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OUR MODEL

BUILDING CAPACITY FOR SOCIAL CHANGE

Building Capacity for Social Change (BCSC) is a strategic approach to engaging communities of color in a transformational process to address chronic socio-economic disparities and significantly improve the quality of life. The BCSC model is the conceptual framework that defines and integrates the programs and services offered by NCDI. Within this framework, our firm is implementing new methodologies to improve the delivery, advance knowledge and establish professional standards for capacity-building work in communities of color.

BCSC is a four-phased process designed to facilitate and support the social change process in communities of color. The four phases are (1) Designing the Initiative, (2) Community Planning; (3) Community Revitalization, and (4) Community Sustainability.

Theory of Change

The capacity-building model developed by NCDI is based on our 20 years of field experience as a technical assistance provider in communities of color. Over the past two decades, NCDI has provided technical assistance services to more than one thousand organizations in thirty-two states.

Based on our extensive experience, NCDI has developed the following theory of change to guide our capacity-building work in communities of color:

There is a critical need for communities of color to develop the indigenous capacity to achieve social change evidenced by significant improvement in socio-economic conditions, redistribution of power and resources, and transformation of institutional systems.

Customized, culturally-based, capacity-building programs are a fundamental pre-requisite for engaging communities of color in a genuine social change process.

The three primary goals of capacity-building are (1) organizing and engaging people, (2) strengthening indigenous institutions and (3) developing and transforming communities.

The four phases of the capacity-building process are:

• Designing an initiative through project development;
• Community planning through visioning and strategy development;
• Community revitalization through neighborhood renewal programs;
• Community sustainability through comprehensive community development.

At each phase of the capacity-building process, the six focal areas of transformational activity are:

• Community Outreach/Civic Engagement: Informing and engaging constituents and key stakeholder groups;
• Community Infrastructure Development: Training indigenous leadership; developing stable organizations and building the institutional capacity for social change;
• Relationship Building: Establishing relationships and forging strong partnerships across racial and cultural fault lines;
• Community Development: Improving the quality of life by changing material and social conditions;
• Organizing and Advocacy for Institutional Change: Empowering the community to achieve institutional change and policy reform; and
• Community Research and Evaluation: Compiling information on the assets and needs of the community.

Working in partnership with NCDI and its network of culturally-diverse consultants, communities of color can design and fulfill their own social transformation process through:

• Building social awareness and engaging diverse constituency groups in a comprehensive community-building process (Outreach and Education);
  
• Establishing capacity building programs to develop indigenous leadership and sustainable community-based institutions (Community Infrastructure Development);
  
• Achieving higher levels of social organization evidenced by positive neighbor-to-neighbor relations, multi-ethnic/multi-issue/multi-sector partnerships, and institutional diversity (Relationship Building);
  
• Implementing neighborhood revitalization programs and forming service delivery networks to change physical, economic and social conditions (Comprehensive Community Development);
  
• Forming strategic alliances and implementing local/regional policy initiatives that promote systemic institutional change with community accountability (Organizing and Advocacy for Institutional Change).

As a result of NCDI's capacity-building program, there will be stronger, healthier, more resilient communities of color with the leadership, community infrastructure, and civic participation to effect social change, shape public policy and influence the political economy in a diverse society.

*Through its predecessor, Community Development Institute (CDI), a community-based organization in East Palo Alto, whose mission is to assist diverse, low-income communities to combat the causes of racism and poverty.