Disability inclusive practices in community development : a scoping review

Abstract

Ensuring that community development practice is inclusive of all stake-holders is a basic requirement for a human rights-based approach. However, in practice, there is still a lack of connection between mainstream community development and Community Based Inclusive Development initiatives. This chapter presents the results of a scoping review of academic literature, exploring in depth the extent to which mainstream community development efforts are inclusive (or otherwise), and what the barriers and opportunities are. The findings indicate that there is still a need for conceptual clarity and depth on what inclusive community development actually means, including in the field of community studies and related areas. There is also a need for culturally sensitive and genuinely interdisciplinary strategies for achieving disability inclusive practices in community development, with active efforts devoted to exploring connections between disability studies and community development, in particular, to provide for further learning and shifts in practice