In distressed communities across the United States, savvy organizers and leaders are rediscovering ancient wisdom about what builds strong communities, and then developing new ways to fit that wisdom to late 20th century community realities. This approach, which focuses on assets, points to one way of thinking about the basic kinds of building blocks that exist in every community. At the center of the map, and of the community building process, lie the "gifts" of individual residents - their knowledge, skills, resources, values, and commitments. Beyond individuals and their families, the second basic set of community-building assets can be found in those groups and organizations, sometimes called "associations," in which local citizens come together to pursue a wide range of activities. Finally, the Assets Map points to the potential power of institutions located in virtually every community schools, parks, libraries, police, human service agencies, community colleges when those institutions can refocus at least part of their considerable resources on community building.

When all these local community assets have been rediscovered, "mapped," and mobilized in relation to each other and their potential to solve problems, then a community previously regarded as empty and deficient will appear on the large civic stage as capable and powerful.