Beyond Community Informed: Community Driven Research and Action

As a member of our local community, the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) seeks to create positive change by working for and with members of community, recognising them as the experts in what our shared neighborhood needs to thrive.

Join Lisa Aitken and Amber Loomis from the UTS Social Impact team to explore what it means to shift from community-informed ways of working to community-driven approaches. In this session, you will be guided through a community engagement process that not only uncovers community voices, but works alongside community to design process, interpret community voice, and co-design action. This session draws on lessons from 100 Voices: Engaging community through deep listening, a project which developed a community vision for local neighborhoods. 100 Voices uncovered factors that enable success and what needs to change to create a thriving community.

The presentation will explore:

The process through which community-driven research, co-design, and action has been successfully used with community
The enablers that support successful community engagement
Benefits of community-driven engagement for universities and organisations as well as community practitioners
Lessons learned through working alongside community
How practitioners can use this process in their own practice to increase impact with their communities

There will be an opportunity for the audience to share enablers of their own practice.

Contributing to public good is at the heart of UTS’s values and vision. With social justice embedded in the fabric of its strategic direction, UTS is defined by how we support communities to thrive, economically, socially, and culturally (UTS 2027). The Social Impact Team is part of the Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion at UTS and works closely with their local community to understand community needs and enable action to create a thriving community. For more information about the 100 Voice project, please visit this link.

This session is run as part of the Carnegie Community Engagement Network offerings.

*Please note that this session is free.

Contact us

If you have any questions about the session or the Network for Community Engagement and Carnegie Classification, please contact carnegieengagement@uts.edu.au