TY - GEN N1 - 24 cm N2 - The main goal of this article is to evaluate the quality of local development potential (the unique and relative more promising resources) identified in the development strategies of rural communes in Silesian Province, Poland. The study encompassed 5 documents from rural communes chosen in view of their development level (as a pilot study to a more complex research). The research focused on these parts of the documents concerning the SWOT matrix (especially the strengths category, which in this case is identified as local resources), as well as the main goals and priorities of strategies. The study of commune development strategies has shown that: 1) Many local resources (natural, cultural, economic, etc.) are specified, but they are usually typical and may be mistaken with local conditions. They may also generate ‘information noise’, rendering it difficult for users of strategic documents to choose the most promising local resources. 2) The main purpose of a local strategy document is to make the key choices of available options. Communes specify the priority resources and plan related activities as main operational goals. Their identification and description is not detailed and inspiring enough to boost the local development process. There is also a problem associated with the awareness of many aspects of each resource. 3) It seems that only a few of identified priority resources can be rightfully named as local development potential. It can be a significant problem because of limited financial resources – rural communes do not take full advantage of opportunities because of lack of knowledge as well as dissipation of funds for many activities which may be important in the short term but do not have positive impact on local economy in the long term. To sum up, it seems that even though there is a common consensus that local resources are an important source of development, it is very difficult to decide responsibly which resources are the most promising and which resources need further actions such as e.g. better funding. In practice it seems that the quality of the most important local resources as local development potential in rural commune strategies should be verified. L1 - http://www.rcin.org.pl/igipz/Content/63463/PDF/WA51_83191_r2017-t46_SOW-Surmacz.pdf M3 - Text J2 - Studia Obszarów Wiejskich = Rural Studies, t. 46 PY - 2017 EP - 115 KW - local resources KW - local development potentials KW - local development strategies KW - resources KW - development of commune KW - Silesia voivodship KW - rural communes A1 - Surmacz, Małgorzata PB - PAN IGiPZ PB - PTG VL - 46 CY - Warszawa SP - 99 T1 - Zasoby lokalne jako potencjały rozwoju lokalnego w dokumentach strategicznych na przykładzie wybranych gmin wiejskich województwa śląskiego =Local resources as potential for local development in the strategic documents based on selected Silesian Province’s rural communes UR - http://www.rcin.org.pl/igipz/dlibra/publication/edition/63463 ER -