From the Ground Up: Building Hope Through Collaborative Solutions

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From the Ground Up Building Hope Through
Collaborative Solutions
Thomas J. Wolff, President
Tom Wolff Associates Amherst,
MA tom_at_tomwolff.com http//www.tomwolff.com
Presentation at the Champions for Progress Center
Multi-State Meeting Snowbird, UT June 21, 2004
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Neighborhood Needs Map
Slum Housing
From John McKnight
Mental Illness
Crime
Teenage Pregnancy
Drug Abuse
Rat Bites
Domestic Violence
Lead Poisoning
Welfare Dependency
T r u a n c y
Slum Housing
Alcoholism
Gangs
Illiteracy
Unemployment
AIDS
Pollution
Broken families
Boarded-up Buildings
Dropouts
Child Abuse
Homelessness
Abandonment
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Neighborhood Assets Map
Public Information
From John McKnight
Fire Depts.
Libraries
Public Schools
Personal Income
Parks
Capital Improvement Expenditures
Cultural Organizations
Associations of Business
H o s p i t a l s
Public Information
Primary Building Blocks Assets and capacities
located inside the neighborhood, largely under
neighborhood control
Individual Businesses
Police
Individual Capacities
Vacant Bldgs., Land, etc.
Religious Organizations
Secondary Building Blocks Assets located within
the community, but largely controlled by
outsiders.
Gifts of Labeled People
Higher Education Institutions
Citizens Associations
Social Service Agencies
Home-Based Enterprise
Potential Building Blocks Resources originating
outside the neighborhood, controlled by outsiders.
Energy/Waste Resources
Welfare Expenditures
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The Continuum of Collaboration
Definitions
NetworkingExchanging information for mutual
benefit. CoordinationExchanging information and
modifying activities for mutual
benefit. CooperationExchanging information,
modifying activities, and sharing resources for
mutual benefit and to achieve a common purpose.
(continued.....)
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Definitions (continued...)
CollaborationExchanging information, modifying
activities, sharing resources, and enhancing the
capacity of another for mutual benefit and to
achieve a common purpose. Multi-Sector
CollaborationA voluntary, strategic alliance of
public, private, and non-profit organizations to
enhance each others capacity to achieve a common
purpose by sharing risks, resources,
responsibilities, and rewards.
(From Arthur Himmelman, 1992)
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Collaborative Solutions

• Engage a broad spectrum of the community
• Especially those most directly affected
• Celebrate racial and cultural diversity
• Encourage true collaboration as the form of
  exchange
• Practice democracy
• Promote active citizenship and empowerment

(continued.....)
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Collaborative Solutions (continued)

• Employ an ecological approach that emphasizes
  individual in his/her setting.
• Build on community strengths and assets
• Take action
• Address issues of social change and power
• Build on a common vision
• Align the goal and the process
• Be the change that you wish to create in the
  world. (M. Gandhi)

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Why Coalition Building?
1. Creating a Competent and Vibrant Helping
System

• Promote a HOLISTIC, comprehensive approach
• Build on individual and community ASSETS
• Integrate the INFORMAL and formal helping systems
• Increase the emphasis on PREVENTION
• Create CULTURALLY RELEVANT solutions
• Encourage COLLABORATIVE problem solving

(continued....)
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Why Coalition Building? (continued)
1. Creating a Competent and Vibrant Helping
System (continued)

• Increase COORDINATION
• Increase COMMUNICATION within the system and with
  the community
• Promote PLANNING and the creation of a shared
  vision
• Increase ACCESSIBILITY to resources
• Encourage CONNECTION to the community
• Connect to our SPIRITUAL nature

(continued....)
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Why Coalition Building? (continued)
2. Mobilizing and empowering residents

• Create INITIATIVES based on resident-defined
  needs, implemented and evaluated by residents
• SUPPORT existing citizen organizations
• Help create new GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATIONS
• Provide RESOURCES directly to residents (i.e.,
  mini grants)
• Increase opportunities for WORK TOGETHER

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Skills for the Collaborative Leadership

• Be inclusive, promote diversity
• Practice shared decision making
• Resolve conflicts constructively
• Communicate clearly, openly, and honestly
• Facilitate group interaction
• Nurture leadership in others and encourage
  top-level commitment

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Attributes of Successful Collaborative Leaders

• Ability to share power
• Flexibility
• Ability to see the big picture
• Trustworthiness
• Patience
• Abundant energy and hope

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Dos and Donts of Collaborative Leadership

• DO remember to delegate
• DONT try to juggle too many balls
• DONT take it personally
• DO maintain an action orientation
• DONT hog the spotlight
• DONT avoid conflict
• DONT forget to celebrate the small victories

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Definition of Community and Systems Change
New or modified PROGRAMS, POLICIES, PRACTICES
facilitated by the initiative and related to the
mission.
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Principles of Success for Coalition Building

• Start where community is at
• Develop clear mission and goals
• Inclusive membership
• Organizational competence
• Leadership
• Decision making
• Communication
• Planning
• Use of resources

(continued....)
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Principles of Success for Coalition Building
(continued)

• Action and advocacy
• Hope and celebration
• Time and persistence
• Monitoring and assessment

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Factors Affecting Capacity of Coalition to Create
Community Change

• Having a clear vision and mission
• Action planning for community and systems change
• Developing and supporting leadership
• Documentation and ongoing feedback on programs
• Technical assistance and support
• Securing financial resources for the work
• Making outcomes matter

Broader Contributions to Effectiveness of
Partnerships

• Social and economic factors
• Social capital
• Context of the partnership

Fawcett and RoussosAnnual Review Public Health
2000
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Benefits of Involving Grassroots Organizations
and Leaders

• Locally based and driven, can reach high risk
  and hard to reach populations
• Work with formal leaders and with powerful
  informal leaders who have constituencies,
  knowledge, and clout
• Community organizations know what works in their
  communities
• Community organizations are community archivists

(continued....)
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Benefits of Involving Grassroots Organizations
and Leaders (continued)

• Community organizations can promote ownership and
  participation
• They are the best architects of solutions
• Community organizations build local leadership
• Can help to create positive norms in the
  community
• Can promote community ownership and individual
  and collective sense of control

(continued....)
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Identifying the Organized and Unorganized
Sectors of the Community

• Instructions
• Label each of the wheels, one organized and the
  other unorganized. Brainstorm all of the
  possible sectors in each wheel. You can redraw
  the wheels on large flip chart paper and hang it
  in the front of the room.
• When you have finished, turn to the Worksheet 3.
  Follow the instructions.

From Wolff Keye. From the Ground Up.
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AGENCY-BASED AND COMMUNITY-BASED APPROACHES
Healthy Communities Tools

• Mark an X on the continuum for where you
  currently are
• Mark an O on the continuum for where you would
  like to be

Issues
Agency-Based
Continuum
Community-Based
Strength/Competence build capacity
Weakness/Deficit solve problems
Approach/Orientation
By agencies, government, or outside organizations
Definition of problem
By local community
Primary vehicles for creating change
Building community control, increasing community
resources
Education, improved services, individual changes
A resource to communitys problem- solving
Role of professionals
Key, central to decision-making
Role of participation by target community members
and institutions
To increase target community control and
ownership, improved social structure
Providing better services, increasing consumption
and support
page one
References Chavis, D., Florin P. (1990).
Community participation and substance abuse
prevention Rationale, concepts and mechanisms.
Bureau of Drug Abuse Services, County of Santa
Clara. Gillian Kaye, Community Development
Consultants, Brooklyn NY and Tom Wolff AHEC
Community Partners developed the above
instrument based on the work of Chavis and Florin.
c/o AHEC/Community Partners 24 South Prospect
St., Amherst, MA 01002 Telephone [phone]
Fax [phone] Website www.ahecpartners.org -
Email info_at_ahecpartnes.org
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AGENCY-BASED AND COMMUNITY-BASED APPROACHES
Healthy Communities Tools

• Mark an X on the continuum for where you
  currently are
• Mark an O on the continuum for where you would
  like to be

Community-Based
Issues
Agency-Based
Continuum
One of many systems activated to respond to the
needs of a target communitys members
Role of human service agencies and formal helpers
Central mechanism for service delivery
Agency representatives, business leaders, and
government representatives
Primary decision-makers
Indigenous elected leaders
A place to live specific targeted source of
solution internally defined subjective
Broad site of the problem technically and
externally defined consumers
View of community
Target community control of resources
Low
High
Potential for ownership by target community
members
Low
High
References Chavis, D., Florin P. (1990).
Community participation and substance abuse
prevention Rationale, concepts and mechanisms.
Bureau of Drug Abuse Services, County of Santa
Clara. Gillian Kaye, Community Development
Consultants, Brooklyn NY and Tom Wolff AHEC
Community Partners developed the above
instrument based on the work of Chavis and Florin.
page two
c/o AHEC/Community Partners 24 South Prospect
St., Amherst, MA 01002 Telephone [phone]
Fax [phone] Website www.ahecpartners.org -
Email info_at_ahecpartnes.org
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Four Ways to Commit Resources to Increase
Community Engagement

• Mini grants
• Leadership development
• Community outreach workers
• Community organizers