Community Leadership & Advocacy Training 

CAN DO’s Community Leadership and Advocacy Training is an intense, 8-week curriculum modeled after national best practices.  The training is dedicated to the advancement of leaders who can advocate for the changes needed in their community with an overall goal of building community capacity and empowering residents to address local changes that will facilitate health and quality of life.  However, the skills acquired during this training are applicable across the spectrum of issues communities may face that pose barriers to experiencing and accessing opportunities promoting positive health outcomes.  These skills facilitate the development of a strong foundation to create change and enhance the sustainability of current and future initiatives pursued by community members.  Throughout the training, participants engage in a series of interactive modules and activities that demystify the necessary steps towards addressing community issues.  Participants identify a priority project via group consensus and utilize the information they learn and the resources provided to develop a plan of action that is ready for implementation by the conclusion of the program.  

Participants learn how to engage in the advocacy process, identify and prioritize issues, collect and leverage valuable data, involve key decision makers and stakeholders in the process, and organize their community around important issues in order to seek change.  The ultimate focus of CAN DO’s Community Leadership and Advocacy Training is to train individuals to advocate on behalf of their own community.  The knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable changes are placed in the hands of those who can make real change happen - the community members!  To date, this training has been implemented 10 times across 8 communities and with over 100 resident leaders! It has also been implemented in both English and Spanish!  An increase in community engagement and perceived civic responsibility has developed among advocates that have completed this training.  ​