Dignity and Growth: Citizen Participation in Social Change

Raj S. Gandhi is a sociology professor at the University of Calgary.

Many people feel powerless in the face of social change, but Canada has
a heritage of citizen participation in social change, a fact stressed in
this book, which mixes case studies and analytical or personal essays.

Although not a theoretical treatise, the book brings a distinctive
point of view to topics like rural economic development, adult
education, and the empowerment of citizens in cities and towns. The
editors and authors, researchers and writers from across Canada, are
active in community studies and community development. Tying together
the book’s many themes and perspectives is a tribute to the thought of
Bill Baker—adult educator, social planner, and university
academic—who throughout his extraordinary career promoted the concept
of citizen participation in social change.

This important collection of essays should be read by students of
community and social change, educationists, urban planners, municipal
officials, and practitioners of participatory change.