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Communication Infrastructure

By Jillian Olivas
June 6, 2013
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Much of the community engagement process for this project was grounded on the communication infrastructure created by the USC Metamorphosis project. This communication infrastructure privileges a grassroots understanding of how people construct their everyday lives and solve local problems. The goal is to make the communication infrastructure of everyday life visible, so that community and economic development practitioners can access it to strengthen communities. The heart of this infrastructure is the neighborhood storytelling network, featuring the dynamic interactions between residents, community organizations, and geo-ethnic media (or local media aimed at local geographies and/or ethnicities). Studies have been conducted across diverse communities of Los Angeles. Analysis reveals that local neighborhood 'storytelling networks' that are strongly connected positively contribute to higher levels of civic participation, neighborhood belonging, and collective efficacy around local neighborhood issues.

The second component of a local communication infrastructure is the 'communication action context' that consists of local community conditions that can affect or be affected by the local 'storytelling networks' of local communities. The most ideal situation in NELA would be the support and development of a local 'storytelling network' that is empowered to affect its local 'communication action context' in positive ways that serve the local residents while leveraging its local assets such as the River for regional development and recreational opportunities. As a potential tool for community organizing, we recommend the activation of a local communication infrastructure of residents, community organizations, and local media towards a discourse that will encourage equitable community and economic development for the NELA area. This communications and community organizing strategy can create a local, regional, and citywide awareness on local NELA-related issues focused on equitable community and economic development rather than inequitable gentrification consequences that can result from unregulated development.

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