Community Rhythms: The Five Stages of Community Life (1999)
About: A nationwide study prepared for the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation by The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation (formerly The Harwood Group).
Published: 1999
Author: Richard C. Harwood
Description: Why is it that some initiatives take off in one community but seem to fall flat when you try to replicate them in other places? The five stages of community life help explain why some communities move faster and others slower when it comes to change.
The findings in this report emerge from over a decade of research and on-the-ground initiatives throughout the United States. Only if you know and understand the stage in which your community rests, will you be better able to figure out what kinds of approaches, strategies, and timing best fit for seeking to move your community forward.
