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At Interact for Health, we know that everyone deserves a just opportunity to live their healthiest lives, regardless of who they are or where they live. That means access to the vital conditions for health: among them are meaningful work and wealth, lifelong learning, a sense of belonging in their communities, and the power to shape their world. Yet, we also know that the systems that surround us were not designed with everyone in mind—some were designed to exclude or harm individuals. But it doesn’t have to be this way. If a system can be designed to exclude, that same system can be redesigned to include.
Local and state policy funding has been a core part of our efforts for years; built to support organizations already deep in their advocacy and policy work — the ones with campaigns identified and already moving. But we kept hearing from a different kind of organization: groups that didn't receive funding, or that thought about applying and backed away, unsure of what a first step would even look like.
Cincinnati Parent Empowerment Network presenting for the Advocacy Capacity Building Cohort
This past year, we tried something new. We brought together six partners to form our Advocacy Capacity Building Grantee Cohort, focused on building the organizational muscle to advance advocacy work, not on strengthening policy campaigns already underway.
The six organizations are:
Along with our grantees, this cohort was led by Robin Wright-Pierce, MPA, chief executive officer of Transforming Change, and Rev. Nelson Pierce Jr., the organization’s chief political strategist. Robin and Nelson built the cohort around a single through-line: policy agendas that address root causes, not symptoms.
Robin Wright-Pierce, MPA, and Rev. Nelson Pierce Jr. handing out awards at the final cohort meeting
One critical piece of building the advocacy muscle is thinking in generational, systems-level solutions. The Mantel Center’s advocacy effort revolves around “you deserve 87 birthdays,” addressing the life-expectancy gap in our region and aiming to ensure everyone has the same access to health, well-being, and quality of life, no matter where they live.
Grantees took part in three multi-day bootcamp sessions focused on shared learning and capacity building, and attended one-on-one coaching with Robin and Nelson, designed to support organizational learning and progress. For the final cohort meeting, each organization presented what they learned, including their base, target, strategy, vision, and what they learned about power, policy change, and themselves as leaders.
These visions included:
The learnings looked different for each group:
As we reach the end of the first Advocacy Capacity Building Grantee Cohort, we celebrate the commitment of each cohort member and the dedication it took to show up vulnerable and ready to learn.
Investing in systems change is what makes belonging, agency, and Mantle Center’s idea of “87 birthdays for everyone” possible.
Advocacy Capacity Building Cohort at their final meeting
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