Communities have practiced strategic planning for decades using a variety of tools and programs based on the initial Take Charge programs of the early 1990s. Community leaders and elected officials are currently interested in finding innovative ways to revitalize their local employment base and economic opportunities. This book describes a variety of efforts to bring about community change by using strategic planning and visioning efforts. The discussions provide both methodological and practical insights regarding how and why various approaches have succeeded in causing sustainable changes in communities. This book was originally published as a special issue of
Community Development.