This study examines strategies for enhancing community participation in regional development planning by implementing bottom-up approaches. As democratic governance evolves, the need for meaningful citizen engagement in development planning becomes increasingly critical for ensuring sustainable and equitable outcomes. This research analyzes the effectiveness of participatory planning mechanisms, identifies barriers to community engagement, and proposes innovative strategies for strengthening bottom-up development planning processes. Using a comparative case study methodology across six regional governments, this study evaluates various participatory instruments including citizen forums, participatory budgeting, community mapping, and digital engagement platforms. The findings reveal that successful bottom-up planning requires institutional commitment, capacity building, cultural sensitivity, and sustained dialogue between government and communities. The study provides a framework for designing and implementing effective participatory planning systems that genuinely incorporate community voices in regional development decisions.

This research examines the influence of development policies on community empowerment in rural areas. Using a mixed-methods approach combining quantitative surveys (n=400) across four diverse rural districts with qualitative interviews (n=40) and focus group discussions (n=12), the study identifies key factors affecting the success of empowerment programs. Findings reveal that community participation in planning phases and equitable access to resources (financial, informational, and material) are fundamental determinants of successful rural empowerment. The research demonstrates that development policies are most effective when they: (1) enable genuine participation beyond mere consultation, (2) build on existing community institutions, (3) address power imbalances within communities, and (4) provide appropriate external facilitation. Statistical analysis shows strong correlations between empowerment outcomes and participation in planning (?=0.73, p<0.001) and access to financial resources (?=0.68, p<0.001). This study contributes to the theoretical understanding of empowerment processes and practical knowledge for policymakers and practitioners seeking to design more effective community development interventions in rural contexts.

This research aims to analyze the influence of exogenous variables on endogenous variables, namely investment and employment opportunities. This type of research is quantitative analysis using secondary data with a time series from 1993 to 2022 obtained from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) of North Sumatra and Bank Indonesia (BI). The data analysis technique in this research uses a simple regression analysis model. The results of this research show that exogenous variables have a significant effect on endogenous variables in the equation model. The investment variable has a significant effect on the employment opportunity variable. For this reason, it is necessary to increase investment (PMA and PMDN), so that there is a coherent increase in employment opportunities. With increasing investment, job opportunities will expand.

Based on observation results, student learning outcomes are still low. This research aims to improve student learning outcomes in Integrated Thematic Learning using the Teams Games Tournament (TGT) learning model. This research was carried out at UPTD SDN 66 Kanjitongan, Kanjitongan Hamlet, Mattiro Tasi Village, Maros Baru District, Maros Regency. The subjects of this research were 19 students in class IIIA UPTD SDN 66 Kanjitongan for the 2023/2024 academic year. The type of research used is Classroom Action Research. Based on the research results, it can be concluded that the application of the Teams Games Tournament (TGT) model in Integrated Thematic Learning can improve the learning outcomes of class III A UPTD students at SDN 66 Kanjitongan. This is shown by the results of the analysis in cycle I, the percentage of students who have reached the Minimum Completeness Criteria is 68.42% and the percentage of students who have not reached the Minimum Completeness Criteria is 31.58%. 2 cycles with the percentage of students who have reached the Minimum Completeness Criteria89.47% and the percentage of students who have not reached the Minimum Completeness Criteria 10.53%.