DSNI success: Funding and Active Residents

The Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative was and is successful for a number of reasons but two in particular stood out to me. The first is that the initiative began with the financial support of the Riley Foundation. The Riley foundation confirmed their support for the neighborhood while simultaneously staying in the background and allowing the community to lead. We have learned that many community development projects failed because they were implemented and led too heavily by outside financial supporters. The DSNI began without having to search for funding and was allowed to create its own leadership and strategic plan. I believe this made a huge difference in the support of Dudley residents and their willingness to cooperate.

The second thing I believe led to their success was the activism of the residents themselves. At the very first community wide meeting of the DSNI, community residents stood up against the governing board and its lack of resident representation. After demanding sufficient representation, they continued to participate through voting and meeting attendance. This is a perfect example of "let the people decide" community organizing and it is their persistence that led the community to overcome political, organizational, and structural challenges in the years ahead.