![]() The approach seeks to respect local specificity (the story) while aiming to create transferrable solutions across varied communities (the five pillars). The Five Pillars approach combines a quantitative methodology of collecting and analyzing proactive indicators in five key indicator categories with a qualitative, story-telling methodology structured around the same five categories. A practical meso-level approach are the so-called Five Pillars of Development pioneered by the lead author of this article. It strikes a balance between creating success strategies for a specific community, and replicating these strategies across the economic, social and environmental characteristics of local communities and regions. Meso-level approaches are therefore essential to finding transferable sustainable development solutions that avoid a one-size-fits-all trap.Ī meso-level approach is situated between the case study level and the generalized level of analysis. Yet, unique approaches to community engagement limit the transferability of knowledge and the ability of communities to learn from each other. ![]() Engaging local stakeholders takes time and attention to the specific characteristics of a local community and its unique economic, social, cultural, and environmental context conditions. At the same time, the transfer of information from one community to another can be key to advancing broader sustainable development objectives in a cost-effective and timely manner. Without the engagement of local stakeholders, and especially those most impacted by planned development initiatives, development efforts can fail to accomplish their objectives and may even exacerbate existing disparities and socially and environmentally unsustainable outcomes. It concludes that the approach offers an effective engagement strategy that gives voice to the sustainable development vision of local stakeholders while providing a framework that can benefit diverse communities.Įngaging a diverse community of stakeholders in dialogue around sustainable development goals has proved to be a successful strategy to advance sustainable development outcomes. This article describes the implementation of the Five Pillars approach in two neighborhoods in Washington D.C. These indicator categories form the basis for selecting specific locations within a community where local stakeholders engage in writing a collective story about their sustainable development future. It identifies a manageable set of indicators in five common categories: education, health, environmental quality, social and cultural amenities, and information and transportation access. ![]() The Five-Pillars approach to development is such a meso-level mixed methods approach. Meso-level approaches are therefore essential to finding transferable solutions. Yet, knowledge creation one-community-at-a-time is time consuming and limits the transferability of knowledge. Local specificity is key to finding sustainable development solutions. Similarly challenging can be the transfer of information regarding successful development strategies from one community to another. Yet, determining the best strategy for engaging diverse stakeholders can be challenging. Without local engagement, sustainable development efforts can fail to accomplish their objectives. Engaging diverse stakeholders in dialogue around sustainable development has proven to be a successful strategy to advance sustainable development goals.
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