Resources and case stories to help facilitate partnerships
between local governments and community based organizations.
Community-based organizations can offer unique and important
insights into the challenges and opportunities facing residents
in their area and can help local officials improve their ability
to communicate and connect with a wide range of community
members.
This video highlights Lodi’s Love Your
Block program. The effort has provided
leadership training to 60 community members and supported
the exploration of local projects conceived by Love Your
Block participants. The story focuses on the transformation
of a blighted vacant lot into a ‘greened’ space that
showcases a two-story mural.
Many local officials have a rich network of community
relationships, yet this list of groups may not come to mind when
a public agency is planning a public meeting. Use this inventory
of various kinds of community organizations to help broaden the
reach of your public engagement and create a ready resource for
each engagement effort.
Collaborating with local community-based organizations can
enhance the breadth and depth of participation by community
residents in local decision-making. This publication reviews the
benefits of partnering, selecting partners, types of partnerships
and the conditions that support effective collaboration. It also
outlines common challenges with community partnerships and offers
guidance on how to avoid them.
Review innovative research that compares the views of local
government officials and leaders of civic and community
organizations about public participation in California. One
of the key findings is about the role of partnerships.
Some local agencies are involved in multi-sector collaboratives
that are using a specific framework for aligning their efforts
called “Collective Impact.” The Stanford Social Innovation Review
has been a thought leader in this area and the link on the right
is to an article about putting Collective Impact theory into
practice.
Communities throughout California hold either at-large elections
or district based elections. With the passage of the California
Voting Rights Act (CVRA) in 2001, every community has an
opportunity to elect candidates of their choice.