How can community outreach collaborations be sustained?

Sustaining community outreach hinges on trust. In a project with The Asia Foundation, engaging women from blue-collar families, trust was the linchpin. I immersed myself in their lives, becoming a consistent presence. This trust paved the way for a 45-day employability skills training. Twenty-five women, now employed, embody the ripple effect — improved living standards, enhanced nutrition, and better education for their children. Beyond individual impact, trust contributes to fulfilling Sustainable Development Goals. Trust, as witnessed in this journey, is the catalyst for lasting change, underscoring the intrinsic connection between genuine engagement, trust, and sustainable community development.

It’s not impossible to sustain Community Outreach Collaborations among relevant stakeholders or organisations with similar missions and agenda, Community Outreach Collaborations can be sustained through collective planning and result based action plan with adequate budgeting towards the actualisation of set objectives. Sincerity of purpose and trust building are very fundamental in achieving sustainable Community Outreach Collaboration; however, organisations or individuals involved must avoid the pitfall of trying to outrun one another for relevance.

Son valores importantes, que trazan el éxito en cualquier intervención comunitaria. La comunicación más que ser regular debe ser asertiva y auténtica. Un aspectos importantes que se debe considerar es la reciprocidad del proceso, no podemos hablar de comunicación sin recibir retroalimentación de nuestros receptores.

Collaboration Levels: Aim for collaboration and empowerment, not just information sharing or consultation. Engage the community in decision-making and resource-sharing1. Facilitation: Use facilitation techniques to foster inclusivity. Facilitators guide discussions, ask questions, and encourage consensus-based decisions1. Remember, a shared vision creates a sense of purpose and drives collaborative action. By thinking inclusively and involving the community, you’ll build stronger partnerships and achieve meaningful outcomes1. 🌟

Build strong relationship, trust and network with target communities. Fully communicate the benefits of outreach If possible use community leaders, workers who fully understand the needs of their people

Community outreach collaborations are typically created from an original idea…That idea is almost always in consideration of another entity able to be called on to create the outcome being sought out. Whether information seeking, reliance on others for resources you don’t have, or larger needs…networks and relationships need to be in place to extend or be extended support. Networking and nurturing those built relationships not only allows individuals, social workers, and larger organizations to grow in their own networks, but become diversified and more valuable to outside networks given these different skills learned from those different environments.

I believe that community outreach collaborations heavily relies on nurturing relationships and networks. Considering the Social Exchange Theory which posits that individuals engage in social relationships based on the expectation of reciprocity and mutual benefit. Herein, nurturing relationships within community outreach collaborations aligns with the principles of social exchange theory by fostering trust and cooperation among partners who expect to receive support and benefits in return for their contributions. This also requires regular and open communication with the community stakeholders and recipients, and investing time and effort in building strong relationships and involving them in decision-making processes.

In my experience community outreach relationships are sustainable due to nurturing the relationships and networks. Outreach programs heavily rely on partnership and networking. Those relationships must be watered in order to sustain reciprocating results that benefit both agencies. Showing up for various partnerships events, standing in the gap for them when they can't show up builds trust, respect, and secures that the relationship can continue to be built on a solid foundation. Sustaining and nurturing these partnerships allow you to do real work with the populations you serve. It gives you access to the agencies you partner with's network which is important when doing this work.

Dictionary.com defines a community as “a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government, and often have a common cultural and historical heritage.” Building and maintaining relationships and partnerships is very important in community outreaches. It requires bringing people together and collaborating with third parties to deliver value to members.

Nurture relationships and networks: My experience and my style: Sowing & Reaping 1. A deep secret that I have learned in my life is sowing and reaping. Sacrificial sowing is the key for nurturing relationships. 2. Network is the result of true and trusting relationship that is transmitted without speaking to others. 3. People will easily identify our intentions in a short span of time which is the key for net work.

Here are some key points to consider: Inclusivity: Involve all relevant stakeholders in shaping the vision and goals. This ensures diverse perspectives and ownership of the process1. Needs Assessment: Understand the community’s needs and strengths. Conduct surveys, interviews, or focus groups to gather insights. This data will inform your vision and goals1. Remember, a shared vision creates a sense of purpose and drives collaborative action. By thinking inclusively and involving the community, you’ll build stronger partnerships and achieve meaningful outcomes1. 🌟

Securing and managing resources to ensure sustainable community outreach collaboration involves strategic planning and decision making. In working with community needs, it is expected that there will be gaps and issues on resources, hence learning to maximize what is possible and strategize how things could be done with the resources at hand is a skill helpful to ensure plans and project are implemented given limited resources while continuously engaging other potential partners that could contribute to augment to the resources needed. Transparency is also important as it allows responsible use of the available resources and would suggest integrity to the project implementers and trust to the community being served.

A maximização do uso de recursos contribui para manter o espaço de trabalho como um todo. Se há o bom uso das ferramentas, a pareceria comunitária se mantém firme e duradoura.

Inclusivity: Involve all relevant stakeholders in shaping the vision and goals. This ensures diverse perspectives and ownership of the process1. Needs Assessment: Understand the community’s needs and strengths. Conduct surveys, interviews, or focus groups to gather insights. This data will inform your vision and goals1. Collaboration Levels: Aim for collaboration and empowerment, not just information sharing or consultation. Engage the community in decision-making and resource-sharing1. Facilitation: Use facilitation techniques to foster inclusivity. Facilitators guide discussions, ask questions, and encourage consensus-based decisions1.

1. Track progress and impact: Measure success through agreed-upon metrics aligned with initial goals, capturing both quantitative data (e.g., number of people served) and qualitative feedback (e.g., participant satisfaction). 2. Share results transparently: Communicate outcomes clearly and openly to all partners, highlighting achievements and areas for potential improvement. 3. Celebrate successes together: Recognize and celebrate the collective effort and impact, fostering a sense of shared accomplishment and motivating continued collaboration.

A avaliação de resultados deve fazer parte de toda a atividade profissional. Esse pode dar um diagnóstico dos impactos das atividades realizadas, bem como alocamento de recursos.

Building trust and relationships amongst your community members. Establish a clear and shared vision and goals for the partnership.

Acknowledging community member's effort and contribution to the success of the community outreach collaboration is also a factor for sustainability. Reward in a form of appreciation, affirmation, and or simple recognition would develop self esteem and confidence to the community member and eventually would influence other member to be more committed and value the community project towards achieving community goal.