Pathways into place-based work

This map shows different ways people contribute to place-based work – individually and collectively. It helps you orient yourself in the work, based on where you are right now. You can start anywhere. Follow what feels familiar, or explore other ways of getting involved. Click a pathway or practice point to explore further.

Don’t know where to start? Visit the landing pages for Collective pathways and Individual pathways to get a sense for the different parts of the map.

Pathways Map - Key

This map shows different ways people contribute to place-based work - individually and collectively - and where those forms of work connect.

Colours

Green - Individual pathways

Red - Collective pathways

Pathways

Each colour contains three pathways.

Pathways represent different ways of contributing, not stages or levels.

Practice points

Each circle represents a practice within a pathway.

Select a highlighted practice point to explore reflections, activities and resources.

You can visit practices in any order and return to them at any time.

Overlaps

The blue highlighted areas show where individual and collective pathways connect.

These highlight shared practices that influence both personal contribution and the wider conditions for place-based work.

Overlaps are shared ground, not additional steps.

How to use the map

There is no start or end.

Begin wherever feels most relevant to you.

Explore one pathway or move between several.

The map is designed for exploration rather than a fixed sequence.

Strengthening relationships

Relationships shape how people work together in place – how knowledge is shared, decisions are made and people stay connected across sectors, cultures and roles.

They carry history, cultural meaning and shared understandings about how people work with one another. These relationships influence what becomes possible and how trust grows.

They also influence whose insight shapes decisions, who has standing to act and how decisions are made when circumstances shift.

Reflect on:

when collaboration feels genuinely shared, and when it begins to feel more like consultation or transactions

whose knowledge or lived experience shapes decisions about the work, pace and priorities

how connection is maintained across sectors, cultures or geographies and what helps people stay in relationship.

Small step

Map the relationships that matter most to your place-based work – community partners, cultural leaders, local services, Elders or peer networks.

This can be as simple as listing the people and groups you rely on, or sketching them around your work to notice where connection is strong and where it could be strengthened.

Choose one relationship to deepen. Arrange a short, purposeful catch-up or check-in to clarify what each of you needs to work well together.

Go deeper

Co-Governance – Working Better Together (ANZSOG, 2025) explores how trust, shared power and clear roles support relationships between community and government, especially when decisions are made collectively.

Creating Change through Partnerships (SNAICC, 2020) shows how strong relationships in community work are grounded in respect, self-determination and shared accountability, particularly when working across cultures and systems.

Return to 'Sustaining care and connection'

Explore the pathway