Work Together
Communities come in many different sizes, shapes and colors. They vary widely in their assets and needs, in the priorities they select to address, and the policies and programs they implement to improve the health of local populations. As a result, community health improvement efforts also vary. In the midst of all this variety is one constant: people working together.
There are at least three key aspects of working together:
- Leadership -- your community will need one or more people to play a lead role in improving your community's health. There are a number of organizations that can help with leadership development and skillbuilding.
-
Partnerships -- people and organizations from many sectors of the community can partner together to help improve community health. With a shared vision and commitment to improved health, working together can yield better results than working alone.
- Eight-Step Guide to Developing Effective Coalitions (from the Prevention Institute)
- Collaboration Multiplier (from the Prevention Institute)--offers multi-disciplinary coalitions an interactive framework for evaluating each partner's skills.
- Community Health Partnerships: Tools and Information for Development and Support
- Creating and Maintaining Coalitions and Partnerships (from the Community Toolbox)
-
Community capacity building -- capacity building is a form of community development that focuses on increasing the ability of people and organizations to create local solutions to local problems.
- The Community Development Handbook: A Tool to Build Community Capacity (from Human Resources Development Canada)
- Measuring Community Capacity Building: A Workbook in Progress for Rural Communities (from the Aspen Institute)
- Healthy People Healthy Places -- Civic Engagement/Capacity Building Resources (from the Convergence Partnership)
