Community Economic Development is an inclusive and participatory process by which communities initiate and generate their own multiple bottom-line solutions to economic problems by:
- Stabilizing local economies
- Creating long-term employment
- Contributing to the health of the natural environment
- Building on local resources and capacities
- Increasing community control and ownership
As an alternative to conventional approaches to economic development, CED focuses on developing sustainable communities based on the relationship between economic factors and social, environmental and cultural element of community well-being and resilience.