A healthy community encompasses the physical, social, economic, and political. Supportive environments can be created by laws or regulations, some by community effort, and some only by changes in attitude.
Communities can encourage and strengthen community action by encouraging and fostering grass roots planning and action. When issues are identified and addressed by the people affected by them, as well as by others concerned, two things happen: the issues are more likely to be resolved successfully, and the people involved learn how to use their own resources to take charge of their lives and their communities.
By disseminating necessary information about the community and community initiatives to all citizens, and providing everyone in the community with learning opportunities about issues and about the quality of life in general, healthy communities aid their citizens in gaining the skills necessary to address health and community issues, by providing education and information in school, home (through the media and other sources), work, and community settings all might serve to help citizens understand an issue, and make decisions about it.
Any community issue has to be viewed through the lenses of both the individual and the community. It takes a village not only to raise a child, but to pull families out of poverty, to create employment, to improve mental health, to stop violence, to safeguard the natural environment, and to create a just and equitable society. Excerpt from 2018 Community Toolbox
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