Taking Community Empowerment to Scale
Hat tip to Michael Gilbert for alerting me to this 2007 report from the Health Communication Partnership called Taking Community Empowerment to Scale. I am currently working on a few pilot projects as part of our work in Ukraine under the Ukraine Citizen Action Network. Perfect timing to read this report as I am thinking about how to set these pilots up to easily scale if they prove useful and relevant to citizens in Ukraine. I was struck by the 14 recommendations…these are integral to how ISC does its programming and crucial when working to mainstream advocacy and citizen engagement into every day life.
(1) Have a vision for scale from the beginning. (2) Choose pilot sites carefully. (3) Aim for high impact. (4) Develop solid partnerships with existing organizations at all levels. (5) Involve partners from other sectors. (6) Work with and foster the emergence and growth of dynamic community and political leaders. (7) Strengthen systems and organizational capacity. (8) Promote horizontal networking. (9) Test the approach. (10) Consolidate, define and refine. (11) Document with guides and tools. (12) Continuously monitor and evaluate. (13) Recognize achievement and publicize program results. (14) Diversify the funding base and encourage community ownership. Citation: Gail Snetro-Plewman, Marcela Tapia, Valerie Uccellani, Angela Brasington, Maureen McNulty (June 2007). Taking community empowerment to scale—Lessons from three successful experiences. (Health Communication Insights.) Baltimore: Health Communication Partnership based at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health/Center for Communication Programs.
Tags: community, empowerment, scale, ukraine