1. RMAPI Town Hall Meeting
May 21, 2018

3. What is RMAPI?
The Rochester-Monroe Anti-Poverty Initiative (RMAPI) is a multi-sector community collaborative whose aim is to improve quality of life by reducing poverty and increasing self-sufficiency.
We are the Convener - RMAPI is creating a new philosophy and practices – to bring about systemic Sustainable Change
Unlike other initiatives, we are community informed, we have the voice, input and involvement of people who are living in poverty. We had over 400 institutions involved since the beginning and more than 1,000 people from the community have shared their voice.

4. Focus Increasing household income
Improving affordability and accessibility of basic needs
Reducing the concentration of poverty
To pursue these goals, RMAPI will focus on systems change related to barriers and root causes (rather than program delivery). RMAPI will focus specifically on changing connections, beliefs, understanding, coordination, policies and practices within the systems that affect poverty. These changes will lead to incremental improvements at each point a person in poverty touches systems. Though alone each of these changes may be small, the sum of these improvements over time will be substantial.

5. We are NOT A service provider A funder A competitor A program
We do not administer funds nor do we compete for funding

6. Collective Impact
Collective impact brings people together, in a structured way, to achieve social change
Partners across the community work from a common agenda and a shared set of goals
Community input is key
Collective Impact is a framework to tackle deeply entrenched and complex social problems. It brings together stakeholders from across government, business, philanthropy, non-profit organizations and citizens to achieve significant and lasting social change. These stakeholders are called on to abandon their own agendas in favor of a common agenda, shared measurement, and alignment of efforts. RMAPI provides the backbone organization that coordinates all of these efforts.

7. Five Tenets of Collective Impact
Common Agenda
A common goal (reducing poverty by 50% in 15 years) along with three guiding principles: addressing structural racism, addressing trauma, and building community.
Shared Measurement
A common set of outcomes and indicators to help track progress toward our goals.
Mutually Reinforcing Activities
Established strategies to coordinate activities in alignment with the Common Agenda.
Continuous Communication
Internal and external communications along with regular updates from working groups.
Backbone Organization
The backbone coordinates efforts and provides management support to working groups and other partners.
There have been many other successes as the community comes together around the anti-poverty goals laid out through RMAPI workgroups. The community has responded in a number of ways, from the City of Rochester’s OWNRochester providing jobs at a neighborhood level to the Kiva Rochester program to the Rochester Area Community Foundation’s adoption of the guiding principles in funding guidelines.

8. Collective Impact In Action
Community responses
The collective impact process calls on all partners to acknowledge and identify the many factors that cause and sustain poverty and then come together around common goals to take them on. The community has responded in a number of ways.
Collective impact successes:
Bridges to Success/Family Independence Initiative
$4.75 Million early childhood funding
Kiva Rochester and OWNRochester
Raise the Age legislation
1,200 fewer people in poverty
There have been many other successes as the community comes together around the anti-poverty goals laid out through RMAPI workgroups. The community has responded in a number of ways, from the City of Rochester’s OWNRochester providing jobs at a neighborhood level to the Kiva Rochester program to the Rochester Area Community Foundation’s adoption of the guiding principles in funding guidelines.

9. Local economic development “win”
Brewery expansion with poverty impact
Expansion plans 128 new jobs for Rochester; half promised to people living in poverty.
RMAPI in ACTION - Good news that local businesses and state funding are starting to align with poverty reduction priorities.
Poverty Impact Statement-The Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council worked with RMAPI to incorporate the guiding principles into the funding application process for those seeking state funding. The council create a Poverty Impact Statement for applicants to define how their proposed project aligns with community goals around poverty reduction.
Recent expansions have come with job commitments for people affected by poverty, including Genesee Brewery’s $49 million expansion. Half of the 128 jobs created are set aside for people living in poverty.

10. RMAPI Guiding Principles
Shared values, new community mindset
Address Structural Racism
Address Trauma
Community Building
The Guiding Principles are overarching themes that all decisions, policies and practices will be measured against
Work groups and thousands of volunteers came to the conclusion that these principles needed to be addressed in order to effectively solve poverty challenges; this is what sets the initiative apart from others in the past

11. Community Building Lift neighborhood voice, create shared power
Build relationship equity
Increase neighborhood financial stability
A common theme expressed by people affected by poverty is a desire to remain in their neighborhoods, but the condition is that these neighborhoods meet their needs. These needs include affordable housing, access to nutritious foods, neighborhood safety, quality education, youth development, local business development, and neighborhood community centers.
This guiding principle includes a broad set of goals that would meet these needs and strengthen our neighborhoods. These goals include lifting the neighborhood voice to create shared power, building relationship equity by creating opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to interact and build positive relationships, and increasing neighborhood financial stability and economic self-sufficiency.

12. Participatory Budgeting
Gives power directly to residents to decide what is best for neighborhoods
Builds relationships among neighbors
Projects address poverty and create economic opportunity
The Participatory Budgeting process addresses these community needs. It gives power directly to residents to decide what is most important to them and to their neighborhoods. Members of the public define their own goals for these projects, and a steering committee made up of community members will oversee the phases of idea collection, proposal development, and voting. These members will also oversee the evaluation of the process.
RMAPI’s state budget contains up to $200,000 to fund these neighborhood projects.

13. Participatory Budgeting in Action

14. If you could pick one project to help your neighborhood, what would it be? Now is your chance to decide!
Participants will be able to take part in the idea collection process tonight.