Reaching for a responsive and ecological approach to community development

This article represents an edited conversation between two practitioners exploring both an ecological-organic approach to community development practice, and the idea of practice as a ‘responsive dance’. The practice ideas have emerged from a dialogical inquiry between the two authors conducted during 2011/2012, augmented by consideration of various literatures. The dialogue involved comparison and contrasting of two development practice frameworks: one the ‘developmental approach’ from a community of practice within South Africa, and another, the ‘dialogical approach’ from a community of practice within Australia. This exchange included conversations and processes of co-writing. The exchange between the two frameworks led to a cross-fertilisation, which we argue has provided exciting new signposts for community development practice. These new signposts are considered in-depth within the promissory reflections, but in a nutshell focus on what we have called organic or ecological community development practice – a way of conceptualizing practice as embodied responsive engagement within a holistic understanding of the social world.

• © Oxford University Press and Community Development Journal. 2013 All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com