Population Change Institute
About Population Change Institute
Place-based initiatives—designed to address the specific challenges facing a specific region or community—work across systems like education, health, and economic development to reveal new pathways to opportunity and equity. Founded through the collective knowledge of a group of place-based practitioners, the Population Change Institute (PopChange) is the first national organization dedicated to helping diverse communities realize the enormous promise place-based initiatives hold for people, children, and families.
Challenges and Opportunities
Although an increasing number of leaders, researchers, and funders recognize the potential of place-based initiatives, PopChange’s founders recognized the lack of research and resources available to guide communities through this dynamic process. As one of the founding partners, Emergence conducted an environmental scan–to identify how a new initiative could promote best practices and encourage more community leaders to invest in place-based initiatives. With the Emergence team’s research in hand, PopChange’s founders made the decision to form a brand-new initiative at the forefront of the place-based movement.
Approach
As one of the founding partners, Emergence supported PopChange in laying the foundation for growth–first identifying and securing funding to create a comprehensive business plan alongside Third Plateau. As part of the planning process, Emergence helped PopChange define everything from its initial staffing and operations structure, to the services it would offer, to its guiding principles and values. Once the initial plan was complete, Emergence continued to support PopChange in gathering the resources needed to form a new institute–completing the groundwork for business development and fundraising and creating tools for operational success, including communications and marketing strategies.
Impact
PopChange celebrated its official launch in the spring of 2021. With Emergence’s strong and ongoing partnership, PopChange is now working with communities, counties, and entire regions across the country to fuel positive, community-driven change. Through its groundbreaking Collective Capacities framework, PopChange is providing specialized technical assistance to diverse community leaders, supporting collaborative learning across networks of place-based practitioners, and creating high-impact tools, resources, and publications for a range of audiences focused on community empowerment. With support from Emergence, PopChange stands as a leader in the rapidly growing movement for place-based community change.