5. Going Public

5. Going Public
.......... Drafting a Community Action Plan

This section is an introduction to a written Community Action Plan. It outlines the steps your coordinating committee can follow to prepare an action plan. They are:

Adapt the process to the community
Solicit input from the community
Draft the Community Action Plan
Review and approve the Pan.

Step 1........... Adapt the Process to the Community
Every community is different. The task of making an action plan fit the needs of the community rests mainly with the Coordinating Committee. That is why ensuring that the committee is dedicated, well defined, and grounded in the community is so important. The initial public consultation event will serve to identify community concerns and priorities. Before the committee undertakes this event, they will need to ensure they are all comfortable with he CAP process. This aspect of CAP development should not be rushed. It is pivotal to the success of the program. As a first step, the Coordinating Committee should:

review the background material (such as this discussion paper), existing municipal strategic plans, existing public consultation processes, and other environmental reports for the municipality;
agree on the purpose and structure of the action plan
review the initial list of community groups and identify a list of groups for each member of the committee to contact personally
establish a work plan and timetable.

A solid, well-defined beginning will ensure a solid, well-defined Community Action Plan.

Step 2.......... Solicit input from the community.
In preparing an action plan for your area, it is essential to determine how you can reach each and every member of your community. Involving as many diverse community groups as possible will allow the plan to reach a large percentage of the population.

There are many ways to canvass community groups and the public for ideas that can become part of your action plan. Here are some suggestions:

Issue a press release to announce the project, introduce the members of the coordinating committee, and request public involvement
Advertise through local newspapers
Contact local businesses to solicit their involvement. The local Chamber of Commerce can play a lead role in coordinating the involvement of the business community in the Action Plan. The Coordinating Committee can assist by matching businesses with appropriate community projects
Contact key groups directly. Distribute a questionnaire to community groups to solicit their suggestions for community-based projects. (See box below)
Host a public meeting. A public meeting allow provide the community with an opportunity to learn about Community Action Plans and to discuss their initial priorities.

A Community Questionnaire

Keep it simple. We suggest three questions:

1) What are the priority issues for our community?

List the major issues you feel we need to address in our community. They will probably be local issues, but you can also include global, national and regional concerns.

2) What can your group do to help?

Give a short summary (one or two paragraphs) of any existing or planned projects, activities, or resources that will help to address the priority issues. For projects, include:

a description of the project,
the people and organizations involved,
its status (e.g. planned, or third year of operation), and
anticipated benefits

If possible, please attach a detailed description and work plan, including material, tools and equipment that will be needed and sources from which they can be obtained, the approvals required to initiate the project, and the funding requirements and sources of funds.

3) What support do you need?

For each of the above activities, provide a summary of the support that would improve your ability to carry out your projects. Include any other suggestions you may have for support material and services that would help to improve your organization's ability to educate the public and involve them in environmental projects (e.g. training, educational material, equipment, expert advisors).

Step 3........... Draft the Community Action Plan
Once the initial consultation has been completed and community groups and businesses have been contacted directly, the Coordinating Committee will need to meet on a more regular basis to prepare the Action Plan. There are five basic steps in this process:

a) Identify a community vision:
Did one or two issues emerge as priorities for your plan? Draw from the results of public consultation, other existing reports on environmental issues, statements from the participating groups on their existing priorities, and any other relevant documents.

b) Assess each project:
Review the projects and priorities submitted by the community groups. Assess each project's merits and select those that fall within the mandate of the CAP. Include proposed projects as well as existing ones. Include both short-term and long-term projects and activities in the plan. Short-term projects ensure immediate results whereas the long-term projects can lead to high profile and significant results

c) Develop partnerships in support of each project:
For each project, identify the partners and their respective roles. The committee and the community coordinator should be prepared to contact individual groups with suggestions on how their project can be strengthened or supported through a partnership with another group. Although this process can be time consuming, it is essential to the integrity of the plan. Recognize that as the plan is implemented, partnerships may change.

d) Identify possible community-wide campaigns:
For those issues where there is a large degree of support, the committee may wish to consider proposing a community-wide campaign within which the committee and/or other lead organizations would coordinate a series of community projects.

e) Prepare a draft plan:
The project coordinator should compile all the information (e.g. community priorities, coordinating committee members, short-term and long-term projects, and potential community-wide campaigns) to create a draft of the action plan. The committee can then review the overall plan and suggest other activities that could be initiated by community groups. For example, your community may have several tree-planting projects on the go, and a "Pitch-In" campaign to pick up litter, but there may be no long-term care for a local greenspace. You can recommend that a group "adopt" the area, keep it clean and look after newly-planted trees.

Include also any recommendations the committee wishes to make for public or private sector support programs. For example, you may feel the community needs more expert advice and training on tree-planting. With identification of this need, the provincial forestry and environmental organizations, and the provincial and federal governments will be encouraged to develop improved support programs.

When the vision of the community has been developed into a strategy, with individual projects and goals, the committee should revisit the process of identifying funding needs and resources. A more detailed action plan will help identify specifics for funding proposals and applicable programs.

Use the following sample Table of Contents to identify essential elements of your Community Action Plan.

Community Action Plan

Suggested Table of Contents

Cover Letter: a letter to the community from the Mayor or community leader

Introduction: a description of the purpose of the Action Plan an how it was developed

Community Profile: a brief overview of the distinguishing characteristics of the municipality and the priority issues

The Action Plan:

a description of the issues and community goals
lead organizations from each sector
current activities and projects
suggestions for new projects or a community-wide campaign

Resources:

where to go for financial support
where to get advice and educational material
where to get donated products or services

Network: a contact list of key groups, government departments and others who are supporting the Community Action Plan

Step 4........... Review and Approve the Plan
Once the committee is satisfied with the draft plan, it will need to undergo public review. Distribute the draft to your community group network, the participating businesses, and the local government in advance of a public meeting.

The review will identify any weaknesses, and help to solidify public support for the plan. The comments received can be reviewed by the committee before the final version is prepared. The coordinating committee and each of the sponsoring organizations should approve the final version before it is printed.

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