The Port Hedland Case Study Analysis - Essay Example

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT (PORT HEDLAND CASE STUDY) Introduction The objective of this report is for the to give the reader an overall and in depth knowledge about community planning and development needs in the Port Hedland area and the manner in which the author proposes to undertake and carry out the proposed community development needs. The report is divided into three sections, Community Planning and Development, the Issues in Port Hedland and finally the strategy that has been proposed by the author. The author specifically looks at the benefits of community development, the areas that Port Hedland is most in need of and then designs a plan that would focus specifically on the identified areas. Finally the author justifies her choice of strategies, the limitations and methods that can be used to overcome the limitations. Community Planning and Development Community planning and development is an essential component of all developed and developing economies. There are many different reasons for community planning and development to take center stage in any local government initiative. The reason for this is because unless communities are planned and developed effectively the individuals living and working in those communities would suffer from various different hardships. These hardships would depend on the scale and the inadequacy of the different amenities that have been provided by the communities. The more amenities that are provided by a community the more that community will thrive and therefore effective community planning and development is an essential. Community A community can be loosely defined as a group of individuals living in a common marked off location. These individuals will form separate family and living units, but still they will be interdependent on each other and may even contribute to one another's well being through social networks and through products and services that the manufacture, sell and provide. For instance any small village or part of a village can be considered as a community unit. As it will consist of individuals of different age groups and from different parts of society fulfilling different roles whether and contributing in one way or another to the group (Bhattacharyya, 2004). Amongst those who contribute will also be those who do not and can be detrimental to the community unit. Reasons for community development and planning to be necessary As stated above the more amenities a community has the better it is for the living standards of those living in the community. For instance if the community has adequate public health facilities and educational facilities for children, that would help the community to be healthy and productive, which benefits the entire community through its economic development. When there is adequate educational facilities for the children that ensure that the future of the community, which is in the hands of the future generation will be very secure. From the stand point of a nation, better planned the communities throughout the nation are - the more healthier, more educated and the more productive the citizens would be in the long term, which in turn will benefit the entire nation. The Issues of inadequate community development and planning Since the report has looked at the necessity for appropriate community development and planning, in this section of the report the author will focus her attention on the issues that can arise from inadequate community development and planning. Social inequality amongst the individuals, Economic inequalities and Political inequalities are some of the disadvantages that have to be faced by a nation that does not pay adequate attention to the proper development and planning of its communities (Kellogg, 2002) Therefore in this section the author will focus on those three areas and the type of inequalities that can arise from the inadequate amenities being provided to the communities. Social Inequality When amenities like adequate public health facilities are not made available in a community only those with the means to travel to the communities that do provide it or to pay for it and receive it are served and those without the means are left behind, thus causing social inequalities between the haves and the have not's. This is the same in the case when adequate public education facilities are not provided for children. If the public schools in a community are not up to standard or unable to cope with the demand then the children in the community will suffer in the long term (Gelber, 2003). Economic Inequality If the community caters to only one segment of the community for instance like the professionally qualified but does not have economic amenities for those who are only high school educated then that can and will cause economic inequalities, which in turn could have other detrimental effects like increasing rates of crime due purely to the reason that a certain segment of the community are not meaningfully employed or do not have the means to provide for themselves or for their families or to gain the skills and the knowledge that would help them be meaningfully employed (Bessant, 2005). Political Inequality Inadequate community planning and development can cause many divisions from a political front and even cause certain communities if they can be defined by age or race or religion to feel that they are being discriminated against when compared to other communities. This could especially pose a threat to the political stability in different parts of the country, especially if the individuals in the community are predominantly of one racial or minority group and the community is not adequately planned, then it would mean that they are being discriminated against and that communities where the racially dominant live are provided with the necessary levels of amenities. Therefore as is apparent from what has been stated political inequalities can be interpreted and that would be very detrimental to the nation in the long run. Issues in Port Hedland Project Now that the author has studied the different issues that can be faced by a community and a nation when there is no adequate planning and development of communities. In this section the author will specifically look at the different issues that the author feels will be faced by individuals in the Port Hedland Community, in order to gain an in depth understanding of the issues that are faced by the individuals in this community the author will look at various different issues ranging from issues that relate to a mining town, the social issues that are faced by indigenous people, specific environmental issues, structural issues in the community as well as the policy based issues. Mining Towns As already stated in the case study that has been provided for this report, the community in question is pre-dominantly one of a mining town, where most of the individuals are employed in the mines. Likewise due to the nature of the economy in the community and its dependence on mines a majority of the individuals in the town are male thus most of the business organizations and the businesses are focused on serving the needs of males and not adequately equipped to cater to the needs of females and children even though there are a substantial number of them. For instance there are not many entertainment outlets, parks and facilities that would fulfill the needs of the females and the children. This problem is further exacerbated by the fact that there are many temporary and migrant workers in the area (workers who have come in from other areas) - some with their families and others without their families. Those bringing their families along with them are faced with further problems as the families are uprooted from areas from where they put down roots and due to the inadequacy of facilities in this community are unable to settle in adequately. Indigenous Social Issues Further this community has a great number of indigenous people who are not adequately cared for or rather whose needs are not met due to the lack of funding as well as the lack of knowledge from the point of view local government authorities into the needs of the indigenous people. One of the chief reasons for the inadequacy of the facilities and the lack of understanding on the part of the authorities is due to the lack of representation from the indigenous community in the local government and the government's apprehension to involve indigenous people when making community related decisions (Attwood & Markus, 1999). Environmental Problems Due to the heavy mining that is taking place in the community there is insufficient emphasis being placed on the need for sustainable development. Rather economic development or the economic needs of the mining businesses have been put ahead of all else, while there have not been any particular health and safety issues. Ignoring environmental issues in the long term will only result in the community having to face both environmental and health hazards in the future, which in turn can be detrimental to the individuals living and working in the community (Hibbard & Karle, 2002). This can also further cause many other problems and open up the local government to litigation due to the lack of care and due to increased negligence. Structural Issues in the Community The community as it is, is not adequately prepared to cater to the needs of the workers the high levels of demands that are made on accommodation in the area. Due to the boom in the local economy even in this time of global crisis, real estate prices and rents are being artificially driven up due to the increased demand for accommodation. This boom is not going to last forever and due to the artificial nature of the real estate demand and supply - when the demand drops the consequences that will have to be faced will not only be difficult but may even be catastrophic. Issues with Policies in the Community As stated in the previous sections throughout the document it is apparent that the policies that are followed and adhered throughout the local government with regard to the community are extremely inadequate and as a result they are causing problems and causing the community to be inadequately planned and developed and that would have a detrimental effect not only in the future but even today and further it will only result in making the remedial action that is taken in the future to be that much more difficult (Bessant, 2002). Proposed Strategy Now that the author has studied the benefits of good community planning and development, the challenges that can be faced by individuals and governments as well as nations as a whole communities are inadequately planned and developed and the specific problems and challenges that are faced by the Port Hedland community, in this section the author proposes the different strategies and measures that she proposes to undertake to mitigate the problems, the locations and situations that she will work in, the influence that the changes will have on the community, the responses that the community will be seeking from her, a justification of her strategies and finally the limitations of the strategies that she has proposed. Situation or location of work In order to develop and plan this community in a manner that would meaningful to the individuals living in it and also to the economy of the community it is the author's opinion that she should work and be located in the local government. It is also the intention of the author to involve a good cross section of the community like the females, the families, primary carers for children, teachers and school principles and a large number of individuals from the different areas who are of indigenous origin and are able to contribute to the decisions that have to be made with regard to planning and developing the facilities within the community. Influence on Community Development It is the author's opinion that by doing the above the author will be able to gain a very good knowledge of the different facilities that are required and by participating in the decision making process the individuals in the community will feel that they are part of the development process and that their ideas and suggestions have been taken into consideration. Therefore even if there is a lack of resources or funding, the individuals will find other means to provide for the development of the community. This will also increase the community spirit, while giving the author sufficient leverage when arguing and convincing her superiors for the need of funding and even be able to escalate the needs of the community in a meaningful manner (Hodge & O'Carroll, 2006). Response needed by community seeking help The initial study of the community has proven that the community specifically needs more entertainment for the females in the community and more facilities that would help the children in the community like playgrounds, parks and libraries. Likewise the indigenous people living in the area also need more public health related facilities as well as more concern to employment opportunities as well as environmental issues (Jupp, 1997). Main beneficiaries of the work Since these projects will be aimed at mainly at the females in the community as well as the children, the beneficiaries of the author's work in the community will be them (Perkins, Hughey & Speer, 2002). And by focusing the facilities and the projects at this segment of the community it will reap great benefits in the future. Effects of the strategy on the Community By providing the community with the types of amenities and the facilities such as the ones that were suggested in the above sections the entire community stands to gain both in the long term and the short term, which is very important as if the individuals cannot see short term benefits it may not be seen as inefficient (Moore, 2002). Importance of Building Social Capital The most important benefit of the proposed development and the planning that is supposed to take place is that it will help build social capital, through increase social networking, increased education, improved health facilities for individuals and most of all increase quality of life and living standards for all the individuals in the community (Wituk, Ealey, Clark, Heiny & Meissen, 2005). This would also help reduce the crime rate in the community as well as help families to settle faster in the area and thus even reduce juvenile delinquency. Limitations of the Strategy and Overcoming them The biggest limitation of the proposed projects is that they have been all proposed by the author and the different groups that the projects are proposed to be in benefit of have not been consulted and therefore even though the proposed projects may seem good in theory they may not be practical in nature and may not even be necessary. The manner in which this limitation can be overcome is for the author to put the proposals to the community representatives and then request them for their input and then use that input to fine tune the ideas and the projects (Bridger & Alter, 2006). Conclusion In conclusion it can be stated that many different aspects of planning and development are required for the Port Hedland Community and they should be implemented in consultation with the community representatives. References Attwood, B., & Markus, A. (1999). The Struggle for Aboriginal Rights: A Documentary History. St. Leonards, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin. Bessant, J. (2002). "The Camps, a Site of Exceptionality: Australia's Detention of Asylum Seekers". Australian Journal of Social Issues, 37(1), pp. 1. Bessant, K. C. (2005). "Community Development Corporations as Vehicles of Community Economic Development: The Case of Rural Manitoba". Journal of the Community Development Society, 36(2), pp. 52. Bhattacharyya, J. (2004). "Theorizing Community Development". Journal of the Community Development Society, 34(2), pp. 5. Bridger, J. C., & Alter, T. R. (2006). "Place, Community Development and Social Capital". Community Development: Journal of the Community Development Society, 37(1), pp. 5. Flora, J. L., & Allen, B. L. (2006). "Introduction: Community Development and Social Capital". Community Development: Journal of the Community Development Society, 37(1), pp. 1. Gelber, K. (2003). "A Fair Queue Australian Public Discourse on Refugees and Immigration". Journal of Australian Studies, (77), pp. 23. Hibbard, M., & Karle, K. (2002). "Ecosystem Restoration as Community Economic Development an Assessment of the Possibilities". Journal of the Community Development Society, 33(2), pp. 39. Hodge, B., & O'Carroll, J. (2006). Borderwork in Multicultural Australia. Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin. Jupp, J. (1997). "Tacking into the Wind: Immigration and Multicultural Policy in the 1990s". Journal of Australian Studies, (53), pp. 29. Kellogg, W. A. (2002). "Community Development and Environmental Quality: Benefits and Challenges Using a Service Learning Model for University Engagement". Journal of the Community Development Society, 33(2), pp. 72. Moore, A. B. (2002). "Community Development Practice: Theory in Action". Journal of the Community Development Society, 33(1), pp. 20. Perkins, D. D., Hughey, J., & Speer, P. W. (2002). "Community Psychology Perspectives on Social Capital Theory and Community Development Practice". Journal of the Community Development Society, 33(1), pp. 33. 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