405 ORGS · 8,534 ACTIVITIES ← all strategies ·
approach →

Community-Led Systems Change

By centering community voice, lived experience, and local assets in governance, program design, and investment, organizations produce more equitable, sustainable, and effective outcomes, because solutions rooted in community ownership are better aligned with actual needs and more resilient to external shocks. This strategy unifies approaches that shift power and decision-making to the community level—whether through participatory grantmaking, member governance, co-created services, or culturally rooted programming. It goes beyond service delivery to transform systems by ensuring those most impacted by inequity shape the interventions meant to serve them. What distinguishes it is its foundational belief in community agency as the primary engine of change, rather than an input or beneficiary.

405
orgs running it
8,534
activities of those orgs
12
activity groups touched
who runs it

organizations running this strategy · 405

+ 375 more orgs
what it looks like in practice

activities of orgs running this strategy

A sample of programmatic activities from the orgs above. These are what the strategy looks like on the ground.

  • Developing prosthetic centers NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    capacity building
    Collaborates on the development of a prosthetic center in North Haiti to serve amputees who currently lack access to prosthetic limbs.
  • Developing prosthetic centers NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    capacity building
    Collaborates on the development of a prosthetic center in North Haiti to serve amputees who currently lack access to prosthetic limbs.
  • Distributing PPE to Native American Nations NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Fabricated and distributed nearly 9,000 reusable cloth isolation gowns to 13 service units serving the Navajo, Hopi, Apache, and Zuni Nations during the 2020 pandemic.
  • Distributing food and water NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Provides funding and partnership support to organizations in North Haiti that distribute food and water to families in local communities.
  • Distributing food and water in Haiti NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Provides funding and partnership support to organizations in North Haiti that distribute food and water to families in local communities.
  • Distributing gifts to children NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Distributed personalized backpacks filled with gifts to children.
  • Distributing personalized gifts to children NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Distributes personalized backpacks filled with gifts to children.
  • Providing humanitarian aid during crises NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Fabricated and distributed nearly 9,000 reusable cloth isolation gowns to 13 service units serving the Navajo, Hopi, Apache, and Zuni Nations during the 2020 pandemic.
  • Providing humanitarian aid in Bolivia NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Distributes shoes to children in Palacios, Bolivia, to protect against parasites and disease in muddy conditions.
  • Providing medical and surgical care in Bolivia NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Deploys medical teams to rural Bolivia to assess medical needs, conduct clinical evaluations for approximately 80 patients, and perform surgical missions, including 40 surgical procedures such as gallbladder removals, hysterectomies, and hernia repairs. Also arranges and funds complex surgical procedures and diagnostic workups for patients in Santa Cruz.
  • Providing medical and surgical care in Bolivia NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Deploys medical teams to rural Bolivia to assess medical needs, conduct clinical evaluations, and perform surgical procedures such as gallbladder removals, hysterectomies, and hernia repairs. They also arrange and fund complex surgical procedures and diagnostic workups for patients.
  • Providing medical and surgical care in Haiti NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Provides medical care, including surgical procedures for trauma and other conditions, and sets up operating rooms in hospitals in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. This includes treating cholera and victims of gang violence, and has involved over 40 medical teams.
  • Providing medical and surgical care in Haiti NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Provides medical care, including surgical procedures for trauma and other conditions, and sets up operating rooms in hospitals in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. This includes treating cholera and victims of gang violence, and has involved over 40 medical teams.
  • Providing medical equipment and supplies NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Provides medical equipment, such as $2 million worth of equipment to Hôpital Bernard Mevs in Haiti and a new ultrasound machine to Centro Medico Humberto Parra in Bolivia, to improve diagnostic and treatment capabilities.
  • Providing medical equipment and supplies NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Contributes medical equipment, such as a new ultrasound machine, to hospitals and medical centers in various countries to improve diagnostic and treatment capabilities.
  • Providing surgical care in other countries NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Provided surgical care to underserved populations in Cambodia, Brazil, and Mexico during its early years.
  • Providing surgical care in other international locations NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Provided surgical care to underserved populations in Cambodia, Brazil, and Mexico during its early years.
  • Supporting community development in Bolivia NORTHERN ARIZONA VOLUNTEER MEDICAL
    direct service
    Provided a book donation that contributed to the construction of a new library and distributed shoes to children in Palacios, Bolivia, to protect against parasites and disease.