Neighbors in Azalea Park, FL hosted a plant walk for Arbor Day earlier this year to discover the plants and flowers found in their neighborhood.
Discovering the Abundance: Physical Gifts
Every neighborhood is full of gifts including people with dreams and talents, places for connection, and local groups and organizations that provide resources.
The process of discovering these gifts is known as Asset Mapping (watch our webinar Getting Started with Asset Mapping for an overview). When rooted in the principles of Asset-Based Community Development, asset mapping is a proven way to discover the overlooked resources within a neighborhood.
In this blog, we’ll dive into how you can discover one of the six gifts found in every neighborhood — the physical gifts of a community.
The Physical Gifts of a community are, in short, the land and everything on it. This includes:
- Local nature such as trees, vegetation, and plants
- Built Environment such as housing, shared community spaces, and buildings
- Physical Design and infrastructure including roads, sidewalks, street lights, etc.
In many communities’ stories, residents start transformation by discovering and activating the physical gifts. This may be because the physical gifts around us can be easier to spot. But, these transformations are powerful as they often serve to create spaces for communities to come together and continue to work to improve their community. For example:
Leftover construction materials become benches,
abandoned lots turn into community gardens, and
driveways become go-to hangout spots.
Below are three practical activities for you to discover the physical gifts in your neighborhood!
Note: Asset Mapping is as much about the process as the end result. These activities are designed to foster neighbor-to-neighbor connections, not just create a spreadsheet. Schedule a Discovery Call with us here for a free asset mapping coaching session to dive deeper into best practices for your role.
Activites for Mapping Physical Gifts
Conversation Starters
Conversation starters are a great way to engage residents and learn about other’s experience in the neighborhood. The following can be used in one-on-one conversations or in group settings:
- Where’s your favorite place to be in the neighborhood?
- If you were to drive or walk through our community, where would you see people hanging out?
- What’s the most unique thing about the look of our neighborhood?
Neighborhood Plant Walk
Discover the hidden natural elements in your community through a plant walk! On pieces of cardboard draw vases and safely make several holes right above the drawing. Invite residents to go on a walk with you where you find flowers and greenery to make a bouquet.
Photo Scavenger Hunt
Create a list of 10-20 items that can be found in your neighborhood such as a home with a yellow door, a bench, or your favorite spot in the community. Grab disposable cameras (or use cell phones) and have participants walk around in pairs to see how many they can get! You can check out one like this from the American Planning Association.
Physical gifts are just one of the six types of gifts found in every community. Check out the blogs below for resources and ideas to discover the:
Do you want to activate residents to be the community builders and change makers in their neighborhood?
You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Check out the Discover the Gifts training to become certified to facilitate asset mapping workshops in your community. This workshop has been used from South Carolina to Florida to Texas to help residents move from focusing on problems to creating new possibilities in their community.