CD 104 Community Organizing

MODULE 3:THE HOW AND WHO OF COMMUNITY ORGANIZING

There are different CO processes; stages, phases and steps from different
practitioners/implementers in conducting community organizing.
Angelito Manalili: CO process has three (3) phases with (8) steps
Phase I- Pre Organization Phase
Step 1. Area or Site Selection
a. Criteria
 The area is relatively economically depressed.
 It must have a relative concentration of poor people.
 There is no strong resistance from the community.
 There must be no serious peace and order problem, not unless the situation really
calls for it.

b. Methodology
 Conduct ocular observation in the area regarding its socio-economic and political
condition, geography of the area, behavior of the residents, accessibility of the area,
etc.
Step 2. Entry/Integration in the Community
a. Definition
 A process of establishing rapport with the people in a continuing effort to imbibe
community life, by living with them undergoing the same experiences, sharing their
hopes, aspirations and hardships towards building mutual trust, confidence and
cooperation.

b. Guidelines for community entry

 Courtesy calls. Recognition of the role and position of local authorities by paying
them a visit and informing of your presence and objectives in the community.
 Adopt the lifestyle in your own personal appearance, speech and behavior in
keeping with that of the community.
 House Selection. Choose a modest dwelling which is open and strategic to target
clients of the community; the family is respected in the community not unless it is
necessary, no member of the family is a member of the local authorities.
 Avoid raising expectations by adopting a low-key approach and profile; avoid
displaying the messianic complex.

c. Styles of Community Entry

 Bongga Style – worker is introduced through a community meeting

 Dole-out – bringing things; gifts to be distributed to the community
  Pa-impress – riding impressive vehicles, bringing sophisticated equipment
 Low-profile; simple

d. Types of Integration
 Pasaw-saw-saw-saw/padalaw-dalaw
 Boarder Style
 Elitist style- living with the barangay captain or prominent people in the barangay
 Maka-masa
Step 3. Community Study/Social Investigation
a. Definition
 A systematic and scientific process of collecting, collating and synthesizing data in
order to draw a clearer picture of the community.
 It is both a phase and a process. As a phase of CO, it comes at the begging, but as
process, it is continuing, i.e. no community study is ever complete.

b. Specific Objectives
 To gather info on geographic, economic, political, social and cultural situation of
the community in order to identify and understand the problems and issues that
needs immediate and long-term solution;
 To be able to identify the classes and sectors present in the community in order
to determine their interest and attitudes towards the problems and issues in the
community
 To determine the correct approach and method of organizing activities.

c. Data to be Gathered
 Geographic and demographic data (physical description of the area, i.e. you
have to know the boundaries, the location of some important buildings and
institutions, like the municipal/barangay hall, plaza, church, etc.) as much as
possible, provide yourself with a sketch or map of the place.
 Economic system/type of economic production
1. What are the source of employment of the area?
2. What are the means of production; who controls them?
3. What are the number and size of properties of the different classes and
sectors?
4. What is the position in production of these different classes and sectors?
5. Who are the sources of the capital?
6. Where and who controls the market of the products of the community?
 Political system/decision making structure
1. What is the decision-making structure in the area?
2. Who controls them?
3. What are the responses and attitudes of the people to these structures and to
their decisions?
4. What is the attitudes of the people towards change?
5.

d. Methodology guidelines
  Interviews. It may be conducted through:
1. “fact-finding meetings’ depending on the objectives of our study, we may
invite a representative sample from all the sectors classes, or representatives
from a particular class/sector; it is important that the people we invite have a
broad knowledge and experience
2. Informal gatherings
3. Social gatherings
4. House to house calls
5. Participation in production activities of the people, the observer feels and
experiences the events in the community thus, adding to his deeper
comprehension of the situation in the community.

 Observation
1. Pure observation
2. Participant observation- by participating in the activities of the people, the
observer feels and experiences the events in the community thus, adding to
his deeper comprehension of the situation in the community.

 Examination of secondary data

This method recognizes the fact that much of the initial information we need are
already available.

Step 4. Spotting of Potential Leader

Spotting of potential leaders is not an easy job therefore, even at the start of integration;
the organizers are really keeping an eye on a number of potential members of the
community to be leaders.
4.1. Criteria for Spotting of Potential Leaders
 Belongs to the poor sector and class of the society and is indirectly engaged in
production
 Well-respected member of the community and has relatively wide influence
 Desirous of change and is willing to work for change
 Can find time, conscientious and resource in his work
 Must be able to communicate effectively (i.e. lends his hear to his barriomate
while ate the same time must be able to articulate their problems and needs.)
 Must have a mass-based leadership style and plan for work
 Must not be so talented and intelligent to the extent that he considers only his
ideas as superior over the others.
 Unless it is necessary, he must not be an official of the local council
Step 5. Core Group Formation
a. Definition
 Is the laying down of the foundation of a strong people’s organization brought about
by bringing together several of the leaders (i.e. identified potential leaders) to
 exchange knowledge and insight towards a deeper understanding of the dynamic of
the community.

b. Functions
 Serve as a training ground for democratic and collective leadership
 Helps the organizer gather data for deeper community studies, spotting other
potential leaders and prospective members for a community-wide organization
with representatives of various sectors, classes and personalities in the
community.
 Helps in laying out plans and tasks for the working committees and officers to
ensure democratic and collective leadership
 Serves as a model to attract other members of the community
Phase II- Organizational Phase
Step 6. Formulation of Community Organization
A community organization will facilitate wider participation and collective action on
community problems, needs and other activities of the community.
6.1 Principles
 Maximum participation of membership
 Maximum control of the people
 Collective leadership
 Simplicity of structure:
 General assembly (supreme power)
 Council of Leaders (BOD)
 Executive Committee
 Working Committee
Step 7. Mobilization
a. Definition
 Activities undertaken by the community organization to solve problems or realize
needs of the community and which serves to build and strengthen the people’s self-
confidence and their collective spirit.

b. Steps and guidelines

1. Issues spotting and analysis
 Is it just democratic or on moral grounds?
 Can it mobilize the widest possible number of people?
 Can it assure tactical victory? See to it that you deal with issues, select the
simplest ones especially if the organization is at its earliest stage.
2. Target analysis
 Zero in one target
 Personify the target
 Look for the targets vulnerable aspects (time, place, likes and dislikes,
behavior, mannerism, etc.)
 Situate it within people’s experience and outside the target’s experience
3. Plan of action
  This plan of action should be enacted in detail prior to the actual
negotiation/confrontation/action with the use of role-playing.

Role Playing is a rehearsal of the participants of the mobilization. It also

serves as a mirror of the mobilizer or an organizer to see the strengths and
weakness of the plans as well as the participants.
4. Implementation Stage
 It is the actual mobilization, sometimes referred to as the action stage. Here,
the plan that was enacted and reviewed will be put into action.
5. Evaluation
After performing all the activities of the mobilization process, it is the job of
the members of the organization with the aid if the organizer to evaluate the
following:
 All those factors that lead to the success and failure of the action
stage
 The strength and weaknesses of the individual members and the
whole group
 The plans for next mobilization

c. Other consideration in the mobilization process

1. There are two key elements in the mobilization process:
a. People’s participation- being engaged/involved in the identification,
discussion, implementation and evaluation of the problem/activity, the
advantage is that people will realize the situation and are challenged to act.
b. The use of resources, whether human or material, which are necessary in the
solution of the problem. Resources can be found inside or outside the
community.
2. The mobilization process, like the whole process itself is a continuous process.
Even if it answers a certain problem within the community, other problems
became evident and therefore, must be confronted.
PHASE III- Post Organizational Phase
Step 8. Strengthening the Organization
Community organizing does not end with the formal establishment of the organization, it
is a continuous process of developing potentialities by undergoing series of capacity and
institutional building, acquiring legal personality, undertaking project development and
management and institutionalization of plans and programs.

TEN COMMUNITY ORGANIZING STEPS (CO Multiversity)

1. INTEGRATION – This refers to the process wherein the community organizer tries to
establish rapport and communication with the members of the community by learning
and participating in their everyday life.
2. SOCIAL INVESTIGATION – Social investigation is the process of systematically
learning and analyzing the various structures and forces in the community-economic,
political and socio-cultural.

3. TENTATIVE PLANNING – Planning is the process of identifying goals and translating

them into specific activities to meet community needs or solve community problems.

4. GROUNDWORK – This process provides the rigor to organizing, as a transformative

and dialogical process. This refers to the one on one or at times in small groups dialogue
where the organizer engages the people in evoking their views, analysis, attitudes,
beliefs around the issues.

5. PRE-ACTION MEETING – The step in organizing where as many people as possible in

the community are gathered to formally discuss the issues raised during the groundwork
to plan their actions to address the issues.

6. ROLE PLAY – This refers to the process wherein the people act out the forthcoming
dialogue, negotiation (or confrontation, as the case maybe) that will take place between
the leaders of the people and the authority (target) mandated to act on the community
people.

7. MOBILIZATION – Mobilization refers to the community action undertaken to address

and resolve the identified community issues and concerns. For the issue based
organizers, this can be in the form of negotiation or dialogue coupled with pressure
tactics.

8. EVALUATION – The process of discovering what the people accomplished, what was
not achieved, the strengths and weaknesses of the action, its causes, and how these
weaknesses can be prevented or minimized, while looking into how gains can be
maximized.

9. REFLECTION – Based on the dialogical character of the community organizing process,

aimed at consciousness raising and transformative action, the reflection process evokes
from the participants of the community action the following: what they felt, thought,
learned as individuals or as a groups from the process.

10. ORGANIZATION – The aim of community organization is to develop independent

people’s organization who will serve as representative to the outside community in
securing solutions towards improving the quality of life in the community.
Water Sanitation (WATSAN) Programme of United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on
Barangay Water System Association (BAWASA) project underwent five (5) Phases of CO
Process

CO Phases Activities Outputs

Phase I  Review of barangay profile and other  Background information
available data from government on project sites
offices/agencies and non-government
organizations
Pre-Entry
Phase/Pre-  Consultation and coordination with  Linkages with local
Formation local developed council and other government and other
Phase concerned agencies in the selected agencies
project sites

 Conduct of observations trips to  Assessment of projects

selected sites to assess geography sites
terrain, settlement pattern,
accessibility, water resources, etc.

 Initial informal interviews with  Establish Contact with

barangay leaders and community barangay
members.
Phase II  Integration with a community  Understanding of the
 Participation in economic activities community and its people,
such as planning and harvesting and their way of life
 Participation in social activities
such as baptismal, weddings, etc.
Entry Phase  House to house visits
 Informal talks with people where
they usually gather
 Lending a hand in household
chores

 Information campaign about the water  Awareness about the

and sanitation project proposed project
 Courtesy call and consultations
with barangay officials and leaders
 Orientation and consultations with
barangay residents through
general meeting
 Barangay and water sanitation survey  Complete community
and deepening social investigation study gathered on socio-
 Study of community’s water supply economic and
and sanitation situation, facilities, demographic data and
problems and needs health situation
  Use of participatory tools and education, Community
techniques in gathering and leadership, and
analyzing data about the organizations,
community development agencies in
 Participation of the community in the area and identify
data gathering and analysis community problems and
 Validation of community members needs
of the study/survey results
Phase III  Identification of potential leaders and  Trained leaders
officers
 Asking community residents to
identify persons they to go to
advice for help
Core Group  Observing persons who are active
Formation in community activities
 Observing persons who readily
respond to community
problems/emergencies

 Formation of core group of leaders

 Orientation of core group on
results of community study;
possible sites for water system,
organization concepts, formation,
roles and functions, role of women
in the project, technical plans and
designs, including sanitation
component.

 Training of potential leaders

 Formal and informal trainings on
leadership, organizational and
financial management, water and
sanitation project management,
and group building.
Phase IV  Organization of the BAWASA or  Organized community
similar community group association with elected
 Recruitment of members through officers and members
house to house visits, small group
meetings or barangay assemblies
Organizational  General assembly to orient
Building Phase members on the same topic, taken
up with the core group; group
consensus to form BAWASA;
discussion of members’ roles and
functions; submission of
membership application form;
identification of sources of funds
for the BAWASA operation and
maintenance of the water and
sanitation facilities; signing of
 manifesto by BAWASA members.
 Election of officers; selection of
caretaker and health and
sanitation educator

 Skills training on water supply and

sanitation project management
 Designated bookkeeper, caretaker,
health and sanitation educator
undergo training in financial record
keeping, operation and
maintenance, health and sanitation
educator undergo training in
financial record keeping, operation
and maintenance, health and
hygiene education, respectively

Phase V  Expansion Activities  Coverage of other

 Coverage of other areas for water areas
services and health sanitation
education activities

 Consolidation Activities  Strengthening of

Expansion and  Continuing education and training organization; linkages
Consolidation through regular planning and with
Phase evaluation sessions, committee organizations/agencie
meetings, general assemblies, s response to other
small group discussion, and formal community problems
trainings and needs
 Networking and linkaging through
membership in large
organizations/network (municipal,
provincial or national level).
Linkages with service delivery
agencies involved in water supply,
sanitation, health and hygiene and
participation in network activities
such as seminars, conferences,
etc.
 Mobilization on health services and
campaigns
 Development of secondary leaders
 Activity 4: Community Organizing Process
Name: ______________________________ Date: __________________
Section: _____________________________ Subject: ________________
Assignment: Exercise on How CO process takes place
Scenario: You will deployed/assigned in a marginalized community (or the so called PDOSMs)
for five months to organize one of community sectors like the fisherfolks, urban poor, women,
youth, farmers and or cooperative for people’s development and empowerment. How. Do you
intend to make a difference? What CO process/steps will you undertake? Please be guided and
reminded on the principles of people’s participation and people’s empowerment
Using the template, What CO process will you undertake?

Time Frame
General Specific
Activities Expected Output (August-
Objectives Objective
December
THE COMMUNITY ORGANIZER
Organizer committed to the cause of development and liberation of PDOSMs. It plays a
necessary role in holding people’s organizations. They are essential not only to start and build
the organization but also to keep it going until the people and their indigenous leaders have
grown in community responsibility. When such time as the people’s potentials have been fully
maximized, the organizer, if he is not a native of the area pulls out of the community.

A. Three Types of Community Organizers:

1. APOLOGETIC Community Organizers
He accepts the essential viability of the existing system. To him, the societal order is
based on consensus and cooperation where the various sectors of society relate to each
other through reciprocity and interdependence.

2. LIBERAL Community Organizers

The liberal community organizers, on the other hand, sees the necessity of altering
certain aspects of the system. He accepts the community that conflict and exploitation
play in certain aspects of the society. While accepting the essential viability of the
system, still, he clearly believes that there are certain aberrations in the entire system of
the society.

3. LIBERATIVE Community Organizers

The liberative community organizers views the society as having a system where
majority are being exploited and conflict is very distinct among members of the society.
As such the leadership cannot be responsive to the needs of the people. In fact,
liberative organizers accept that the people confront not only the private oppressors but
also the forces of the state itself.
Liberative organizers, therefore, aim at restructuring the whole system, using the
community organizations as the initial step in developing a people who react to local
conditions within the perspective of the larger national context. Thus, emphasis is placed
on consciousness-racing and politization, building upon local and sectoral struggles to
create an appreciation of the root causes of the problems. Such struggles are always
situated within the context of historical forces and a vision of an alternative social order.

Conscientization and Politization

Conscientization is the process of enhancing the critical awareness of the people of
their existing situation, the roots or factors that contribute to it, their history and rights as
citizens of the country. The end product is politization. Politization is the process of
encouraging the people to recover their rights to define their own reality, to determine an
alternative future and to act collectively towards this vision.
B. Roles of CO (Murray Ross)

1. Guide – The CO helps the community establish and find means to achieve its goals; chose
direction of movement but does not use it for his own ends nor manipulates or coerces
action but encourages local initiative.
2. Enabler – It facilitates the CO process; awakens the community to community conditions,
helps people verbalize discontent; nourishes good interpersonal relationships and
consistently directs the community to realize its potentialities and strengths in cooperative
work.
3. Expert– Provides data, technical expertise, resource materials; points out characteristics of
the community and its informal social organization; make initial formulation of the problem;
acquaints the community with projects developed elsewhere to gain useful principles
derived from these; and provides evaluation and interpretation of the process of cooperative
work.
4. Social Therapist – Treats the community by knowing its origin, history, roots of beliefs and
customs involving it is a cooperative process; deals with unconscious forces that disrupt the
CO process.
The CO is also a CHANGE AGENT, the catalyst (channel) who helps the community identify its
own problems, establishing its goals and develop the procedures for realizing these goals.
(L.Schaller in CO anthology, Series 1)
The CO is distinct from the community Leader; he is never a local leader nor the “power behind
the throne”. He is merely a FACILITATOR. In assisting the people to organize themselves, his
principal task is identifying the potential leaders of the community (The Change agent, 1977 in
CO Anthology Series 1)
C. Community Organizer as Popular Educator
D. Desirable Characteristics

In the light of these challenging roles, a community organizer must be equipped with
appropriate knowledge, skills and attitude in community organizing and community
development. He must possess the following characteristics.

a. Personal Traits
1. Genuine love for the people 9. Integrity & credibility 16. Tenacity
2. Patient 10. Strong faith in god 17. Student Attitude
3. Simple lifestyle 11. Positive Outlook
4. Sense of humor 12. Creative
5. Conscientious 13. Irreverence
6. Good listener 14. Clear Development Vision
7. Open Mind 15. Flexibility
8. Capacity and humility to withdraw as soon as the people ready to manage their own
life affairs/dispensability

b. Technical Competence
1. Ability to prepare and plan (planning skills)
2. Good theoretical background in economics, politics, group psychology
3. Knowledge of situation in the community (research skills)
4. Ability to conduct/facilitate a meeting
5. Ability to prepare a documentation report
6. Personal skill (ability to express oneself clearly, ability to convince/persuade, ability
to win respect and confidence)

c. Common Weakness of Community Organizer

1. Romanticism
2. Fear of internal conflict and criticism
3. Dogmatism
4. Theorizing