Actions
groundwork
1

Convene Working Group

The process of launching a Just Community starts with bringing together local leaders who share a common vision and are committed to collaboration.

Activities

Identify potential organizations and individuals to participate on the Working Group.

Using the first part of the Working Group Assessment Template, list organizations and individuals who could make strong candidates to join the Working Group. Key considerations include the sector they represent, potential role, and willingness to participate and contribute to advancing an equitable and regenerative development strategy for the community.

List organizations and individuals who are not active or typically underrepresented in neighborhood planning and community development activities. Key considerations include:

  • Does the Working Group represent Black and historically disinvested communities of color?
  • Does the Working Group include community members most at risk from and impacted by climate change?

If you identify an organization, but not a representative from that organization, inquire to identify the right staff member to participate on the Working Group based on their roles and responsibilities relative to the community.

Assess potential Working Group participants.

Using the second part of the Working Group Assessment Template, assess the potential members by answering the following questions:

  • Influence: Rank each of the stakeholder’s power and influence within the community (low to high).
  • Trust: Rank each of the stakeholder levels of community trust (low to high).
  • Capacity: Rank each of the stakeholder by level of capacity to lead and support in the organizing and planning for this work (low to high).
  • Diversity: Identify and rank the stakeholder’s delve of diversity in terms of race, gender, age, income, and lived experience. (low to high).

Create a cumulative score for each stakeholder and reach out to determine their willingness to participate and what role they expect to play. Note this on the Working Group Assessment Template.

Confirm and create Working Group.

Using the results of the assessment above, finalize the Working Group by confirming final membership. Address any gaps or redundancies from the assessment to ensure the Working Group is representative and well positioned to lead this complex work.

Using the Working Group Charter Template, describe the purpose of the Working Group, roles and responsibilities, and key priorities and outcomes for the Working Group.

Engagement

  • The list of potential Working Group members should be vetted among resident leaders and community-based organizations, with a focus on ensuring that the list of potential participants is inclusive of the most pressing community issues raised in the Groundwork phase.
  • It is important to note that the Working Group is responsible primarily for the Groundwork and helping to create the Governing Body.
  • If there is distrust or disunity among Working Group members, third party mediation may be required to elevate and address issues and create ground rules for involvement.

Certification Templates

Certifciation Templates are only available for active APs and Certification candidates.

Resources

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Other Actions in This Phase

2

Preliminary Scoping

To assess a community’s interest in becoming a Just Community, preliminary assessment is necessary. This action provides guidance in identifying drivers for change, conducting a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis, and defining the geographic boundary of work.
3

Listen & Heal

Many communities have endured significant trauma and harm from the cumulative impacts of unjust and racist land use polices and development practices.
4

Map Community Assets

Community asset mapping is a process of identifying a neighborhood’s most significant strengths, which can include physical, economic, cultural, and environmental resources, in addition to local traditions, history, and events that shape the neighborhood’s identity.
5

Summarize

To understand the potential pace of growth (or lack of) in a neighborhood, it is important to understand the underlying drivers of change from land use plans to proposed projects that could spark gentrification.
Previous: Overview
2
Next: Scoping