ECCAY RESOURCES

The ECCAY resources can help professionals to use in practice the solution focused knowledge they have just acquired.

Exercise nr. 28

MAPPING THE COMMUNITY

Minimum number of participants	Average time length	Individual setting	Group setting	Special Equipment	Unit	Online	Challenges/ competition
1	30-40 min	yes	yes	no	2,4	yes	no

Mapping the Community works similarly to the Personal Mapping exercise also proposed in this collection of exercises, meaning the young person, or people if working in a group setting, get to dig down in his/her own community and its relationships, assets, strengths, etc., while representing them all in a visual way that may help one to notice new connections and links between the different elements spotted in the community that may have a positive impact in their future lives.

Community Mapping involves bringing together several members of the same (or similar) community to discuss the community's resources. The exercise is a valuable and effective method of community engagement simply because the maps are visual and relatable, especially in terms of SFA, while focusing on the community's opportunities and strengths.

Toggle all

Aim / Benefits

Some of the potential benefits of Community Mapping under ECCAY are:
●       Understand the potential community impacts on young people’s lives
●       Engage with other member of the community and create support networks
●       Better understand the connections between community assets and opportunities for a better future
●       Identify existing gaps and valuable opportunities for synergies

UNIT(s) related

The Mapping the Community activity can be related to several Units in the ECCAY Learning Program, as Unit 2. Solution Focused Inquiry may be beneficial to better know how to carry out the exercise proposing the different sort of questions to guide the appreciative storytelling process and your client(s) further self-reflection on his or her environment.

Plus, Unit 4. Solution Focused Group Work with young people at risk of exclusion delves into how to improve teamwork and group performance among young people at risk of exclusion, also strengthening their relationships and their bonds with their communities.

How to do the exercise

Step 1 / Preparation:
This is an exercise that can be developed in a one-to-one format with the young person at risk of social exclusion or in group sessions where several young members of the same community or similar communities come together. In the latter case, the proposed activity can be more beneficial for all participants as there will be several perspectives and experiences of the community working together to identify existing resources, support networks among members, main challenges to be faced, opportunities for the future, etc. Plus, this process is an excellent opportunity for people to recognize their community as a whole and to unite around the shared goal of improved scenarios.

As a professional working with young people at risk of exclusion you should introduce the activity to the group, clearly explaining what the aims are. Try something like: “Now we’re going to take some minutes to reflect on your community as a whole and the way it has an impact in your lives. Think about it individually for a few minutes and, then let’s discuss what the resources are, what do you value the most, which are the things that make your community be what it is,...

Step 2
Let’s now turn to actually fill the “map” to create a visual representation, whether using individual templates for each participant in the activity, or a big piece of paper/blacboard in which to draw the “community map” and linking assets, opportunities, strengths, support groups, etc.

Place the young person/people on the centre of the map and start adding elements to the community map. Try to place those elements that have a major impact in the young person/people's experiences closer to the centre, and once all the identifying elements are placed on the map or worksheet, you can start tracing connections among them.

You can use different types of lines or colours to identify different sorts of relationships among the individual(s) and the elements of the community displayed on the map (important people, caring relationships, valuable assets, organisations or entities working toward a better future for the community, job/training opportunities,...).

Step 3
Take a few more moments to have a look at the map and reflect about it. Is there anything else missing? Are there any other connections that are not drawn on the map yet? Make as many modifications as necessary.

Before moving right into the conclusion part of the activity, feel free to propose some more questions to the group for the young people to reflect further and provide richer feedback on their communities:
-        What distinct resources does the community have at its disposal?
-        Is there a subset of this community that does not have access to these resources?
-        Is there a recurring source of conflict in the community?
-        Is there anything in particular that makes the community vulnerable?

Add again the necessary additional info to the Community Map.

Final Step / Conclusion:
Facilitate a discussion about the just-completed process. You could start with the following questions:
●       How did that make you feel?
●       What were your thoughts as we slashed through the map?
●       Can you identify any new opportunity for a better future you haven’t thought about before?
●       Should any third part be involved in the discussion as well?

Debrief

As long as a Community Map is a visual representation, you can place it where your work with young people at risk of exclusion is being carried out, and update it periodically according to new inputs from your client(s). Ask him/her/them one in a while to reflect on the community and discuss how the identified assets and strengths within are or may be positive for their desired futures.

Specific materials

Einige Materialien, die Sie benötigen könnten:
- Ein großes Stück Papier/Whiteboard zum Notieren und Zeichnen
- Kartenvorlage, falls erforderlich
- Buntstifte/Stift/Marker

Tips and Tricks

●       Allow clients to share freely what they think and encourage them to do so, do not force them to share something too specific if they don’t feel confident enough.
●       Make sure to guide their self-reflection focussing on the positive aspect of the community map and potential solutions for their desired selfs in the future.
●       When working in groups, try not to focus the discussion on just how the elements identified within the community interact with just one subject, which may interest only 2-3 people.

On-line version

The exercise can be done online, and in essence follows the same steps as indicated for the offline version. In this case, a video conferencing tool should be used for young people to discuss. While in a face-to-face setting the professional can better monitor and interact with several groups at the same time (and guide them in the process), online this can only be done by using a videoconferencing app that allows for break-out rooms, in which the pairs or threesomes can discuss among themselves, while the the professional listens in. For one group of 2 or 3 participants breakout options are not needed.

Plus, there are plenty of digital tools that can help you and your client(s) to create and fill Personal Maps. You can use different online tools to work with them, e.g. Miro Board, Mural.