CommunityWorks USA

08/04/2026

What does it look like for an organization to shift their work to building community connections?

Join us tomorrow as we learn from Dr. Tasha Faruqui, Amanda Hutchison, Nancy Fuller, and Bridget Vogt of Inclusion Seekers on how they shifted their model to helping families create lives rooted in authentic relationships and belonging. You'll also hear real stories from participating families and discover practical ideas you can bring into your own community.

RSVP Here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/roFgo3ffRuiQh-XyMlKWAg #/registration

07/27/2026

Inclusion Seekers helps people build relationships through shared interests, local events, and everyday community life. Over the past few years, Inclusion Seekers has shifted their approach to prioritizing community connections, especially for people with disabilities. Through the Community Connections Project, families with a person with a disability build real relationships and lives rooted in belonging through project funds, mentoring, and learning experiences. These projects have included neighborhood gatherings, music events, community gardens, and creative projects!

Join us to hear from families who participated in the Community Connections Project about their experience and to hear practical ways that Inclusion Seekers on how as an organization Inclusion Seekers shifted and began to prioritize community connections.

RSVP Here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/roFgo3ffRuiQh-XyMlKWAg #/registration

07/24/2026

Join us in welcoming N. David Cooper to the CommunityWorks team! 👏

David is joining us as a Regional Coach to work with communities, congregations, and nonprofit organizations in Virginia to discover and mobilize the gifts already present. Drawing on decades of leadership in social work, nonprofit management, construction management, and pastoral ministry, he coaches community leaders to build stronger, more connected, results-achieving, hope-filled communities through Asset-Based Community Development.

07/16/2026

If you could describe decision making using an emoji, what would it be?

We asked this question to neighborhood and community leaders across the country and received a mix of reactions. It became clear that too often leaders have good intentions, but don't have a framework to surface possibilities, navigate tension, and invite co-creation.

Decision making can be about more than just getting things done, it can be a powerful tool for building deep connection and sharing real power within a neighborhood.

If you're curious about what this could look like in your neighborhood or community, check out yesterday's webinar featuring Nate Tubbs and Ian Campbell! In it they share practical tools to align hyperlocal governance with asset-based, relationship-driven work—where the process of making a decision actually brings people closer together and distributes power equitably.

You can watch the full webinar replay here: https://www.comm-works.org/decision-making-and-governance-in-community-building-work/

07/08/2026

Who gets a say in your community? How many people are needed to actually represent the neighborhood?

Decision making in community building work can be difficult to navigate. Many strategies often assume top-down authority or prioritize efficiency over collaborative dialogue. Join us to hear from two local organizers who have wrestled through methods of decision-making and who long to implement frameworks that share power and include others. Nate Tubbs & Ian Campbell will share about their journey, the tools they use, and thoughtful insights for your journey.

RSVP at https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/1C_74aM_Sx-NDQlH-I1JIw #/registration

06/30/2026

A few weeks ago, we joined the North End Community Improvement Collaborative in Mansfield, Ohio to teach the basics of creating inside out change in neighborhoods! Participants learned how to identify the gifts within people and places that lead to lasting transformation. You can bring this workshop to your community as well!

06/11/2026

Traditional funding streams can feel like running a marathon just to get a pair of sneakers. 🏃‍♂️💨

For neighborhood-focused community builders, the “big money” is often out of reach. When it is accessible, it usually comes with heavy strings attached, imposing outside priorities over local dreams.

But what if community leaders could bypass the gatekeepers and fund their own projects from the bottom up?

Enter giving circles—a decentralized, grassroots strategy that pools small-scale capital to create an outsized community impact.

Join us for our next webinar as we sit down with the pioneers of this movement. We'll be chatting with leaders from The Awesome Foundation and Grapevine Giving to explore how you can fuel your local projects through the power of collective giving.

💡 Stop waiting for top-down funding. Learn how to build your own. RSVP here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/LUQ0xJPGTCaoQ-1td_fU7g #/registration

05/29/2026

How is your neighborhood like a vegetable garden? 🌽🥕🍅

This is the question we started with earlier this month at the Community Connections Workshop in Orlando, FL. Neighborhood and community leaders told us that their neighborhoods were similar as they were:

- Diverse with different cultures, languages, and ages
- Seasonal with patterns of life and connection varying throughout the year
- Required some pruning as nurturing relationships takes care to navigate conflict and build healthy relationships

Throughout the workshop, participants learned how they can build on these assets to sustain resident engagement and discover the gifts within their community.

Want to activate residents in your community to create possibilities using their gifts? Reach out to us today!

Neighborhood Relations - City of Orlando Orange County, Florida Government

05/26/2026

Across the country, neighbors are gathering on stoops, in living rooms, and in backyards--creating the connections that build resilient, vibrant communities. Thanks to The Hopeful Neighborhood Project for hosting the Tournament of Neighboring! We can't wait for National Good Neighbor Day!

Celebrating 1,690 people impacted through the Tournament of Neighboring this year!

CommunityWorks USA

05/22/2026

Earlier this week, we were privileged to be at the Trust in Practice Summit hosted by The Aspen Institute and The Allstate Foundation. It was great to connect with other trust builders across the country and learn innovative ways trust is being built block by block.

NVP: Neighborhood Village Project National Good Neighbor Day The Hopeful Neighborhood Project