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Phase One: Project Launch
Step One: Invite key participants to be part of a planning committee. Finding a group of interested people to help with the development of the Healthy Cities/Communities project should begin as soon as the decision to start a project is made. This group should contain representatives from a multitude of perspectives, such as the local hospital, service organizations, religious groups, schools, key elected and appointed officials, representatives from community services, civic associations, city planners, the local health department, the chamber of commerce or individual business leaders, and private citizens. Some of these key participants might include individuals from the following groups:
- Citizens
- Elected officials
- Parks and Recreation Department
- Religious Groups
- Business Sector (large and small businesses)
- Hospitals
- Police Department
- Public Works Department
- Community Groups
- City Planners
- Transportation Department
- Local Colleges or Universities
- Justice Practitioners
- School System/Teachers
- Kids and Teenagers
- Environmental Groups
- Developers
- Economic Development Department
- Nonprofit Sector/Foundations
- Health Department
- Local Media
- Senior Citizens
Step Two: Get organized for your first planning meeting. Set an agenda that will get your project started. Compile as much information about the Healthy Community concept and your local community prior to the meeting to provide information for all participants. You may want to do a very general assessment of community resources and have some information about local health indicators available for the participants of this initial meeting. It might also be useful to compile anecdotal information from other cities/communities who have organized thriving Healthy Community projects to present at the planning committee's first meeting.
Step Three: Hold your planning committee's first meeting. Present the information, discuss the concept, share ideas about what a Healthy Community would mean in your community. Healthy communities can be defined in different ways by different people. In creating a healthier community, it is helpful to envision how your ideal community would look. This can be a very informal "brainstorming" process. Some groups conduct vision workshops in which they imagine themselves at some point in the future living in a Healthy Community. In these workshops, participants think about how this community will look, what activities will be taking place, etc. ****Create a link to Trevor Hancock's article. "How to Facilitate a Vision Workshop" from May/June 93 issue of the Healthcare Forum Journal.
Step Four: Establish general objectives. It is wise to begin new programs with short-term projects. the community can learn from these initial projects and gain confidence in the community's ability to tackle more complex issues. this provides a starting point for more extensive change, which may require long-term initiatives and multiple short-term projects.
Step Five: Celebrate the official launch of your project. Make certain that the media is aware of the launching of your project and that there is information available for individuals and groups who are not represented in the planning committee to acquire information about future meetings and events.
Once a project has been launched it will be necessary to put together a detailed "Action Plan".
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