September 2018
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Dear ,
Greetings from the Partnership and Capacity Strengthening team! In this issue of our periodical newsletter, we will share updates on Perfecting Partnership 2018, and the launch of the Partnership and Capacity Strengthening Global Community of Practice. We will also highlight new and updated resources available on the Institute for Capacity Strengthening website, including:
- Emerging Practice: Proactive Country Program Partnership and Capacity Strengthening Planning
Partnership in Action course
Sincerely,
The Partnership and Capacity Strengthening team
P/CS News
2018 Update
We are happy to announce that the ten-day long Perfecting Partnership 2018 learning event, held in partnership with Villanova University, successfully concluded with Sean Callahan’s inspirational remarks and awarding of certificates to all 36 participants on Friday, July 20th.
Perfecting Partnership 2018 was an energetic learning and praxis experience for CRS staff, who have partnership and capacity strengthening experience and expertise. The event, provided the participants the opportunity to dive deeply into partnership and capacity strengthening areas and topics, and to learn best practices from each other, while also increasing their knowledge, skills, and familiarity with tools and methods.
The 36 participants (21 in the Anglophone cohort and 15 in the Francophone cohort), selected through a several-months-long competitive process from among nearly 300 applicants, included a diverse group of men and women, with a good balance of management quality and program quality, and diversity in roles and gender. They came from 26 countries and all 7 CRS regions. The participants were equipped to expand the scope and depth of partnership and capacity strengthening practitioners around the world.
In addition to a learning opportunity, Perfecting Partnership 2018 was also a way for CRS to expand and further solidify its partnership and capacity strengthening community of practice. There is now a cohort of approximately 60 colleagues in the partnership and capacity strengthening community of practice who graduated from the 2017 and 2018 editions of Perfecting Partnership, who have been, and continue to be available for temporary assignments related to partnership work (for instance: HOCAI, SRFMP, action planning, partnership scorecard, partnership reflection, capacity strengthening initiatives in various operational and programmatic areas).
Partnership and Capacity Strengthening Community of Practice
The Partnership and Capacity Strengthening Global Community of Practice is off to a great start since its March launch! With over 150 members, there have been some vibrant and useful discussions including:
It’s not too late to join the conversation. Remember, our community is all the more vibrant with YOU!
Find us here!
Featured Resources
Partnership is core to CRS’ mission and values. Working with and strengthening local organizations fosters greater understanding of local needs and context; more appropriate, equitable and sustainable solutions; local ownership and meaningful social change. This core commitment to local leadership is seen in our partnership with almost 2,000 organizations around the world, in our commitment to a holistic approach to capacity strengthening, and in the results we see together in communities.
How CRS works with partners and engages in capacity strengthening differs according to the type of partner, the type of partnership, the type of work the organizations are doing together and the country and regional context. However, a global trend seems to be emerging in which several country programs are proactively planning the design and implementation of partnership and capacity strengthening work. Though the elements of these workplans are not individually new or a departure from CRS’ larger PCS methodology, a new intentionality and proactive approach is underway in Mali, Nigeria, Guinea, Senegal, Uganda and Niger. This brief highlights how proactive PCS workplan development can help country programs effectively engage in partnership, and it presents an exciting model for intentional country-level leadership in this space.
Partnership in Action is the first of the Level 2 e-courses available through the Institute for Capacity Strengthening. Building on Partnership and Capacity Strengthening Basics, the Level 2 courses dive deeper into the practical knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary for partnership and capacity strengthening practitioners. Throughout the five modules of Partnership in Action, learners will reflect on the role their organization plays in a partnership and the role and motivation of their partners for engaging in partnership, and will explore methods and tools that nurture and support such relationships.
Looking for previous editions of the P/CS Newsletter? Click here for our newsletter archive on the ICS website.
