Cheers L. Raghavan,
Welcome back to the Community Tool Box and to Ask an Advisor, we appreciate your visit and hope we can provide you with timely, useful, and applicable information! First, let me say bravo for wanting to effect change in your community, that's what we all aspire to and now you're going to do it; most excellent. That said, in case you didn't know, the Community Tool Box is a public service of the University of Kansas (KU) developed and managed by the KU Work Group for Community Health and Development and partners nationally and internationally. The Community Tool Box is a part of the KU Work Group’s role as a designated World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Community Health and Development. Although we don't have Community Tool Box programmes or affiliates in India with which to associate directly, let me provide you with some resources to get you started that might inform your thinking about forming and maintaining partnerships in your community, assessing needs in your community, and examples of specific community-based work that is going on in India.
When I think of a starting point for community-building and improvement I always start with what needs a community has, then I think about who is already working in the community to solve problems/meet needs and perhaps how I might partner with them (e.g., NGOs, international aid and development agencies, etc.), and then I look for examples of community-building work so that I get a better sense of how I too might go about my work. So, here are the paths to follow within the Community Tool Box beginning at our home page, followed by the button on top of the page to click, and then the section containing the information that might be of interest to you.
1) These paths will inform your thinking about how to begin taking action for change in your community:
Home » Help Taking Action » A Model for Getting Started
Home » Learn A Skill » Toolkits » 1. Creating and Maintaining Partnerships
Home » Learn A Skill » Toolkits » 2. Assessing Community Needs and Resources
2) These paths will provide you with inspiration, hope, and motivation as you begin your very important community work:
Home » Connect » Community Stories » Community Health Initiative (Maharashtra) - Impact India Foundation – Maharashtra State, India
Home » Connect » Community Stories » Janamanas (The Collective Mind) - Anjali Mental Health Organization – West Bengal, India
With that I bid you the best success in your endeavors, and thank you for your great question. If you have any other questions or find that the answer provided is not satisfactory, please don't hesitate to get in touch with us again and we'll work together to find a solution. Remember, you are never alone! Take care, be well.
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