The “Sustainable Villages” project is a research initiative sponsored by BP which aims to bring together strategies that unite social, environmental, community and business interests towards a more sustainable future. Bringing together practical examples from civil society, business, government and non-government sources, we seek to showcase interventions that promote responsible, durable, and viable development.
How are we structuring our approach?
The project will consider two fundamental frameworks in order to classify and capture best practices
- Community needs framework – this framework represents the typical needs of a sustainable community and the external factors that influence longevity and viability
- Community planning and assessment – this framework represents how to engage with communities so that their priorities are expressed in a participatory and culturally relevant manner
What assistance are we seeking?
This project intends to bring together contributions from a range of sources and interests. We aim to be open, conversational and collaborative in our approach.
Specifically we are seeking anecdotes and examples of lessons learned, innovative new ideas or proven best practices in the following spaces:
- Social/political activities – transparency initiatives, governance, security, gender balance, minorities inclusion, and cultural protection
- Physical/Infrastructure activities – water/sanitation, energy, structures, transportation, and waste disposal
- Financial/economic activities – savings, insurance, loans, enterprise, access to markets
- Human/education activities –well-being, health, education and population
- Natural/environmental activities– resource management, agricultural planning, erosion prevention, waste and pollution control
- Engagement - Participatory approaches to community needs assessment
- Empowerment – Community level capability building and leadership development
Contributions during this stage of the research will be shared in a public forum where appropriate subject to prior agreement and any confidentiality or copyright limitations.
