This approach is a step-by-step process that will get people to participate in making decisions and taking action to improve the place where they live, work, learn, and play.
The process focuses on getting everyone involved in finding ways to protect, restore, or enhance their community’s identity – its heart and soul – over the long term.
Discover a roadmap that will show you how to:
- REACH all demographics in your community by bridging divides and overcoming hurdles
- MOVE the conversation out of city hall and into NEIGHBORHOODS
- ENGAGE and learn from all kinds of PEOPLE: youth to working parents to retirees
- UNCOVER practical, broadly supported SOLUTIONS to local problems
- Discover the POWER of storytelling to reveal what MATTERS MOST to residents
- Identify community VALUES and use them to inform ACTIONS
- Build strong CIVIC CULTURE to inform DECISIONS over the long haul
“The power of Heart & Soul is that it created a critical mass of positivity that overcame old differences that had become obstacles in the community.”
—John Alden, PLANNING COMMISSIONER, Essex Junction, VT
Table of Contents:
Community Heart & Soul
Heart & Soul Principles
How To Use This Field Guide
Heart & Soul Step-by-Step
Phase 1 Lay the Groundwork
Step 1 Get Organized
Task 1.1 Form a core team
Task 1.2 Assess community readiness
Task 1.3 Scope out the process
Task 1.4 Expand the team
Task 1.5 Understand community networks
Step 2 Create a Roadmap
Task 2.1 Refine the proposal
Task 2.2 Design an engagement strategy
Task 2.3 Create a work plan and budget
Step 3 Spread the Word
Task 3.1 Develop a communications strategy
Task 3.2 Prepare communication tools and material
Task 3.3 Build an audience
Phase 2 Explore Your Community
Step 4 Gather Stories
Task 4.1 Listen and learn
Task 4.2 Organize the data
Task 4.3 Share the stories
Step 5 Identify Community Values
Task 5.1 Draft community values and goals
Task 5.2 Review and confirm values and goals
Task 5.3 Finalize values and celebrate
Step 6 Get Oriented
Task 6.1 Examine the situation
Task 6.2 Refine the goals
Phase 3 Make Decisions
Step 7 Develop Options
Task 7.1 Gather ideas
Task 7.2 Turn ideas into options
Step 8 Make Choices
Task 8.1 Evaluate options
Task 8.2 Develop and review recommendations
Task 8.3 Finalize recommendations
Step 9 Formalize Decisions
Task 9.1 Craft the plan
Task 9.2 Adopt the plan
Task 9.3 Celebrate the milestone
Phase 4 Take Action
Step 10 Mobillize Resources
Task 10.1 Set up a stewardship team
Task 10.2 Gather and align resources
Task 10.3 Sustain commitments and momentum
Step 11 Follow Through
Task 11.1 Initiate actions
Task 11.2 Monitor and adjust
Step 12 Cultivate Heart & Soul
Task 12.1 Foster a participatory culture
Task 12.2 Embed values in decision making
Beginning at the Ending
Acknowledgements
