Center for Civic Partnerships

Sustainability Toolkit:
10 Steps to Maintaining Your Community Improvements

Discover How to Sustain the Improvements You've Made in Your Community's Health and/or Quality of Life.

The Sustainability Toolkit: 10 Steps to Maintaining Your Community Improvements grew out of the Center for Civic Partnerships’ efforts to provide technical support to collaboratives and organizations on sustaining their community improvements. As we tested different processes with groups, we developed a 10-step process to guide communities through sustainability planning. Below is Table of Contents of the 10 steps. We have provided links to additional reading at the end. If you would like descriptions of the activities and additional tools for sustainability based on these steps, you can download the toolkit order form at Sustainability Toolkit or call 916-646-8680 to have an order form sent to you.

We provide a variety of training and consultation services to help groups develop, implement and sustain community improvements. We would welcome an opportunity to discuss how the sustainability process and materials might be of benefit to your organization or coalition. Please contact us at 916-646-8680 for additional information, current references and/or rates.

The Sustainability Toolkit contains:

Examples and stories from communities throughout the nation
Activities you can complete, which are included on a CD-Rom
Sample plans, timelines, and completed activities
Tips and resources

Funded by a grant from The California Wellness Foundation

Ordering the Sustainability Toolkit:

To download the Sustainability Toolkit brochure (including order form) in PDF format, click here:

Sustainability Toolkit Brochure

To print out the just the order form, click here:

Sustainability Toolkit Order Form

The cost of the Toolkit is $90.00 each (includes shipping & handling charges).
All orders must be prepaid. Please make checks payable to: Public Health Institute

Toolkit Table of Contents (Partial)

Introduction - 10 Steps To Sustainability

Step 1 – Create A Shared Understanding Of Sustainability
Activity – Sustainability Quiz

Step 2 – Position Your Effort To Increase Your Sustainability Odds
Activity – Ways to Increase Your Sustainability Odds

Step 3 – Create A Plan To Work Through The Process
10 Steps to Sustainability – Sample Schedule

Step 4 – Look At The Current Picture And Pending Items

Step 5 – Develop Criteria To Help Determine What To Continue
Potential Criteria for Determining Which Efforts to Continue
Activity – Criteria Grid

Step 6 – Decide What To Continue And Prioritize
Activity – Sustainability Decisions

Step 7 – Create Options For Maintaining Your Priority Efforts (including funding issues
Activity – Current Funding Matrix
Activity – Justification for Continued Support
Strategies for Obtaining Financial Resources
Activity – Connections Map

Step 8 – Develop A Sustainability Plan
Sample Sustainability Plans

Step 9 – Implement Your Sustainability Plan

Step 10 – Evaluate Your Outcomes And Revise As Needed

Resources

“Part of the sustainability process is figuring out who’s going to do what. By working through the steps of the sustainability process, people have to step up and figure out what they’re going to do. The sustainability process is great at creating better accountability among groups in a partnership.”

-Michele Erickson,
Director
Anderson Partnership for Healthy Children

“This is such a unique contribution in public health. We often talk about sustainability, but it is so valuable to have the tools to actually do it. The transfer from talking about sustainability to something you can put your hands on is so helpful.”

- Cindy Green,
Program Manager
Spokane Regional Health District