A portrait of sustainable crime prevention in selected Canadian communities

In the context of crime prevention, the concept of sustainability is integrally linked to concerns about community development and encompasses: • the capacity of the communities to identify and respond to their own needs — including how that capacity is linked to the overall health and well-being of community members • the interconnection among crime problems and other social factors — including, [...] Lacy argues that for the purposes of community-based development: … a group is a community to the extent that it encompasses a broad range of activities and interests, and to the extent that participation implicates whole persons rather than segmental interests or activities.9 This definition of community views people (residents, members of particular communities of interest) as key to community d [...] Definitions of “Community” While the definitions of community varied in the six communities, they had the common feature that, whatever the formal boundaries of the community were, the area resonated for the people involved. [...] Rather than simply seeing the calls as a police issue that called for increased patrols or a police presence, the problem was linked to recreation for youth, the limited sense of community experienced by residents, the lack of trust between youth and families, and the role of the professionals serving the community. [...] Community B began to recognize the need for a holistic response and moved away from a focus on advising the police to consider problems as involving the schools, recreation, community and social services, in addition to the police.