May 12-14, 2005: Joint NAPC/CIC Conference - Washington, DC
Community Initiatives Consortium;
December 2005 CIC Conference
"Advances in the Science and Practice of Community Indicators"
May 12-14, 2005: Joint NAPC/CIC Conference - Washington, DC
Community Initiatives Consortium; December 2005 CIC Conference
International Community Indicators Conference
"Advances in the Science and Practice of Community Indicators"
March 10-13, 2004 - Reno, Nevada
March 2004 -- Congratulations to all the planners and speakers! This conference was a very exciting learning opportunity. More than four hundred people, representing many different perspectives on indicators work, from every part of the U.S. as well as other countries, attended. Many NAPC members participated in and/or spoke at the conference (see photos and information below).
January 2005 --
A Snapshot of Community Indicators DevelopmentSpring 2005 -- new Community Indicators Consortium website
The National Association of Planning Councils (NAPC) co-sponsored the international Community Quality of Life Conference, "Advances in the Science and Practice of Community Indicators," in Reno, NV, March 10-13, 2004. The conference focused on increasing the knowledge base about measuring community quality of life through planning, development and use of community quality of life indicators. The purpose of the overall conference was cross-fertilization and synergy-building among the many interests and approaches making up the community indicators movement.
NAPC members participated in a series of presentations on social indicators. NAPC sponsored one of the plenary sessions featuring Jennifer James,* outstanding keynote speaker at the 2003 NAPC conference. The new NAPC social indicator website (www.socialindicators.com), NAPC's social indicators project, and several members' indicators work were featured on the conference program. Conference program
NAPC appreciates board member Fred Butler (Executive Director of the Community Action Network in Austin, Texas) and all NAPC members who worked on the planning committee for the social indicators presentations. Thanks also to all the NAPC members who spoke during the conference, in plenary sessions (David Swain, Mark Salling) and in many workshops.
NAPC looks forward to taking an active role in the future work of the Indicators Consortium. Please plan to attend the 2005 joint NAPC/CIC conference, May 12-14, 2005, in Washington, DC.
More about the Conference and the Consortium
(spring '04) ...
Over the past two decades, hundreds, perhaps thousands, of communities,
regions, networks, community-based organizations and local governments have
sought to use indicators and community-centered data systems to improve
community quality of life, health and sustainability. Much has been learned
through these efforts and much remains to be learned. The purpose of this
international conference was to increase the knowledge base of the science and
art of community indicators through facilitating cross-fertilization and
synergy among the many interests and approaches making up the community
indicators movement. Interests of the conference encompassed the
conceptualization, design, construction, and utilization of community-relevant
indicators and data systems. The conference involved a wide variety of
professionals with an interest in community indicators, including community
planners and advocates, performance improvement practitioners, community
change leaders, consultants working with communities, foundations, government
agencies, and researchers from various disciplines. Conference participants
co-created a learning community that explored emerging lessons from both
practice and research and opportunities for improving the impact of our
individual and collective efforts.
Sponsors: The Community Indicators Consortium (comprised of)
- International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies (ISQOLS) [http://marketing.cob.vt.edu/isqols]
- Community Statistical Systems (CSS) network
- International Sustainability Indicators Network (ISIN) [http://www.sustainabilityindicators.org]
- National Association of Planning Councils (NAPC) [http://www.communityplanning.org]
- Association for Community Health Improvement (ACHI) [http://www.communityhlth.org]
- United Way America (UWA) [http://national.unitedway.org]
- Social Indicators Working Group of the International Sociological
Association (ISA)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) [http://www.cdc.gov]
- National Civic League (NCL) [http://www.ncl.org]
Co-Sponsors:
- Ford Foundation [http://www.eeford.org]
- Annie E. Casey Foundation [http://www.aecf.org]
- Fannie Mae Foundation [http://www.fanniemaefoundation.org/]
- Brookings Institution (The Urban Markets Initiative, Center on Urban
and Metropolitan Policy) [http://www.brookings.org}
- Kluwer Academic Publishers [http://www.wkap.com]
- Green Mountain Institute [http://www.gmied.org]
- Office of Quality-of-Life Measurement at Virginia Tech [http://marketing.cob.vt.edu/sirgy/library/OQOLM/Oqolm.htm]
- School of Business of the College of William and Mary [http://business.wm.edu]
- Truckee Meadows Tomorrow [http://www.quality-of-life.org/index.html]
Plenary sessions featured:
Jennifer James, Ph.D. - cultural anthropologist, noted author and one
of the top corporate speakers in the world, Dr. James is a specialist in areas
of cultural change, diversity, marketing intelligence, the dynamics of change
and the development of thinking skills. Her most recent book, Thinking in the
Future Tense: Leadership Skills for a New Age, has won critical acclaim and
she is currently completing a new book, Cultural Intelligence.
Dennis Andrulis, Ph.D. - Research professor at the State University of
New York Health Sciences Center at Brooklyn. In his current work and preceding
tenure as Director, Office of Urban Populations at the New York Academy of
Medicine in New York City, Dr. Andrulis has conducted and published
policy-relevant research on a wide range of issues affecting hospitals and
safety net providers, vulnerable populations, and their communities. His focus
on urban issues led to the creation of a compendium and analysis of
information on the social and health characteristics of the nation's major
urban areas, The Social and Health Landscape of Urban and Suburban America.
Mark Salling, Ph.D. -
Research Director and Williamson Fellow for Applied Research at the Center
for Community Solutions (formerly the Federation for Community Planning)
in Cleveland, Ohio, and Director of the Northern Ohio Data and Information
Service (NODIS) in the Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs at
Cleveland State University. Dr. Salling is coordinator for
www.socialindicators.com,
the new indicators website of the National Association of Planning
Councils (NAPC).
Richard Estes, Ph.D. - President-elect of the International Society for
Quality-of-Life Studies and Professor of Social Work at the University of
Pennsylvania. Dr. Estes is one of the most renowned QOL research scientists
internationally known for his work on his widely acclaimed Social Development
Index.
Virginia MacLaren, Ph.D. - Associate Professor in the Department of
Geography and Program in Planning at the University of Toronto and Associate
Director of the Institute for Environmental Studies. Since her seminal review
of urban sustainability indicator theory and practice in 1996, Dr. MacLaren
has continued to explore various aspects of indicator practice, including an
assessment of the methodological challenges encountered when developing
indicators.
Tyler Norris - President and CEO of Community Initiatives LLC. Tyler
has worked in over 250 communities in the United States and internationally
helping initiate, implement and measure the outcomes of strategic planning and
capacity building initiatives. He is co-author of Trendbenders (AHA, 2002),
Facilitating Community Change (Grove, 2000) and the Community Indicators
Handbook (Redefining Progress, 1997). His current focus is on blending the use
of emerging technologies with the art of community-building to increase access
to community learning and performance supports.
Andrew Reamer, Ph.D. - Principal of Andrew Reamer & Associates. Dr.
Reamer has aided a number of national organizations in creating data tools for
local practitioners and policy analysts. He co-authored Socioeconomic Data for
Understanding Your Regional Economy: A User's Guide, and Socioeconomic Data
for Economic Development: An Assessment. Dr. Reamer-s current efforts include
co-developing a state index on working poor families for the Annie E. Casey
Foundation and working with the Ford Foundation and the University of Florida
to create a nationwide network of researchers and practitioners interested in
the use of multi-source data systems for community development.
. . . and a wide range of
panels, workshops and interactive sessions on a variety of
topics.
CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRS: Joe Sirgy (Virginia Tech, USA;
sirgy@vt.edu),
Don Rahtz (College of William & Mary, USA;
Don.Rahtz@business.wm.edu), David
Swain (Jacksonville Community Council, USA;
indicators@jcci.org), and Chris
Paterson (Green
Mountain Institute, USA; cpaterson@gmied.org)
SEE ALSO:
NAPC's new social indicators website
Background: NAPC's involvement with social indicators
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