Tools and Services - Origin of the Matrix
The Communities Matrix is a tool that has been evolving since 2002, designed to identify patterns and characteristics that are common to communities. Through our work with the Business Vitality Initiative (BVI) it became apparent that rural communities required a tool to benchmark themselves in relation to others and determine what development strategies were indeed realistic. What resulted was the development of the Communities Matrix, inspired by community characteristics that emerged from the BVI work.
The goal was a tool that could measure a community’s capacity and identify how the community could move forward. Significant variation was found in terms of the capacity of a community to realize identified courses of action. This is significant because communities run the risk of creating goals that are unattainable and may engage in economic development processes that are not appropriate to their stage of development (or level). The associated failure can create divisions in the community, erode very precious, hard-earned trust (also known as social capital), and may undermine long-term development efforts in the community.
Through research and field experience a range of community attributes were identified and used to create a ladder of community stages of development. This accurate self-assessment is a critical step in building sustainable communities and communities that plan to stimulate entrepreneurship, innovation and realistic economic development.
The Matrix works with communities to help draw
out the perceptions held by residents about their community and the assets and barriers that exist around community development. Feedback on the Matrix has been very positive as a tool that goes beyond purely quantitative indicators and furthers people’s understanding of the stages communities go through. The Matrix has evolved with extensive research and feedback from community development practitioners, leaders, citizens and will continue to evolve. We welcome your thoughts and suggestions on the Matrix and where and how it could be used.
Currently, more than 10 organizations including the University of Northern BC, the Union of BC Municipalities, provincial and federal governments are engaged with CIEL in a multi-year project to refine the Communities Matrix, create a free on-line version of it for communities, test it in various communities, and to classify tools and resources according to different stages of the Matrix. Stay tuned to this website for future developments.
The project is funded by Western Economic Diversification Canada, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and the Department of Agriculture and Agrifood Canada – Rural Secretariat.
Also in this Section: