Community development has reached a pivot point. An overreliance on markets to drive social solutions has led us to practices that mirror market conservatism; devalue customized, community-based solutions; and too often prioritize financial return over mission. It is time to rethink how community development operates in order to reframe the role of capital technicians and the market, rebalance power relationships, and prioritize community voice.
Field veterans David Fukuzawa and Nancy Andrews describe the old paradigm of “corrective capitalism”—that markets, if reformed, will eliminate poverty and racism; that scale is the ultimate goal, and activating markets is the best way to get there; and that self-sustainability, ideally within three to five years, should be the goal of nonprofits addressing poverty and racism. They also offer a radical rethinking of community development goals: from markets to mission and community voice, from scale to systems and structure, and from self-sustainability to long-term investment for social returns.
What does it take to transform the fundamental paradigm of the community development ecosystem? With the seeds of change already evident in cutting-edge projects across the United States, impact investors can and should follow their lead and offer support for change to take root.
In this workshop, leaders will have the opportunity to explore the ways a new paradigm has turned into action so far in the field. They will work to understand their own paradigms, assumptions, goals, and the places where their institutions could begin to implement radical patience and radically flexible support.
