Sustaining a Legacy Indicator Project Community Indicators Consortium 2014 Impact Summit

About JCCICore Fundamentals Jacksonville-based civic non- profit organization Began in 1974 – celebrating 40 years of community engagement for civic change Bring residents together to learn about community issues, engage in problem- solving, and act to make a difference Community improvement and quality of life Neutral, “safe” ground for public discourse Shared learning Citizen leaders Nimble process Responsive to change in the community over time

Quality of Life Progress Report ~the basics ~ Launched in 1985 in response to a request from the city’s chamber of commerce. Longest running, most consistently published community indicators report in the world. Process: Utilizes a volunteer committee of residents each year to review all indicators and identify key indicators that tell Jacksonville’s story.

Quality of Life Progress Report ~transformation~ Report has changed from lengthy printed document, to a smaller print format. Audience is directed to data site. Alignment with JAX2025 visioning effort. Content transformation: Access & Transparency What data is “important?” What do we do with the data?

Source: ResourcesResponsive Results Challenges: the 4 “R’s” Relevance

Resources Challenge Ensuring Sustainability Obtaining and sustaining the resources needed Staff capacity (time, knowledge, number of staff) is limited Funding for change Use networks and existing community, corporate, and political leadership – as well as new media leaders Leverage congruent initiatives

Relevancy Challenge Ensuring Sustainability Indicator project is no longer connected to or appropriate for the community Lacks meaning Has become irrelevant to or ignored by community Institutionalize the report and publish it at the same time each year so that it’s content becomes reliable Community stakeholders on review committee, include a marketing professional

Results Challenge Ensuring Sustainability Project is not action-oriented; results cannot or are note translated in to action Not achieving community buy-in Not achieving results Cultivate ownership ◦ “They Should” ◦ “You Can” ◦ “I Will” Engage existing community, corporate, and political leadership in a meaningful way

Responsive Challenge Ensuring Sustainability Not changing over time Perceptions versus what is actually going on in the community Not meeting the community “where they’re at” Engage the community: what do they want to measure and why Facilitate two-way information sharing and ongoing communications Pay attention and be involved

Susan Cohn / (904)