Making a collective impact

Collective impact approaches must address and embrace complexity.

Increasingly, there are more and more public health movements organizing around the task of preventing adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and addressing early predictors of poor health later in life. These approaches include considering the impacts of systemic oppression and are supportive of restorative justice efforts by increasing community capacity and growing robust, trauma-informed systems. However, in order to do this effectively, a number of key movement players are required. Trends in the direction of a coordinated systems or collaborative approach are allowing us to address the limitations and gaps that currently exist between movements and to find common areas of alignment. Recognizing that health, wellness, and social justice is not the responsibility of a single discipline or agency –​ but rather a shared framework from which we operate – is essential to creating lasting change. We work more fully and effectively when we work together.

Here are some items to consider when coordinating a collective impact approach to our work:

• Who are those allies working to achieve the same or similar outcomes?
• Define a common agenda - what is the shared vision among partners?
• Ensure shared accountability
• Coordinate mutually reinforcing strategies and activities that saturate communities using various realms of influence
• Work to achieve continuous communication among partners
• Coordinate and convene ongoing backbone support via a stakeholder group, steering committee, etc.

See examples of how this can look.