Using Maps in Community-Based Research

information + action for social change

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How to Participate Today

Presenters

Maidel LuevanoProject Coordinator

Healthy City

Leila ForouzanResearch Analyst

Healthy City

Nayamin MartinezProgram Manger

Alliance for California Traditional Arts (ACTA)

Healthy City is a program of

Championing the struggle for greater equity and opportunity for all, Advancement Project California fosters upward mobility in communities most impacted by economic and racial injustice.We build alliances and trust, use data-driven policy solutions, create innovative tools and work alongside communities.

We ignite social transformation!

Integrity * Innovation * Capacity-Building * Collaboration * Audacity * Equity *

What We Do

DIRECT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE:

Work ON‐THE‐GROUND to develop targeted 

research/policy strategies and web tools. 

COMMUNITY RESEARCH LAB

Engages, trains, and provides tools for 

community groups to lead and sustain action‐oriented 

research

ONLINE MAPPING TECHNOLOGYwww.HealthyCity.org

Fuel social change and empower communities!

HealthyCity.orgWebsite

Service Provider

Case Manager

Policy  Advocate

Funder

Community Organizer

Researcher

Who Uses HealthyCity.org?

Grant Writer

Agenda• Icebreaker

• Case Study: Alliance for California Traditional Arts

• Introduction to Community-Based Participatory Action Research (CBPAR)

• Case Study: Community Coalition and Healthy City

• Community-Engaged Mapping on Healthy City

• Wrap Up

• Understand Healthy City’s research approach through the use of Community-Based Participatory Action Research (CBPAR)

• Learn how to use the Healthy City website to create maps for community-based research

• Learn how other organizations have used research, data and maps in their work

Webinar Objectives

Ice Breaker

Case Study:Alliance for California

Traditional Arts(ACTA)

Activating Cultural Assets Pilot Project

Nayamin Martinez, Program Manager Alliance for California Traditional Arts

Community Mapping Webinar, March 12, 2015

The Alliance for California Traditional Arts (ACTA)

• ACTA promotes and supports ways for cultural traditions to thrive now and into the future by providing advocacy, resources, and connections for folk and traditional artists and their communities. 

• ACTA is a state‐wide organization, headquartered in Fresno with regional offices in San Francisco, Watsonville and Los Angeles.

• ACTA offers services, programs and grants. Over time we have awarded over 4.2 million in grants & contracts. 

• For more information visit: www.actaonline.org

Activating Cultural Assets in BHC Places

• In 2011, ACTA partnered with TCE to implement the Activating Cultural Assets Pilot Project (ACCAPP) in four of the BHC communities: Boyle Heights, Eastern Coachella Valley, Santa Ana and Merced.

• Using a participatory cultural asset mapping methodology, community cultural resources were identified. 

• Cultural assets were defined as “cultural treasures” or “the people, groups, places and events that reflect cultural expressions that are valued by the community.”

Why are Cultural Treasures Important?

• Cultural treasures can help promote community health by building on local skills, competence, and traditions.

• Foster greater community engagement and call community into social action.

• Provide a basis for understanding amongst diverse groups.

• Re‐interpret cultural assets as viable and central resources essential to community’s well‐being. 

ACTA’s Participatory Cultural Asset Mapping Methodology

• ACTA established a local taskforce in each of the four selected BHC sites.

• Using a short bilingual questionnaire, the members of the task force asked their communities what is culturally significant. 

• The questionnaire also served as a self‐reflective device for respondents to consider themselves as a cultural asset based on their own cultural practices and traditions.

• Organize public events featuring cultural assets

• Reflections about the meaning of these assets

• Planning and implementing new BHC‐focused cultural programs connecting assets

Cultural Asset Maps

What did we learn about possible impacts of ACCAP?

Connections to Well‐being and Community Change• Connection to community and to self• Creation or recognition of agency• Increased self‐worth and pride • Opportunity for reflection• Feelings of happiness and contentment• Improved critical thinking skills • Creation of a positive community counter narrative• Direct physical impacts –movement/exercise, nutrition, stress 

release

What did we learn about possible impacts of ACAPP?

Connections to BHC Work• Full engagement –not just intellectually, 

but also with heart, soul and body

• Creation of collective efficacy and trust for future BHC work

• Collective discourse and critical thinking in the examination of an issue

• More effective and compelling messaging of key BHC campaign issues and concepts

• Sustained engagement because it is enjoyable

Resources– ACTA partnered with HealthyCity.org to develop an 

interface and informational mapping of all the cultural treasures.  A map and a listing of the cultural treasures in each of the four communities were created, along with informational profiles of each cultural treasure. 

• Landing page with links to the maps created for each of the four BHC sites: 

http://www.actaonline.org/content/building‐healthy‐communities‐cultural‐treasures

• For more information visit ACTA’s website:

www.actaonline.org

Questions or Comments?

Community-Based Participatory Action Research

(CBPAR)

Community-Based Participatory Action Research (CBPAR)

Community-Based Participatory Action Research (CBPAR) is a collaborativeapproach to research that involves all stakeholders throughout the researchprocess… for the purpose of education, action, and social change.

Participation Continuum…

Researcher-led Community-led

Researchers design study and questions; Communityto answer questions.

Community helps identify issues and research questions, and provide some responses. Researchers conduct research, analysis, dissemination, design intervention

Community helps identify research question, provides responses, and helps generate solutions based on findings. Researchers collect and analyze data, disseminate findings, develop intervention based on suggestions.

Community-led and controlled research.Community defines the issue and research questions, creates data collection tools, recruits participants and collects data, analyzes data, disseminates findings, generates action plans, and carries out action plan. Full collaborator at all stages.

Information is Impact

• Where do you go to get information?

• Leverage all information sources, both mainstream and

community-based to tell your story

• Respect community’s right to be heard

• Respect community’s right to know and understand

• Package your findings for community members AND

policymakers

Alignment with issues experienced by community

Empowers communities to take action

Increased acceptability by stakeholders

Possibility of funds for community

Better to cope with sensitive issues

Cultural and social relevance

Benefits of CBPAR

Research Ethics - GeneralPrivacy: Are participants adequately informed of the process and expected use of the research? How is privacy protected in the data collection and sharing process?

Respect: Do participants maintain their ability to engage/not engage in the research without coercion?

Rigor of research and fidelity to findings: Are the findings being presented accurately?

Justice: Do all members of the community have equal opportunity to participate in the research? Are there some participants who are unfairly impacted by the research?

Benefits to the participants: Are community respondents assured of safety of their person and data during the research and do they benefit as much as possible through their participation?

Research Ethics - CBPAR Accessibility of findings: Are the findings presented in an accessible and meaningful way for community members?

Community voice: Are there institutional, organizational or other social dynamics that privilege some voices over others?

Credit: How are the results represented? Whose voice(s) are heard and credited with authorship?

Data ownership: How is the data made available to the different community and other stakeholders?

Division of labor: How does ‘equity’ in the process translate into divisions of labor on the project/process? Is the work divided equitably among partners?

Representation of local communities: Does the presentation (or presenter) of findings reinforce negative social stereotypes in presenting communities?

Questions or Comments?

Case Study: Community Coalition and

Healthy City

Community-Engaged Mapping

A group mapping exercise designed to answer specific research questions

and gather resident feedback to develop place-based planning

strategies.

Participatory Asset Mapping Toolkit, pg. 10

South Los Angeles/King Park Community-Engaged Mapping,

2009 and 2011 Partner: Community Coalition

Purpose and Research Questions

2009

Examine perceptions of crime in the King Park Area and the relationship of crime to the built

environment.

Research Questions

1. Where do residents feel the most unsafe or most crime occurs?

2. What about the physical or built environment makes people feel unsafe?

3. What are the places in the community that residents say are assets?

2011

Examine changes in the perceptions of crime in the King Park Area since 2009.

Research Questions

1. Where do residents feel the most unsafe or most crime occurs?

2. What specifically has changed in King Park since 2009?

3. Have people’s sense of community changed since 2009? Are people more involved in the community?

Common Themes and Areas of Concern2009

Priority Areas1. King Park2. Foshay Learning Center3. Denker Park

Top issues• Drug activity• Theft• Gang activity• Prostitution• Inappropriate, Inadequate

policing

2011

Priority Areas1. Along Western Avenue between

39th Street and Exposition.

Top issues• Drug activity (sell and use)• Alcoholism (public drinking)• Gang activity• Prostitution• Nuisance Businesses• Robbery and theft• Street maintenance• Traffic/pedestrian safety

Actions led by the community after Community-Engaged Mapping

2009

• Restrictions placed on local liquor store

• Re-opening of recreation center at MLK Park

• Programs at the Park, incl. Summer Night Lights

• Lighting and infrastructure improvements

2011

“Secure the Park”• Add signage• Plan and host activities in the

park• Walking Club• Community Picnic• Community Fair

• Regular meetings with local law enforcement

• Advocate for skate park for youth

How can mapping inform community strategy?

1) Illustrating community voice to alter representations of power

2) Create pathways for communities to change their own conditions

3) Providing opportunities to build community capacity4) Visually demonstrating issues and inequity5) Informing how best to impact and change policy6) Community-Based Participatory Action Research provides

tools for community members to do, present, and advocate for themselves

Community-Engaged Mapping (CEM)on Healthy City

WikimapsWikimaps is a collaborative mapping tool on HealthyCity.org that you can use to add, collect and share community knowledge, data, photos, and videos both online and via cell phones.

Participatory Asset Mapping

A process where community members collectively create asset maps by identifying and providing the information about their own community’s assets on a map.

Participatory Asset Mapping Toolkit, pg. 6

Community-Engaged Mapping in Watts-Willowbrook

Wikimap on Healthy City:www.v5.HealthyCity.org

Double-click to finish drawing

Thematic

Point

Creating Maps with HealthyCity.org

Name SourceSocial Services 211sNonprofits IRS 990 Center for Nonprofit Management in Southern

CaliforniaSchools Public & Private (Public Schools include Filter by School Demographics such as enrollment, API score, race/ethnicity, etc.)

California Department of Education

WIC Agencies & Vendors Network for a Healthy CaliforniaHospitals (OSHPD) OSHPDHead Start Agencies California Head Start AssociationChild Care Department of Social Services Community

Care Licensing DivisionAlcohol Department of Alcoholic Beverage ControlEPA Environmental Protection AgencyGrocery DeLormeFQHC U.S. Department of Health and Human

Services Health Resources and Services Administration

Banks DeLormeCheck Cashing Businesses DeLorme

Services and Point Data

Creating Maps with HealthyCity.org

Environment & Land UseHealth

Birth, Prenatal & ChildConditions, Disease & InjuryDeathsInsurance & accessPhysical Activity & Nutrition

Neighborhood & CommunityCrime & Public SafetyHousing

Over 2500 variablesMultiple years of data

Thematic Data

Population Characteristics AgeEthnicityEducational Attainment

Civic ParticipationChild WelfareChild Care & Early EducationIncome & PovertyEmploymentNonprofit Infrastructure

Thematic

Point

Thematic

Point

1

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3

Data Level

Metadata

Classification

Description

Questions or Comments?

Additional Resources

www.v5.HealthyCity.org

Leila Forouzanlforouzan@advanceproj.orgContact Us:

Thank You!