Coalition Building Tips

• Maximize your impact through joint action! Through coalitions you can pool talents and resources, gain widespread public support, and avoid duplication of efforts.

• Identify an issue for which unified action through a coalition would seem more fruitful than individual or group action.

• Define the scope of the situation that the coalition will address.

• Define the geographical or jurisdictional territory to be included within the coalition.

• Identify organizations that should be involved in the coalition.

• Be sure no organization regards the territory defined by the coalition as its exclusive domain.

• Compare the commitment of other organizations with that of your group to decide whether collaboration would speed up or slow down your progress.

• Invite the organizations to join your coalition.

• Be available to meet with their boards of directors or members to present the case for joining.

• Develop your proposal based on the other groups' specific interests.

• When your group is invited to join a coalition, examine the concerns and requirements of the coalition in relation to your organization's program and to the interests and resources of your organization.

• Evaluate the commitment of your organization and that of the other organizations to addressing the issue. Decide whether the commitment is strong enough to merit involvement in the coalition.

• Weigh the human and financial costs to your group against the benefits of participating in the coalition to see whether joining the coalition would be worthwhile.

• If necessary, secure approval of your board to join the coalition.

• Determine whether any single organization seeks to dominate the coalition, and if so, why; assess whether such a desire poses a threat to the coalition or your group's positions.

These tips are included in the Girls Can! Community Coalitions Resource Manual, originally published by the AAUW Educational Foundation in 1996. The second edition of the manual will be available Fall 1999. To order this or any other AAUW publication, see the AAUW Sales Catalog.

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