You’ve heard us talk about the importance of focusing on Place. In particular, we’ve been explaining the concept of Sense of Place and how it can supercharge neighborhood transformation. Today, we want to talk about related but distinct concepts: rootedness and...
We are celebrating BIG! Our first ever City Shapers cohort has nearly completed the 2-year curriculum. When the City of Bowling Green first approached us, they came with one glaring challenge: the housing crisis. In those early days, we had a lot of conversations to...
Why Sense of Place Matters to Development “A place is only a place.” If you are well-versed in traveling and experiences, you may cast doubt upon author Frank Herbert’s words. They are only true if you deprive a place of its character. Places carry...
You may recall that 18 months ago, we stepped into a tremendous opportunity: we received a $1 million grant to expand the work of the Lupton Center at FCS. Specifically, these funds would empower us to launch City Shapers cohorts in 12 cities over the next few years....
Sense of Place is a little bit like the elephant touched by various mice in the fable – lots of other concepts touch on pieces of it. Neighborhood identity, local pride, character, and vibe are all different terms and words you may hear people use when...
We all know what a thriving community looks like, but it can be tough to nail down WHY we know it’s healthy or what to look for. One of the key pieces we look for when assessing a neighborhood’s health is “Sense of Place.” Like the idea of...
The Flourishing Neighborhood Index makes Holistic Neighborhood Development work more effective by offering key insight and boosting local trust. We know because our parent organization, Focused Community Strategies, uses the FNI every few years to make sure we’re in...
We exist to make your Change-Making work more effective. Effective strategies start with accurate diagnoses. It’s why we have been thrilled to offer the Flourishing Neighborhood Index (FNI) to clients for the past several years. The FNI measures the health of your...
The Lupton Center is passionate about helping neighborhood practitioners move far away from toxic charity. In fact, our existence stems from the experiences our founder Bob Lupton had as he recognized the ways well-meaning people who wanted to help ended up causing...
Recently, Lupton Center trainer and consultant David Park had the privilege to interview Dr. Dave Kresta to discuss community development. Kresta holds a Ph.D. in Urban Studies and is an adjunct assistant professor at Portland State University. In this interview, they...