Snakes and ladders: inclusive community development and Gypsies and Travellers

This article explores the concept of inclusive community development and its relevance to the ethnogenesis and empowerment of Gypsy and Traveller communities. Critics have asserted that such an approach can hold the danger of encompassing an assimilationist agenda, that seeks to civilize. The paper argues that community development can be community-driven but ideally should be a gradual process, delivered in stages where external and outsider assistance can in fact be of use.