Community knowledge management (CKM): a framework for community action

Duncan A. Shaw, Graham McGregor

Research output: Preprint or Working paperWorking paper

Abstract

Knowledge management (KM) is a developing field that focuses on harnessing knowledge for use by a person or community. However, most KM research focuses on improving decision making capacity in business communities, neglecting applications in wider society and non-decision making activities. This paper explores the potential of KM for rural communities, specifically for those that want to preserve their social history and collective memories (what we call heritage) to enrich the lives of others. In KM terms, this is a task of accumulating and recording knowledge to enable its retention for future use. We report a case study of Cardrona, a valley of approximately 120 people in New Zealand’s South Island. Realising that time would erode knowledge of their community a small, motivated group of residents initiated a KM programme to create a legacy for a wider community including younger generations, tourists and scholars. This paper applies KM principles to rural communities that want to harness their collective knowledge for wider societal gain, and develops a framework to accommodate them. As a result, we call for a wider conceptualization of KM to include motives for managing knowledge beyond decision making to accommodate community KM (cKM).
Original languageEnglish
Place of PublicationBirmingham
PublisherAston University
ISBN (Print)9781854497215
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2007

Bibliographical note

RP0731

Keywords

  • community initiative
  • heritage
  • knowledge management

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