The previous chapters demonstrate the professional and community contributions of community development to building civil society. They also identify some significant challenges. These are the two areas on which we propose to focus in this chapter. Our purpose is to identify at a general level the contribution of community development to building civil society and to clarify the key challenges. We do this with the awareness that politically a shift to the Right is taking place in many European states and that, given the inherent political nature of both civil society and community development, this means that a high level of uncertainty will prevail. This is likely to be re-enforced by severe public expenditure cuts, caused by a combination of political changes and the impact of the global recession.

Yet the extent to which the importance of community development and community participation is recognised in both northern and southern countries is striking. Where the recognition comes from varies considerably, but in most cases the underlying commitment comes from communities themselves. The implication is that community development in the context of civil society is a high priority for societies. It is also clear that this connects powerfully with the concepts of social capital, equality and social justice.

The chapter moves between, on the one hand, anxiety concerning the fragility of community development and civil society and, on the other, confidence that their fundamental importance is widely understood. Towards the end of the chapter, we set out scenarios for the future of community development that reflect this ambivalence.

Contribution of community development to civil society

Community development is a very practical activity, for the community by the community. It is also a professional intervention. Community development workers need constantly to look for connection points through which people can act to improve the lives of themselves and others. They also need to draw on theoretical frameworks that can support professional intervention and provide a frame for self-reflection. Warren's fivefold typology can be used for both of these.

We have used the five functions in this volume as a means of focusing on key practice areas for community development. Readers will have noted that two of the functions – socialisation and social participation – are more significant in central and eastern Europe than they are in western Europe.