Survey shows Americans involved in communities

Americans feel connected to their communities and are volunteering more than ever and relying less on government leaders to help solve serious community problems. Those are among the results of a survey conducted by the Springfield, Va.-based Campaign Study Group for the Charlottesville, Va.-based Pew Partnership for Civic Change.

According to the survey, 77 percent of Americans feel connected to their communities and say their quality of life is excellent or good. Two-thirds (65 percent) feel optimistic that their community’s best years as a place to live are still ahead. Additionally, 111 million Americans volunteered in their communities during the past 12 months, with more than 60 million volunteering on a regular basis.

Survey respondents ranked the following as the top problems in their communities: the lack of jobs that pay a living wage (42 percent), limited access to affordable health care (39 percent), illegal drugs (38 percent), too many unsupervised children and teenagers (37 percent), a decline in moral values (35 percent).

To get help solving those problems, respondents most often turned to local police departments, churches/synagogues/mosques, non-profit organizations, friends and neighbors, and parent/teacher organizations at local schools.

More than 1,800 adults were interviewed for the survey from October 25 through November 18, 2000. The results have a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent. For a copy of the report, “Ready, Willing and Able — Citizens Working for Change,” visit the Pew Partnership Web site at www.pew-partnership.org.