Blog – Soulgen

Longing to Belong: An Experiential Approach to Belonging

Aug 27, 2026

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by

Everyone seems to be talking about loneliness and belonging these days.Maybe we are reaching some kind of collective realisation about how disconnected we have become – and how deeply many of us are searching for belonging.Perhaps.But I don’t want to…

Children and Young People: Our Most Underutilised Community Asset?

Aug 16, 2026

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by

dsoulgen

in News

What a walk through Parramatta reminded me about moving beyond identifying assets to connecting and mobilising them – and bringing places to life. At a recent workshop with Cormac Russell, hosted by Resourcing Inclusive Communities in Parramatta, we were invited…

What Kind of Facilitator Are You – Really

Aug 13, 2026

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by

dsoulgen

in Uncategorised

The more I do this work, the more I have come to see myself as a facilitator.A facilitator of people, teams, and communities through participatory, strengths-based, and relational processes.This week, as I train another group of Camp Venture facilitators –…

Community Development Training with Lake Macqaurie Counlic

Jul 29, 2026

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by

Jeremy Thomas Environmentarian

in Case Study

Case study will be released soon

Building Social Cohesion the ABCD Way: Reflections from Culture Waves

May 22, 2026

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by

dsoulgen

in Case Study, Uncategorised

At first glance, some people may not immediately connect social cohesion programs like Culture Waves with ABCD (Asset-Based Community Development).But for me, the links are very real.Perhaps because I have never experienced ABCD simply as a framework to preach or…

What Christchurch Can Teach Us About Participation, Place and the Power of Experimentation

May 9, 2026

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by

dsoulgen

in News

At dinner last night after an AANZPA Executive meeting, Simon from Christchurch shared stories about a local initiative called Gap Filler – a creative urban regeneration social enterprise that emerged after the devastating earthquakes in Ōtautahi Christchurch. I found myself…

Sustaining Place-Based Work – From good intentions to real impact

Apr 19, 2026

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by

dsoulgen

in Frameworks for Change, News

In a recent article, I explored place-based leadership as the practice that brings a place to life. By place-based work, I mean approaches that start with a particular community or locality – its people, relationships, strengths, history, challenges and possibilities…

Evaluating What Matters in Youth & Community Work Why we need to measure more than just numbers

Apr 16, 2026

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by

dsoulgen

in Frameworks for Change

Most evaluation frameworks fail to capture what actually matters in youth and community work.They measure outputs – attendance, participation rates, number of activities delivered.But they often miss the deeper shifts that determine whether something truly works: These are not side…

Third Spaces: The Missing Infrastructure of Belonging

Apr 7, 2026

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by

dsoulgen

in Uncategorised

There’s something happening beneath the surface of our communities.You can feel it in conversations.You can see it in the way people move through spaces.You can hear it in what’s said – and what’s not being said.People are around each other…but…

Place-Based Leadership: The Practice That Brings a Place to Life

Apr 2, 2026

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by

dsoulgen

in News

🌱 Introduction There is a lot of strong thinking in the sector right now about place-based approaches, place strategies, social cohesion, participation, community development and systems change. Across policy and practice, the language of “place” is far more common than…

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