Theresa Williamson collects solutions to the day-to-day problems of poor peolpe all over the world. How does she do it? By looking at what works in other poor communities.

Tijn Touber | June 2004 issue
WHO? Theresa Williamson WHAT? Catalytic Communities, a virtual network to share solutions to problems in local communities WHERE? Rio de Janeiro, Brazil WHEN? 2001 WHY? Internet is the ideal way to gather knowledge about successful local initiatives worldwide
What should someone in Jakarta do to solve the city’s pollution problem? How does someone in Laos help eradicate illiteracy and unemployment? Surf right over to the website of Catalytic Communities (‘CatComm’), the virtual non-profit network conceived by Theresa Williamson. Williamson collects solutions from ordinary people for everyday problems. Type in a problem and you’ll find scores of examples of how local communities around the world have found solutions.
Williamson, who is half American and half Brazilian, started in Rio de Janeiro, a city with huge problems and therefore many solutions. Williamson says, “We hope for a horizontal exchange among low-income communities all over the world. The internet as collective intelligence, so that not everyone has to reinvent the wheel.”
Williamson and her four colleagues place more faith in people who already have a leadership role within communities than in government programs. “Every community has its natural leaders,” Williamson explains. “When you get those people in motion, it can bring about change. It’s an enormous stimulus when people see that communities elsewhere in the world have solved their problems themselves, complete with a description of the practical steps involved.”
But Catcomm does more than just point to potential solutions. “We bring people directly in contact with investors or the right institutions to cut out every conceivable ‘middleman’,” Williamson adds. “ By being in contact with local communities across the world, we gain increasing insight into the actual needs of a group of people whose voice is rarely heard.”
CatComm’s practical information is the explanation for the rising number of hits per month – at least 20,000. The website is in English, Spanish and Portuguese.
Catalytic Communities, Caixa Postal 34095, Rio de Janeiro, RJ CEP 22460-970, Brazil, telephone +55 21 2246 1538, e-mail: catcomm@catcomm.org, www.catcomm.org.