Welcome... ABCD Global Consulting believes that asset-based community development is the most effective approach to poverty, climate change, violence, social disintegration and the other major challenges found throughout the world. Jim Diers, Cormac Russell and Ted Smeaton are experienced change agents from three continents who use the ABCD methodology to identify, connect and mobilise community and agency resources in order to address these challenges in ways that are bottom-up and citizen-driven. Through presentations, workshops and technical assistance, we demonstrate how the ABCD approach can multiply available resources and result in actions that are culturally appropriate, broadly supported, holistic and sustainable. What is ABCD? Asset-based community development is an approach pioneered by John McKnight and John Kretzmann of the ABCD Institute at Northwestern University in Chicago; the results of their work now span the world. The traditional approach to community development is to focus on a community’s needs and to try to address those deficiencies with outside experts and resources, a scenario that leads to greater dependency and is not sustainable. The ABCD approach genuinely empowers citizens and strengthens the effectiveness of government and other agencies by drawing on the resources, abilities and insights of local residents to solve their own problems. Outside assistance is still needed, but genuine community development must be citizen-led with external resources acting in a support role.