Why the Future Generations process of change

Decades of research, field observations and application show that it is possible to use a systematic process to engage communities in determining their own futures. In the early 1990s, Future Generations and Johns Hopkins University jointly conducted a disciplined review of how to conduct community-based change. This research drew on evidence over the last century, involved UNICEF, the Rockefeller Foundation and the experience of many organizations. The focus was on what has worked in the field of development over the last one-hundred years, specifically on how to take community-based pilot projects to regional scale, and how to sustain their momentum.

Learning from this global evidence, researchers, task force members and field practioners identified key principles, steps and necessary conditions for sustainable community change and developed the SEED-SCALE process.

The SEED-SCALE process for community change attempts to answer some of the most difficult questions in community development:

The SEED-SCALE process of community change has two key components with two complementary objectives:

SEED (Self Evaluation for Effective Decisionmaking) is a process to mobilize communities and sustain change at the local level.

SCALE (Systems for Communities to Adapt, Learn and Expand) is a process to scale-up community level change through growth in the number of participating communities and in the quality of life within those communities.

Although SEED-SCALE builds from and draws upon many models and processes for community development, particularly from the experience of the practioners in the field of international primary health, it is distinct in its systematic and yet simple approach for sustaining and expanding community change. SEED-SCALE is distinctive for its:

Model: SEED-SCALE is based on a biological model of change that allows for both adaption at the community level and exponential extension to other communities;
Principles: It recognizes that there are four necessary conditions for change to be sustainable and to go to scale. These necessary conditions are referred to as the <four key principles> of community change.
Outcomes: It recognizes that the most important outcomes of community change are not new projects or buildings, but empowered communities with skills to collaborate to improve their lives and to change collective and individual behavior.

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FutureGenerations Process of Change Overview





C O N T E N T S INTRODUCTION MASTER'S DEGREE COUNTRY PROGRAMS PROCESS OF CHANGE KEY PRINCIPLES SUSTAINABLE CHANGE GOING TO SCALE RELATED LINKS LEARNING CENTER ABOUT US NEWS ART AND INSPIRATION JOIN US CONTACT US		SEED-SCALE Process for Community Change Definition SEED (Self Evaluation for Effective Decision-making) SCALE (Systems for Communities to Adapt, Learn and Expand) Founded in Scholarship and Application Decades of research, field observations and application show that it is possible to use a systematic process to engage communities in determining their own futures. In the early 1990s, Future Generations and Johns Hopkins University jointly conducted a disciplined review of how to conduct community-based change. This research drew on evidence over the last century, involved UNICEF, the Rockefeller Foundation and the experience of many organizations. The focus was on what has worked in the field of development over the last one-hundred years, specifically on how to take community-based pilot projects to regional scale, and how to sustain their momentum. Learning from this global evidence, researchers, task force members and field practioners identified key principles, steps and necessary conditions for sustainable community change and developed the SEED-SCALE process. Overview and Objective The SEED-SCALE process for community change attempts to answer some of the most difficult questions in community development: how to set the spark to ignite community energy how to sustain community momentum and success, year after year how to take local successes to regional or national scale how to create enabling systems for ongoing equitable and sustainable change how to monitor and evaluate change in a way that leads to better solutions without the overwhelming paperwork. The SEED-SCALE process of community change has two key components with two complementary objectives: SEED (Self Evaluation for Effective Decisionmaking) is a process to mobilize communities and sustain change at the local level. SCALE (Systems for Communities to Adapt, Learn and Expand) is a process to scale-up community level change through growth in the number of participating communities and in the quality of life within those communities. Distinction from other models and processes Although SEED-SCALE builds from and draws upon many models and processes for community development, particularly from the experience of the practioners in the field of international primary health, it is distinct in its systematic and yet simple approach for sustaining and expanding community change. SEED-SCALE is distinctive for its: Model: SEED-SCALE is based on a biological model of change that allows for both adaption at the community level and exponential extension to other communities; Principles: It recognizes that there are four necessary conditions for change to be sustainable and to go to scale. These necessary conditions are referred to as the <four key principles> of community change. Outcomes: It recognizes that the most important outcomes of community change are not new projects or buildings, but empowered communities with skills to collaborate to improve their lives and to change collective and individual behavior. More Information
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