About LS Ideas Bank topics

Where do the topics come from?
The topics reflect issues of concern and importance common to community groups that were involved in drawing up Local Agenda 21 plans across the UK. Most Local Agenda 21 were drawn up during what may have been the peak LA21 activity in the UK (so far) around the turn of the millenium. It's arguable that since this initial burst of activity there's been little government support for community action yet this has developed anyway in spite of government apparent indifference. Topic headings are necessarily brief but on each action ideas page there's space for a 'Why it's important' section, which hopefully will describe the topic better..

About Community Action
The topics are intended to be geared toward action (community action, and not for example inward looking concerns of local government or action only for specialists)

The quest for joined-up solutions
Ordinary people and community groups are often better able to see the whole picture, especially at local level, than bureaucrats and politicians, ("the left-hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing" is a not unfamilar refrain). The topics are various aspects of quality of life or well-being - environmental, social and economic. One of the advantages of bringing all the topics together in one place is that linkages between them can be brought out. Sustainability encourages us to see the bigger picture and how many quality of life concerns and challenges are in fact integrated. "Joined-up problems need joined-up solutions"