Criticism of economic development efforts by industrialized nations in less-resourced areas of the world has abounded over the last 30 years or more as individual, corporate, and philanthropic donors have dedicated increasingly intense scrutiny to humanitarian and economic development projects in emerging economies. Thus, the future of the international development field is at a critical juncture. Asset-based community development (ABCD) is a model of societal and economic growth that views the community in question as active participants or growth/change agents and concentrates on developing the assets already present in a community.

This mixed model multiple-case study evaluated the efficacy of ABCD programs carried out in 10 Foundation for Sustainable Development sites in developing countries. A collection of 280 archival field reports were gathered from the organization and examined to determine their characteristics and efficacy using quasi-statistical approaches and thematic analysis.

Analysis of the projects’ efficacy indicated that the majority of projects were successful (n = 164, 59%) or achieved greater than anticipated success (n = 66, 24%). Ten factors were determined to contribute to project success: fieldworker understanding of the community served; development of an actionable project plan based on available time, human capabilities, and funding; gaining the trust, support, and buy-in of local leaders and community members; establishment of a project budget as soon as possible after arriving in-country; making provisions for underbudgeted programs and project continuance; creation of weekly and daily work plans with clearly delineated responsibilities and goals; participation of a community leader and organization; establishment of self-perpetuating funding sources; creation of a strong system of knowledge transfer; and reliable measurement and reporting of quantifiable impacts of the initiative.

This study generated substantive insights into the positive impact of ground-up development initiatives. By providing global and in-country cultural perspectives, this study proposes a framework for the potential of continued philanthropic contributions and volunteerism that may advance development efforts and, consequently, social and economic capital in the developing world.