 1987. John Friedmann. Planning in the Public Domain
 1998. Leonie Sandercock. Towards Cosmopolis
 Many others…
Principles of Community-based Planning Theory
 Begins with a critique of the status quo in planning: elitist, centralizing, changeresistant;
 Requires the synthesis of consciousness and action;
 ‘Continuous’ planning taking place in the real time of everyday lives;
 Decentralized decision making;
 Reclaiming territorial life from centralizing forces;
 Facilitation of human development and improvement in quality of life;
 Achievement of social justice;
 Achievement of ecological sustainability;
 Etc…
Key Proponents of Regionalist/Bioregional/Community-based Planning Theory
 1890s. Patrick Geddes
 1900s. Peter Kropotkin, Elisee Reclus
 1930s. Lewis Mumford, Catherine Bauer, Benton MacKaye, RPAA
 1960s. Ian McHarg
 1970s. Peter Van Dresser, Ivan Illich, Murray Bookchin, etc.
 1980s. Peter Berg, Judy Goldhaft, Gary Snyder, etc.
 1980s-2000s. Bioregional Gatherings…
Bioregionalists have been the most active non-academic proponents of an advocate/
activist approach to community-based planning.
Definition of Bioregionalism…
 Achievement of social justice (links to social ecology and environmental justice)
 Achievement of ecological sustainability (links to deep ecology, permaculture,
ecological design)
 Governance and development in the context of “the local” or “life place” (links to
regionalism, utopian socialism)
Values of Bioregionalism…
 Community-based decision making/Direct democracy;
 Subsidiarity/Decentralisation;
 Federation;
 Iterative community development processes;
 Development that is sustainable;
 Protection/enhancement of indigenous cultures and environments;
 Integration of human societies with Nature;
 Community stewardship of local resources;
 Celebration of local environment and culture.
Theory is Useless Without Tools that Translate Ideas into Practice
 Tools that are….
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Simple and easy to learn;
Inexpensive to apply;
Deliver short- and long-term benefit;
Adaptable to many spatial and cultural settings.
Community-based Planning Tools…
 Holistic Healing and Health;
 Justice Circles;
 Skills and Capacity Building;
 Governance Development;
 Consensus Decision Making;
 Place-based celebration and art;
 Spirituality;
 Community-based Education;
 Bioregional Planning and Mapping;
 Ecosystem-based Restoration and Stewardship;
 Ecological Design/Permaculture;
 Community Economic Development.
Maps Are Powerful…
They Tell Stories!
Community-based, or “Bioregional,” Maps Are Different…
 Made in the community, by the community;
 Equally represent physical and cultural information;
 Combine scientific and traditional/local knowledge;
 Display spatial and descriptive information;
 Are living documents;
 Form the foundation of collaborative planning processes.
Bioregional Atlases Have Three Parts…
 Biophysical Inventory;
 Cultural Inventory;
 Planning and Community Development Agenda;
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Environment,
Culture and Economy.
Part 1 of a Bioregional Atlas / Biophysical Map Series
 Geology;
 Soils;
 Physiography;
 Hydrology;
 Climate;
 Land Plants;
 Marine Plants;
 Land Animals;
 Marine Animals;
 Birds;
 Sensitive Habitats;
 Biggest, oldest, etc.
 Ecosystems;
 Environmental Hot Spots.
Part 2 of a Bioregional Atlas / Cultural Maps Series
 Indigenous peoples;
 Electoral and administrative borders;
 History time-series;
 Land use time-series;
 Demographics;
 Gender issues;
 Current jurisdiction or “power” holders;
 Current physical infrastructure;
 Current cultural infrastructure;
 Current economy;
 Cultural hot spots.
Part 3 of a Bioregional Atlas/
Planning Strategy and Agenda
 Ten small projects to protect or enhance the environment;
 Ten small projects to help create sustainable economy and culture;
 Outreach strategy to engage current corporate and government power holders
(negotiation, litigation, non-violent direct action, parallel governance, etc.).
Technical Progression of Map Production…
 Cognitive, sketch, or “doodle” maps;
 Black and white hand-drawn; bioregional maps;
 Hand-coloured hand-drawn bioregional maps;
 Computer aided design (CAD) digital maps;
 Geographic Information System (GIS) digital maps.
Manual versus Digital Mapping
Manual Mapping
Digital Mapping
- Cheap
- Expensive
- Low maintenance
- High Maintenance
- Easy to learn
- Steep learning curve
- Inclusive
- Exclusive
- Sophistication from
- Sophistication from more
experience
more modules
- Creatively adaptable
- Fixed techniques
- Limited colour
- Colour
- No analytical
- Great analytical capability
capability
- Difficult to layer data
- Easy to layer data
Bioregional Map-making Process
 Identify eco-cultural planning unit;
 Choose animation process:
 Planner animator,
 Student animator,
 Local professional animator,
 Local animator options: train the trainer, twinning, etc.
 Base map production;
 Menu development process;
 Map research process;
 Map production process;
 Review of draft maps;
 Community presentation;
 Use maps!
Use of Bioregional Maps…
 Empowerment;
 Planning;
 Curriculum in schools;
 Tourist information;
 Business development;
 Lobbying and political action;
 Community organising and outreach.
Lessons Learned…
 Make many types of maps…re-establish widespread use of visual language in
community/regional settings;
 Be honest about limitations…all maps are only pictures...map making takes lots of
time and/or money…garbage in, garbage out…etc.
 Capacity building must be part of every project…de-mystify technology, eliminate
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gatekeepers;
Build images that tell stories from many perspectives…scientific/traditional,
physical/cultural, large-/small-scale, male/female, old/young…etc.
Customize image design to represent community identity;
Free GIS operators from the ‘inward stare’ syndrome…build planning/stewardship
teams with people and technical skills.
Let’s Get Down to the Real Question: How to Map Winnipeg!
The Challenge…
 To improve quality of life services for ALL residents of urban Winnipeg;
 To allocate social, physical and economic development funding in an efficient and
equitable manner;
 To maximize urban community member participation in all aspects of planning and
service delivery.
What Has Defeated Community Development Efforts in the Past?
 Many segments of the urban Winnipeg community have been marginalized;
 Complicated social/cultural environment;
 Funding agencies don’t understand the neighbourhoods;
 Overlap in services;
 Gaps in services;
 Hidden agendas of service providers;
 Sporadic short-term funding;
 Competition between community groups.
Why Use Maps as a Community Development Tool in Winnipeg?
 ‘Visual’ language that’s easy to understand;
 Summarize complex information is a clear manner;
 Making maps about ‘home’ is empowering;
 Reduces reliance on ‘experts’ and builds capacity;
 Adaptable to many uses;
 Provides a basis for on-going community-based planning.
Detailed Atlas Contents?
 Physical Environment;
 Historic Land Use;
 Neighbourhoods;
 Physical Infrastructure;
 Demographics;
 Social Infrastructure (Housing, Health, Public Safety, Education, etc.)
 Service Provider Profiles (Manitoba, Canada, NGOs, etc.);
 Success Profiles (Sites, Services);
 Issues Profiles (Homelessness, Sex trade, Drug trade, Alcohol trade, Gang turf,
Crime, etc.);
 Action Agenda????
Sample Map Contents #1 / Service Profile: Housing
 Location of Housing Types:
 Co-ops
 SROs
 Public
 Family
 Housing Quality
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Rating by residents
 Single Room Occupancy Focus
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Where?
Quality?
Ownership
Sites lost to gentrification is past 5, 10 years?
Sample Map Contents #2 / Issue Profile: Sex Trade
 Where are its components located?
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Escort Services?
Male?
Female?
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Pimp hangouts?
Who are the customers?
 How does it work?
 Crime locations?
Final Advice: Go Out and Map!