Organizing Multiple Conversations Across Your Community June 25, 2013

Building a planning team Recruiting facilitators and participants Planning for action Today We Will Discuss

Presenters Martha McCoy Executive Director, Everyday Democracy Daniel Clark Deputy Director, AmericaSpeaks

Poll Question

National Dialogue on Mental Health "Only 40% of people with mental illness receive treatment. We would not accept that for any other disease...." President Obama "We have to change hearts and minds..." Secretary Sebelius

What is Creating Community Solutions? Effort to organize hundreds of community conversations and action plans Ten lead sites Wide variety of other events: small discussions, online dialogues, large planning processes

Creating Community Solutions Website

Goals of the Conversations Break down misperceptions and promote recovery and healthy communities Find innovative community-based solutions to mental health needs, focusing on young people Develop steps for communities to move forward, complements existing local activities

Benefits of Having Multiple Conversations Generates awareness Builds relationships Generates ideas for action Involves many kinds of people Community-wide impact

Creating a Planning Team The purpose of the planning team is to: Establish diverse partnerships Plan the conversations Recruit facilitators Recruit participants Plan for action

Conversation groups Each conversation group: Includes 8-10 people Includes diverse participants Has two facilitators Uses the Community Conversation Discussion Guide to help structure the conversation

Sequence of the Conversations Starting the conversation Identify challenges Focusing on youth Community solutions

Conversation Format One day event One half or full day event at large venue Conversations happen throughout the day with opportunities to share ideas Multiple conversations over several days or weeks Large events to launch dialogues and share ideas Small groups meet four times for two hours each -or-

Develop Your Message Your invitation should answer these questions: What are we doing? What are we trying to accomplish? Why does this matter to the person you’re speaking with?

Strategize on How to Reach Out to Potential Participants Face-to-face conversations Phone calls Presentations Traditional media Online media Sample conversations

Take Extra Steps to Recruit These Groups Youth: Think about creative ways to recruit from youth-led groups, as well as schools, clubs, sports teams or other organizations that serve youth. People who have lived experience and recovering from mental health problems: Think about reaching out to recovery groups, support groups, and organizations that support people with mental health challenges and their families. Culturally and economically diverse groups: Find a spokesperson or leader in these communities who can help spread the word. Also, seek out informal leaders from local businesses or community clubs.

Identify and Train Facilitators Find trainers skilled in facilitation Plan and schedule trainings Recruit potential facilitators, including youth

Event Details Location Schedule Childcare Translators Refreshments Transportation Arrangements for hearing- or visually-impaired participants Distributing materials to team members

Planning for Action At a one-day event, people will share action ideas at the end of the day If you’re holding multiple conversations, you need to plan a separate event During the program, participants should: Share ideas from their conversation group Prioritize action ideas Create action teams

Questions?

Thank You! Martha McCoy Executive Director Everyday Democracy Daniel Clark Deputy Director AmericaSpeaks For Any Questions, please contact: Matt Leighninger Executive Director Deliberative Democracy Consortium Today’s Panelist: