Ann Dale – författare

What is a sustainable community? The pressing need to answer thissimple question is what prompted John Pierce and Ann Dale to gather theessays in this volume. Communities, Development, and Sustainabilityacross Canada is a timely synthesis of work on how Canadiancommunities can achieve sustainable development. It bridges the gapbetween theory and praxis and brings together academics, policy makers,and community activists, all of whom have argued for increased localparticipation in sustainable community development. Communities havebecome the weak link in efforts to refashion relations between theenvironment and the economy. The goal of this book is not simply todescribe problems but also to suggest answers, not simply to offertheory but also to promote action, so that Canadian communities canbetter achieve sustainable development.

The twelve essays are organized into four sections: Vision,Connections, Action, and Assessing Progress. The first and lastsections discuss local sustainable development within the context ofincreasing globalization. The second section approaches sustainabledevelopment from the perspective of social evolution and urban systems.The third section, the heart of the book, is comprised of threecommunity case studies, an assessment of the Pacific salmon fishery,and four general discussions of sustainable development. The conclusionreiterates the need to make communities stronger links in sustainabledevelopment.

The message of Communities, Development, and Sustainabilityacross Canada is clear: it is time for communities themselves toact if they are to achieve sustainable development. This provocativeand persuasive book will prove to be a valuable guide to taking thefirst steps.

As Canadians, we are faced with a choice: do we continue to allow communities to merely survive or can we help them to thrive?

Dr. Ann Dale has dedicated her life to studying Canadian communities and how they can transition towards more sustainable development paths. Since publishing her book At the Edge over fifteen years ago, her new book chronicles the various options that Canadians have to step back and actively implement sustainable community development practices.

But what factors are stopping Canadian communities? How can a single ‘story’ dominate our development? What are the barriers and drivers and how do we reconcile competing agendas, and vested interests against changing the single story?

Once again, Dr. Dale draws upon both the personal and the professional to discuss her own journey in reconciliation, reconnection and the power of relationships and ultimately love and compassion as one of the most important pathways for transforming human development.

With 10-years of new research backed by many social innovations and progress in implementing sustainable community development, Dr. Dale concludes that there is hope but there is much more to do. As a country, we’re only edging forward when we need to be leaping forward.