COMMUNITY ORGANIZING:

A Core Structure Building Strategy in

Group Mobolization
Dr. Ester V. Tucay

INTRODUCTION
The need for empowering society’s marginalized sector remains, but there have been dramatic
changes in the global and domestic situations for the last few years which have changed the
terrain or rural community organizing.
Social movements in the Philippines have been challenged by ideological division and
declining numbers, as well as by questions if people should participate and be partners with
the government. Questions of sustainability have also been important in the development
discussions. Lopa, 1995
Given these changes and the increasing marginalization of the rural sectors, the challenge for
the community remains fundamentally the same- to effect change in the sociopolitical
economic conditions for the benefit of the clientele and marginalized sectors in the Philippines.
Over the past decade however, CO has been appropriated by almost everyone or any group
that in one way or another, operates within the communities, even the government and
traditional politicians have begun to use community organizing for their own interests. There
is a need to delineate a concrete concept of CO which have, wittingly or unwittingly, been
forgotten or neglected. Tagisan, 1995
Definition of Concepts
Community- is an aggregation of families and individuals, settled in a fairly compact and
contiguous geographical area with significant elements of common life as shown by the
manners, customs, traditions and mode of speech. Ross, 1967
Community Organizing- is a social development approach that aims to transform the
apathetic, individualistic and voiceless poor into a dynamic, participatory and politically
responsive community. At time, CVO is a likened to “a form of experiential learning, a
radicalized non formal educational process.”
In 1994, National Rural CO Conference, CO is generally defined as a collective, participatory,
transformative. Liberative, sustained and systematic process of building peoples’
organizations by mobilizing and enhancing the capabilities and resources of the people for the
resolution of their issues and concerns towards effecting change in their existing and
oppressive exploitive conditions. Bastiana, and Morphy, 1996
Other Definitions of CO
1. CO is a process of bringing about and maintaining adjustment between social welfare
needs and resources in a geographical area or special field of service. Dunham, 1958
 2. It refers to the mobilization of force around real or created conflict in order to force
communication and movement. Controversy is used as a tool for organizing strong
citizen-based groups, which can affect the decision-making process. Through such
means, citizens are helped to become articulate, informed and politically active, and to
exercise their collective influence as the point where decisions are made. Ronnow,
1965
3. It is a process by which a community identifies its needs and objectives, develops the
confidence to take action in respect to them, and in doing so, extends and develops
cooperative and collaborative attitudes and practices in the community. Ross, 1967
A brief on the Universal Concept of Community Organization (CO)
CO as a development tool has been widely used by the social community and extension work
practitioners in doing group casework activities. While not many authors have written down
the concept of community organization, Murray G. Ross took time and effort in publishing
resource documents on the subject as conceived and practiced by various social scientists.
Ross defined community organization as “what the workers do”. Technically, the writer pointed
out that it is a “process that makes for greater capacity of people to function cooperatively in
respect to common problems in a community.” Conditions that should be met to consider the
us of community organization as a strategy where also defined, thus:

• Must deal with problems that the community recognizes as its problems
• Must provide for community self-determination.
• Must engage the community in an active way in the solution of its problems
• Must move at a pace that is comfortable for the community.
• Must encourage growth through problem solving
• Must encourage community- self- understanding and integration.
Goals of Community Organizing
1. People Empowerment: CO is aimed at achieving effective power for the people.
Through the process of CO, people can learn to overcome their powerlessness and
develop their capacity to maximize their control over their situation and start to place
the future in their own hands. In the process of confronting the structures and
institutions that oppress them, people are transformed from dehumanized objects into
human beings that assert their rights, determine their destiny and stand with dignity.
2. Building relatively permanent structures and people’s organizations: CO aims to
establish and sustain relatively permanent organizational structures which best serve
the needs and aspirations of the people. These structures ensure maximum people’s
participation while, at the same time, they provide the venue through which the
people’s organization can link up with the other groups and sectors. It is also through
these structures that alternative ways of doing things can be tested and a new system
of values can be internalized so that localized experiences become the building blocks
upon which the blueprint of a more desirable future is based.
3. Improved quality of life: CO also seeks to secure short and long term improvements
on the quality of life of the people. Immediately, the process of mobilizations can gain
concession for fulfilling basis needs for food, clothing, shelter, education and health. In
the long term, it should create a conducive environment for the development of human
creativity and solidarity through equitable distribution of power and resources.
Organizing Approaches
Based on the choice of entry activities, or the kind of initial community actions introduced or
encouraged by the organizer in response to the identified community problems or issues, three
distinct approaches to rural community organizing have been identified. The choice of
approach depends on the expertise and orientation of the organization or the organizing
institution. National Rural CO Conference, 1994
a) Issue-based Approach: this refers to an organizing approach which revolves around
issues or problems that:
a) Are felt by a significant number of people in the community
b) Require the people to negotiate from a position of strength in number with a
target group, usually outside the community, for issue resolution, and
c) Have a high probability of being resolved if a collectively acted upon
The problem can be any issue present in the community- from poor water supply and lack of
access to health services to low prices of farm produce to unjust tenancy relations and to the
existence of a land monopoly that can be identified and prioritized by the people themselves.
Note: this organization approach is otherwise known as the Alinsky-Freire Approach, taken
from the principles introduced by Saul Alinsky and Paulo Freire.
b) Socio-Economic Approach: This CO approach centers around the introduction of
socio-economic projects, such as health care, income generating projects, enterprise
development, credit/marketing/production/multi-purpose cooperative formation, etc.
that are identified by the CO with the community after a study of the felt needs of the
community, or are pre-packaged by the funding source based on their perceived needs
of the community.
The importance of collective forms is illustrated by encouraging the people to develop
self-help or self-managed projects in response to their community needs. The funds for the
projects may come from within the community through the share capital of the people, or from
outside of the community through loans and grants.
Many organizers choose this approach for the following reasons:
a) In the initial stage of organizing, many people in the community usually look for
concrete tangible assistance from the organizer. In many cases, this assistance is
expected to be in economic form. Taking off from the organizing principle of starting
from where the people are, the organizer, hence, has to start with economic projects.
b) This is the area of expertise of the organizing institution
c) Obviously in calamity-stricken area, the organizer ought to respond to the immediate
needs of the people for food and shelter.
4. The Church/Faith Approach: This CO organizing approach is used by organizers within
the structures of the church or within components of Church-based programs. The
process utilizes a guided impartation of the religious/spiritual teaching anfd the
imperatives of faith. Unity as children of God is stressed in addressing common issues,
needs and aspirations. The process usually starts with shared reflections on passages
of the bible or with the performance of communal rituals and other forms of worship.
This instills among the participants a spirit of oneness needed in confronting the forces
that threaten the harmony of creation.
This approach to organizing is used because:
a) For the progressive members of the religious institutions, these religious activities can
be used as a way of instilling among the people a pro-social and pro-poor orientation.
 b) The filipinos are religious people. If the orientation is directed towards their active
participation in social change processes, then faith becomes more meaningfully
manifested in their lives as a community.
c) There are areas where trust can be easily established with their approach.
Principles of Community Organization and Practices
CO operates on several principles which can be condensed into the following:
1. It is rooted in the total indigenous leadership, the local organizations and agencies,
and in short, in the local people.
2. It aims not just towards helping communities to solve their day to day problems, but
ultimately towards national social transformation.
3. It recognizes and respects the primary role of the people in the task of social
transformation.
4. It recognizes that genuine transformation can be effected only through the people’s
collective strength.
5. It involves learning through praxis, ie. The continuing refinement of theory and
understanding through experiences.
6. Using the people’s felt needs as a starting point for organizing.
7. Using the collective process in most important problem-solving. Decision-making and
planning activities with the peoples.
8. Developing local leaders who will eventually perform the tasks of the community
organizer.
9. Establishing open and legal CO with publicly known leaders, members and activities.
10. Avoiding the imposition of ideology on the people.
Building Operational Framework of the Community Organization Process
I. First, the Awakening Stage (Reorientation/Entry or Re-entry Phase)
Focuses on developing the client-beneficiaries awareness on the realities obtaining in their
environment. This is considered a crucial stage in arousing people’s interest on and
developing commitment to do something about, their situation especially common problems
and needs.
Awakening results when an attitude “intervention” is applied in a community or organization.
This may be in the form of orientation meetings, trainings, public information through radios,
TV, newspapers, personal discussion, etc. through these interventions, people are able to
improve or change their situation.
A. Problem Identification. People look into a present problem affecting their lives.
And people identify the resources available.
1. Observation ocular survey
2. Study the existing records
3. Orientation meeting with the barangay captain/leaders
4. Home visitation/informal conversation with the people
B. Problem Analysis. What are the causes of problems? Participatory analysis of
problems in the community assembly.
C. Ranking of problems according to priority, participatory ranking of problems
needs during a community assembly.
Goal getting of change target according to ranked problems. Planning the steps or action to
be taken to solve the problem.
 II. Second, the Empowerment Stage (Capability)- concerns itself with building the
client- beneficiaries’ capabilities and skill on how to go about doing concrete
action to combat their difficulties.
When people in the community have organized themselves to become the string and powerful
to bring about the desired change, seek for additional knowledge and skills through training,
farm demonstration and seminaries to make them capable of doing the change process. As
an organizing group, they participate collectively in the planning, implementing, monitoring
and evaluating their own projects geared towards the development of self, family and
community.
A. Participatory planning
B. Participatory implementation
1. Technical trainings
2. Leadership/organizational trainings
3. Project Management Trainings
4. Resources Mobilization
5. Project Program Implementation
C. Participatory monitoring evaluation
1. People are provided with necessary knowledge and skills to carry out
planned change (managerial skills), farm planning and budgeting, etc.
2. People are provided opportunities to plan, implement and evaluate their
projects geared toward the solution of problems
3. People organize themselves to participate collectively in planned
activities
People are trained to establish linkages with other agencies (municipal, provincial, national,
international) who can help in the change.
III. Third, the Restructuring Stage (Consolidation Institutionalization)
Gives focus on the setting up/and or strengthening of people’s initiated structures that would
carry out planned action, which would be undertaken to meet needs and / or problems.
This is the stage when the community people adopt new systems, procedures or structures to
maintain the change or process, can establish linkages with other agencies and other
organizations, deal with their own problems, manage their own projects and are self-reliant.
A. People set up structures/systems committees, council uinit leader, etc. to
continue and oversee the change process.
B. People establish new relationships/linkages with change agents/development
workers, government organizations (GOs), local government units (LGU) and
non-government organizations (NGOs)
C. Can manage own project and can stand alone
D. The community or organization helps trained leaders who can lead the groups
in understanding planned activities.
STEPS IN COMMUNITY ORGANIZING

STEPS PURPOSE COMPONENT ACTIVITIES

1. Entry into the 1. To introduce the Cos
community to local officials
2. To inform the local
authorities on the
project, its objectives
1. Adapting a lifestyle in
keeping with the
community
 and the nature of the 2. Choosing an
Cos stay in the appropriate place or
community family to stay with
2. integration with people To imbibe community life Participation of Cos in
and get to know the culture, economic activities,
economy, leadership, history household work, group
and lifestyle of the people discussion, social functions.
1. To establish rapport
with the people and
build mutual trust and
cooperation
2. To allow the Cos to
be one with the
people and learn or
understand the
people’s problems
3. Social Investigation 1. To systematically 1. Gathering and
acquire information reviewing secondary
and analyze the sources such as
political and socio- records and
cultural structure of documents
the community 2. Holding personal
2. To identify issues interviews
around which to 3. Conducting a survey
organize the people 4. Observing people
and their
environment
-participative
-non-participative
4. problem identification and To identify, analyze, and 1. Identification of the
analysis rank the problems and needs scope and degree of
the problem
2. Investigation of past
efforts to solve the
problem
3. Analysis of the origin
of the problem
4. Identification of
factors that maintain,
increase or eliminate
the problem
5. Undertaking
consequence
analysis
6. Problem prioritization
5. Planning and To translate goals and 1. Problem
strategizing objectives into specific identification
activities top solve 2. Identifying resources
community problems 3. Formulation of
possible solutions
4. Setting plans of
actions
6. core group formation To form a small group of 1. Identification of
potential leaders to assist the contacts and political
 Cos in organizing and leaders in the
mobilizing the community community
2. Conduct of training in
leadership and
organizing with the
core group members
as participants
7. organization development To facilitate wider 1. Setting up a formal
and mobilization participation and collective organizational
action on issues and structure
problems concerning the 2. Mobilization of
community community effort or
action to solve
community problems
8. evaluation and reflection To review the course of Holding of workshops,
action that has been dialogues, etc.
undertaken to solve
community problems
9. turnover and phase-out To transfer the CO roles and The Cos may shift to a
responsibilities to the supportive role in monitoring,
organization as soon as the consultation and evaluation.
latter is ready or fully
prepared to handle the
responsibilities

FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO SUCCESSFUL COMMUNITY ORGANIZING

1. Presence of knowledge and committed change agent/development/ worker/organizer
who can assist and provide guidance to the affected sector or group in the participatory
process of effecting or achieving the desired changes
2. Existence of a functional community-based organization
3. Local leaders/volunteers civic workers who serve as mediator and coordinator
between people and assist agencies in initiating processes to help people help
themselves
4. Education and training for local leaders and the people for increased awareness
understanding of the program which may bring the desired change
5. Common aspiration and local status among people. Goal of the community or the
organization is geared towards economic development.
6. Clear understanding of the program objectives and the benefits that can be derived
from the introduced changes by the people.
People empowerment is the process of releasing the potential officials of people through
appropriate programs, services, and strategies, removing blocks that deter their growth and
development and accessing them for the enhancement of their highest capabilities that they
would be freed from the fetters of poverty, ignorance, oppression, social injustice and fear to
stand up for their rights and pursuits for happiness as a member of a free and just society.