WiserBainbridge: Community Assets Inventory
Sustainable Bainbridge, in partnership with Bainbridge Graduate Institute has designed an asset-maping process that will help us inventory all of the organizations, institutions, initiatives, businesses, and community leaders working in the broad field of sustainability.
Scheduled to be launched in the first quarter of 2008, WiserBainbridge will utilize the WiserEarth open source platform to customize our own online directory and social networking forum. Stay tuned!
Described and put in to practice in a variety of ways, asset mapping is about identifying and locating resources that already exist within the community, and then leveraging those assets to support actions. For new sustainability groups, the foundational asset map is one that identifies the informal and formal organizations, institutions, groups, associations, and individuals already working on sustainability projects.
Asset mapping serves a number of important purposes:
- Gives groups an opportunity to introduce themselves to many segments of the community and begin the critical work of relationship building, collaboration and networking.
- Demonstrates successful sustainability efforts and initiatives.
- Connects existing efforts and builds bridges between different types of work.
- Develops a clear educational tool for those wanting to contribute their time and talent to sustainability projects.