Through the creation of innovative materials and wide-reaching communications, the initiative will design an outreach campaign to advance international understanding of how local resources can be aggregated and redeployed, even in the poorest regions, to create economic opportunity and sustainable community improvement.

Complete:
* A half-hour video documentary on the operations and impact of the East Tennessee Foundation and the Kenya Community Development Foundation

Shot with production teams from the United States and Kenya, the documentary uses narrative accounts to tell the stories of the two foundations’ direct impact on their respective communities. The video includes first-hand accounts from community leaders who helped establish the foundations and from the community agencies that have benefited from the foundations’ grant making and capacity building.

* A print publication containing essays on 1) the principles of effective community foundations and 2) the perspectives and experiences of Tennessee and Kenya community foundation leaders. The publication will also include resources on how to establish a community foundation.
* Other project materials will be web-based media/tools, radio programming, and presentation materials for seminars and conferences.

The documentary and other materials will be distributed through networks and organizations that are in position to promote community foundations internationally. Contact Katharine Pearson Criss at Rural Strategies for more information and to hear about work as it is completed.