In this 3rd and final 24 minute conversation between Peter Westoby and Dee Brooks (Jeder Institute), Dee talks about what some of the global movement looks like, why it is growing (and has been for a number of decades), some of the risks (cookie-cutter/monetising), some of the key questions the movement is grappling with, and also how people can connect into it. 

In this 21 minute episode Peter and Dee explore what the ABCD approach to community development is. Not the '101' version, but the heart and soul of it. Dee describes how she discovered this approach, explains the 'what', gives a story (a key asset in itself). Finally Dee invites people to join the movement (check out Jeder Institute website; or )

In this first of three conversations between Peter Westoby and Dee Brooks (The Jeder Institute), the listener gets to meet Dee the person. Dee, an Oceania representative of the International Association of Community Development (IACD) and a director of the Jeder Institute (bringing the ABCD approach into the world) is a natural story-teller - and here she explores her initial journey into youth work, community development and then a significant 5-year nomadic chapter of her life. 

In this conversation, Peter Westoby and Dave Andrews explore Dave's experiences and insight into working across difference. Bouncing of Adam Kahane's book Collaborating with the Enemy, Dave tells stories about his work - particularly interfaith dialogue since 9/11. 

This 2nd episode, as a conversation between Peter Westoby and Dave Andrews, explores Dave's take on how community development practitioners understand their work as amateur (for the love of it), radical and revolutionary. The conversation also considers how we 'de-professionalise' ourselves and work within organisations increasingly concerned with professional roles, boundaries, compliance and so forth. 

Dave Andrews, a long-term community worker, has inspired many others with his writing, his local neighbourhood and international development work. With well over 40 years of experience (in places such as Afghanistan, India and Australia), he has been a mentor to myself and many other young aspiring social change workers. Check out this 19 minute interview with Dave, and I'd say the take home message for me is: 'if you love community you destroy community; if you love people you build community'.

In this 21 minutes [yes, slightly long, apologies] episode, Peter and Tina explore the rich contribution of E. F. (Fritz) Schumacher, who wrote the seminal book Small Is Beautiful (1973). This book and Schumacher's thinking on small vs. gigantic, Buddhist Economics, and appropriate technology, pathed the way for what we now think of as the Community Economic Development (CED) Tradition. We invite community development workers to become economically literate and add CED to their social and justice efforts.

In this 5th episode, the first of 2022, Peter Westoby and Tina Lathouras pay tribute to bell hooks, who died at the age of 66 in 2021, and also explore three of her key ideas and what they mean for community development. The three ideas include: 'I came to theory because of my pain', the 'work of love' and the 'problem of systems and cultures of domination and white supremacy thinking' (intersecting across racism, sexism, capitalism...). 

In this 7 minute episode Peter Westoby wraps up for the 2021 podcast series, quickly reminding listeners of the importance of dialogue, soul, participatory work and wisdom/traditions. Peter explains what we'll kick off with in 2022, and invites feedback/ideas from listeners. As such, if you have any ideas about what you'd like Peter to bring to 2022 please contact him on [email protected]

In this 19 minute conversation between Peter Westoby and Tina Lathouras we explore a couple of contributions for community development thinking from Arundhati Roy (with the mantra 'don't fragment solidarity') and Jane Addams (with the mantra 'practice mutual accompaniment).