Dear Laurin: How do you engage diverse stakeholders fully in a coalition? There are some groups based in communities of color in our coalition, but they don't have the staffing to participate consistently. Sometimes decision-making is held up because representatives aren't at the meetings when decisions need to be made. Any advice? Michelle
Dear Michelle: Thanks for bringing up an important concern. Though you raise the topic in the context of work with coalitions, it is also relevant to other organizations seeking to engage diverse participants. An underlying issue at play is the historical marginalization of communities of color and other groups from civic discourse and decision-making. Many communities have experienced both institutional neglect and intentional efforts to undermine community power. As a result, many communities lack developed infrastructures or resources to participate in coalitions or initiatives. They are often sought out by numerous coalitions and initiatives to "represent" their communities. We offer the following principles, questions and pitfalls to avoid.
1. Be clear about what you want to achieve by engaging diverse stakeholders. Some of the reasons for including diverse communities may be to:
- Gain support and increase the impact and reach of the coalition
- Learn from diverse perspectives on the issues the coalition is set up to address
- Strengthen the voices of diverse communities in the community or policy change
- Build mutually beneficial relationships that can be sustained over time
- Strengthen leadership within the coalition so that it is more reflective of/responsive to diverse communities
Questions to explore:
- How does engaging diverse stakeholders fit into your goals?
- What do you hope to achieve in the short-term and long-term?
- Trying to engage people without clarity about why you want to engage them
- A tokenistic approach where you focus on "getting people to the table" without commitment to authentic partnership and learning
Questions to explore:
- What types of relationships exists with and among the different stakeholders?
- What are different ways to strengthen those relationships and build trust?
- A narrow focus on "getting people to the table", rather than partnership building
- A paternalistic approach that doesn't recognize strengths
- Unwillingness to hear any feedback that isn't positive
- Overlooking the importance of relationship-building and focusing only on tasks
- Focusing prematurely on the formal structure of the relationships
The coalition agenda may or may not be a priority for the organizations you seek to engage. In other words, they may or may not have a stake in what the coalition is doing. Smaller organizations may be supportive of the coalition, but have other priorities, such as building their basic infrastructure and constituency. Recognize where the interests coalesce and where there is a common agenda. Recognize also the different agendas that drive participation/non-participation in the coalition.
Questions to explore:
- What are the priorities of the different stakeholders you wish to engage?
- What are the common interests?
- Can involvement in the coalition add value for their work or help them achieve their goals?
- Do the agendas of the dominant groups within the coalition get in the way?
- Assuming that the coalition issue should be a priority for everyone or that people who don't engage are apathetic.
- Allowing agendas of one or a few groups to dominate the coalition.
Questions to explore:
- What are the best strategies and structures to reach your goals for engaging different stakeholders?
- Are there other strategies, beyond coalition-building that might meet your needs?
- Structuring the coalition in a way the makes it difficult for groups with fewer resources to participate
- Restricting engagement strategies to coalition building
Questions to explore:
- Are there barriers to participation built in to the way the coalition is structured or how it conducts business?
- What type of coalition culture would be most welcoming and inclusive to diverse groups?
- Making assumptions about how to be inclusive without talking to the people you want to engage
- Attachment to the "right" way to do things, leaving no room for exploration
Smaller, less resourced groups are not without power. For example, organizations based in particular communities may have the power to legitimize the coalition or leverage relationships to a particular base of people. They may also hold the power to hold up the process, by being absent when key decisions are made.
Building trust, and being explicit about how decisions will be made and how resources will be used can be one way to address these dynamics. There may also be an option of allocating some resources to "level the playing field" such as supporting smaller organizations to build their infrastructures or providing them with funding and technical assistance to support their participation. Local and national coalitions and initiatives have used this strategy successfully, particularly when there are grant funds available to support coalition work.
Questions to explore:
- How do differences in power and resources impact the coalition and the partnerships between groups?
- What are workable ways to navigate those differences and share power?
- How can different groups in the coalition share their resources and strengths in a way that will benefit everyone?
- Are there ways to invest resources to build infrastructure and support the participation of groups that have fewer resources?
- Ignoring differences in power and resources and operating as if they don't exist.
- Undervaluing the strengths of groups that have fewer resources
- Bringing people to the table without sharing power
- Allowing any group or clique to dominate the coalition
Laurin Mayeno, Mayeno Consulting
Galen Ellis, El-Askari Consulting
More Resources - Here are a few resources on coalition building that you might find helpful:
Developing Coalitions: An Eight-Step Guide, Prevention Institute
The Community Toolbox
Wisconsin Clearinghouse for Prevention Resources
For more information about my work, see my website or read past commentaries on my blog.
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