Roundtable on Community Change

About Us

WHAT WE DO:
The Aspen Institute Roundtable on Community Change distills lessons about how to revitalize distressed communities, and helps policymakers, funders and practitioners create effective strategies for promoting vibrant, racially-equitable communities.

HOW WE DO IT:
The Roundtable develops knowledge through research on critical issues in the community change and racial equity fields. We begin with a thorough examination of published research, and then convene leaders, researchers, and practitioners to debate and discuss what works and what doesn’t. We distill lessons from these convenings, and disseminate that information through publications, presentations, and leadership seminars. Our method of knowledge building is a constant cycle of researching, learning, and sharing; bridging the gap between research, theory and practice.

CUTTING EDGE RESEARCH /KNOWLEDGE BUILDING
The Roundtable’s exploration of innovative learning strategies led it to develop the “theory of change” approach to evaluating community change initiatives and building evidence about their effectiveness.  This path-breaking methodology has become a standard approach in designing, managing and evaluating interventions in a wide number of policy domains. .  

Over the years, the Roundtable has used the theory of change approach to explore and assess community change strategies in areas like neighborhood safety, education, employment, economic development, and housing, and to examine the role that community-building strategies play in improving social, economic and civic outcomes for children, youth, families, and neighborhoods.  Other research projects have focused on the role of civic capacity in community change efforts, and data requirements for planning, managing, and evaluating community change initiatives.  Our signature series, Voices from the Field, periodically assesses the state of the community change field and distills lessons for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers.   
 
The Roundtable has also applied the theory of change approach to its racial equity work, developing a practical guide for designing strategies to close chronic racial disparities. This process is used in all of the Roundtable’s racial equity Seminars, and many of our Seminar alumni are applying their theories of change in their communities. Other projects have focused on applying our structural racism framework to various sectors, such as criminal justice and youth development. We explore new, more equitable conceptions of policy and practice through research and convenings, and have recently published a volume that offers strategies for reducing the severe racial disproportionalities in the criminal justice system.