John McKnight is one of the developers of Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) and has done a lot of work around the country in terms of helping to rebuild and strengthen communities. He is very focused on developing citizen capacity and believes that our over-reliance on "services" (i.e. social services, formal service 'providers') has contributed to a decline in neighborhood strength/resilience. In other words, services have their place in the world but they cannot solve all problems nor can they replace the caring that occurs between people when they are engaged in mutual/reciprocal relationships.
TO read some of McKnight's current ideas, click here:http://www.yesmagazine.org/community/handmade-homemade-community?ut...