72
As the CAP moves into its 25th year, the natural ways in which the SDGs are present in the
report become more formalized, further aligning the goals of both these efforts. Additionally,
many of these overlapping measures, as well as
those specific to the CAP, offer the necessary
information to influence activities intended to
strengthen and create connections within the
community. This action is at the heart of the
final condition and gateway to localizing the
SDGs.
6.3.3 Condition 3: Alignment
and Ability to Coordinate
and Leverage Action
Continuous community improvement necessitates establishing a culture of accountability. This
goes beyond intentionality and commitment
guided by the tenets of a Culture of Health and
implementation of population wellbeing measures informed by community connectedness.
This means that resources are applied equitably
to population-level community programming
efforts in order to coordinate and leverage action.
Early in the CAP process, Santa Cruz County
adopted Results-Based Accountability (RBA),
developed by Mark Friedman, founder and director of the Fiscal Policy Studies Institute (FPSI) in
Santa Fe, New Mexico. This is a way to connect
program and population data through a structured
way of thinking and acting in order to turn the
curve for community change (Friedman 2015).
Understanding the work necessary to turn the
curve—or to bend data trends toward desired
results—is supported through theories of change
outlined in community-wide action plans. In fact,
the ability to “turn the curve” may be considered
one of the most valuable skills to develop if a
community is serious about improving
outcomes.
A theory of change defines what is required to
achieve results, is ideally created with an equity
approach, and is predicated upon the notion that
working together in specific ways, with certain
groups, is essential for community-level change
in resource-constrained environments.
Consequently, a theory of change provides
coordinated programs and initiatives, a framework by which data can guide the way communities work toward wellbeing for all. This is
achieved by manifesting individual and grouplevel contributions and by monitoring and measuring those contributions transparently. A
culture of accountability is created through leveraging RBA alongside a theory of change to solicit
responses to the following questions:
1. How much did we do? Effectively, this question seeks to understand the number of inputs
given toward a particular effort.
2. How well did we do it? This question addresses
the effort’s equity and sustainability.
3. Is anyone better off? Ultimately, this question
asks whether the desired results were achieved,
and if people’s lives were improved as a consequence of pursued interventions.
6.4
Santa Cruz County:
An Example of Success
For reference, we will explain how Santa Cruz
County now aligns its goals with the UN’s SDGs.
We have included sample results from the 2019
CAP survey.
1
These data will be a valuable
resource to guide local governments and other
agencies in their quest to improve quality of life
for all county residents.
For the 2019 CAP survey, more than 850
county residents age 18 and over were selected
by random digit calling. All calls, including those
to mobile phones, were done manually to comply
with Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)
rules. Selections were adjusted to deliver a fair
and equitable representation of local residents.
Using Spanish and English, surveyors asked
questions in several quality-of-life categories,
and the results were tabulated and compared with
the data from previous years. This helped to provide a “progress map” that revealed trends in
various classifications, such as employment sta1 The complete report is available at www.appliedsurveyresearch.org
S. Brutschy et al.
As the CAP moves into its 25th year, the natural ways in which the SDGs are present in the
report become more formalized, further aligning the goals of both these efforts. Additionally,
many of these overlapping measures, as well as
those specific to the CAP, offer the necessary
information to influence activities intended to
strengthen and create connections within the
community. This action is at the heart of the
final condition and gateway to localizing the
SDGs.
6.3.3 Condition 3: Alignment
and Ability to Coordinate
and Leverage Action
Continuous community improvement necessitates establishing a culture of accountability. This
goes beyond intentionality and commitment
guided by the tenets of a Culture of Health and
implementation of population wellbeing measures informed by community connectedness.
This means that resources are applied equitably
to population-level community programming
efforts in order to coordinate and leverage action.
Early in the CAP process, Santa Cruz County
adopted Results-Based Accountability (RBA),
developed by Mark Friedman, founder and director of the Fiscal Policy Studies Institute (FPSI) in
Santa Fe, New Mexico. This is a way to connect
program and population data through a structured
way of thinking and acting in order to turn the
curve for community change (Friedman 2015).
Understanding the work necessary to turn the
curve—or to bend data trends toward desired
results—is supported through theories of change
outlined in community-wide action plans. In fact,
the ability to “turn the curve” may be considered
one of the most valuable skills to develop if a
community is serious about improving
outcomes.
A theory of change defines what is required to
achieve results, is ideally created with an equity
approach, and is predicated upon the notion that
working together in specific ways, with certain
groups, is essential for community-level change
in resource-constrained environments.
Consequently, a theory of change provides
coordinated programs and initiatives, a framework by which data can guide the way communities work toward wellbeing for all. This is
achieved by manifesting individual and grouplevel contributions and by monitoring and measuring those contributions transparently. A
culture of accountability is created through leveraging RBA alongside a theory of change to solicit
responses to the following questions:
1. How much did we do? Effectively, this question seeks to understand the number of inputs
given toward a particular effort.
2. How well did we do it? This question addresses
the effort’s equity and sustainability.
3. Is anyone better off? Ultimately, this question
asks whether the desired results were achieved,
and if people’s lives were improved as a consequence of pursued interventions.
6.4
Santa Cruz County:
An Example of Success
For reference, we will explain how Santa Cruz
County now aligns its goals with the UN’s SDGs.
We have included sample results from the 2019
CAP survey.
1
These data will be a valuable
resource to guide local governments and other
agencies in their quest to improve quality of life
for all county residents.
For the 2019 CAP survey, more than 850
county residents age 18 and over were selected
by random digit calling. All calls, including those
to mobile phones, were done manually to comply
with Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)
rules. Selections were adjusted to deliver a fair
and equitable representation of local residents.
Using Spanish and English, surveyors asked
questions in several quality-of-life categories,
and the results were tabulated and compared with
the data from previous years. This helped to provide a “progress map” that revealed trends in
various classifications, such as employment sta1 The complete report is available at www.appliedsurveyresearch.org
S. Brutschy et al.