Leverage the APPEAL Leadership Model for Policy and Systems Change
Goal / Mission
The goal of creating the APPEAL Leadership Model was to develop leaders within priority populations to move their communities and systems towards positive social change by catalyzing policy change and implementation and advancing social justice as the social norm. Through a formalized leadership model and program, APPEAL hoped to integrate elements of health equity into community programming and policy change with a theory of change approach to tobacco control. This model could then be adapted to other health issues to move communities upstream of social health determinants in terms of health equity.
Description:
The APPEAL Leadership Model was designed in 1997 as a culturally tailored training curriculum that builds leadership capacity within diverse Asian American (AA) and Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (NH/PI) communities. This leadership model was initially piloted and launched as Creating New Mountains: the First National AAPI Tobacco Control Leadership Summit, a launching pad for APPEAL’s innovative Leadership Program. APPEAL recruited emerging and established leaders from different industries, disciplines, and political sectors within communities disproportionately impacted by tobacco and other health disparities to increase the number of tobacco control leaders within them. APPEAL’s leadership model focused on building competencies in collaboration, equity, facilitation, policy, advocacy, and systems navigation and increasing knowledge of content areas in tobacco, culture, and other issues in health justice. Activities held during APPEAL Leadership Summits are designed to feature aspects of one or more of these competency areas.
The Leadership Model utilizes cross-cultural leadership programming based on a philosophy which values partnering with priority populations to build community capacity, facilitate cross-cultural collaboration, and advance the model’s competencies. Embedded in the APPEAL Leadership Model’s philosophy are principles that allow for successful and sustainable capacity building within the community. The leadership model worked well to provide a framework for developing infrastructure among community and state agencies for positive change in tobacco control beginning with community partners in California.
After being invited by other communities to adapt the APPEAL Leadership Model, APPEAL . APPEAL has recognized the needs of priority populations as a whole, and has expanded its leadership programs to reach African/African American, American Indian, Latino, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT), and other vulnerable communities. APPEAL has adapted the APPEAL Leadership Model in states and territories such as Washington, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Hawaii, California, North Carolina, Texas, Guam, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau. The success of the leadership model traditionally developed for use in tobacco control can be adapted to other sectors of policy and systems level changes and leadership development in public health and civic engagement work to foster healthier communities and equity-centered policies for all populations.
Implementation Process
APPEAL works with organizations to identify priority populations to build community capacity. This helps to facilitate cross-cultural collaboration and increase leaders’ competencies in the model. APPEAL staff collaborate with community members to share the APPEAL Leadership Model’s philosophy.
Principles of the leadership model include incorporating inclusivity of diverse communities in a strategic and respectful way, tailoring trainings and programs to recognize different stages of community readiness for tobacco control policy change, and nurturing individual leadership capacity. APPEAL focuses on working from an assets based training model to address tobacco comprehensively as a community social justice issue. The APPEAL leadership model balances the three P’s (People, Process, Product) in any tobacco control initiative and training opportunity.
Impact / Results / Accomplishments / Outcomes
The APPEAL Leadership Model has positively influenced leadership development since its inception in 1997. Since then, APPEAL has offered training events to implement the model broadly. It has been adapted and replicated for trainings ranging from one-day to two-year long institutes and programming. More than 800 fellows have been trained using the APPEAL Leadership Model.
As a result of involvement in leadership trainings, fellows have been successful in implementing projects and policy initiatives related to advancing tobacco control, cancer prevention, healthy eating/active living (HEAL), social justice, and health equity. The Leadership Model continues to guide APPEAL programming and policy initiatives and trainings, including the LAAMPP Institute trainings, today.
Lessons Learned
The APPEAL Leadership Model’s success can be applied and adapted through lessons learned:
- Can be adapted for many different social justice issues including tobacco control that requires an advocacy or policy response
- Impact goes beyond just the individual skills level but also the community and systems (policy) levels
- Leadership development is instrumental in successful and sustainable community capacity building and coalition creation
- When investments are made in leadership development, the result is development of individuals that can impact policy change not only for their own community but also for all, including systems change
- Highly-skilled trainers are needed to facilitate and implement this program which can be any length from half day to 1 year (with two days for any leadership summit and one planning day being optimal)
- Leadership trainings can be adapted to any social justice issue and any marginalized community including cross-cultural groups
About this Promising Practice (Contact information)
- Organization(s): Asian Pacific Partners for Empowerment, Advocacy and Leadership (APPEAL), Oakland, CA, USA
- Primary Contact(s): Rod Lew – APPEAL staff, [email protected]
- Authors: Rod Lew, MPH
- Topic(s): leadership, tobacco control, social norm change, health equity, priority populations
- Source: APPEAL Website – appealforhealth.org
- Date of Publication:
- Date of Implementation: 1997
- Location: Oakland, CA
- More details (web address for study): https://appealforhealth.org/programs/leadership-development/laampp-iii/ and https://appealforhealth.org/resources/promising-practices/appeal-leadership-model/ and https://acsjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0142(19981015)83:8+%3C1818::AID-CNCR29%3E3.0.CO;2-X
- Target Audience: Community Based Organizations, Researchers, Policy Advocates
Keywords:
Advocacy, Asian American, Cancer Prevention, California, Capacity Building, Civic Engagement, Cross Cultural Collaboration, Disparities, Equity Centered, Guam, Health Equity, Healthy Eating Active Living (HEAL), Leadership Development, Leadership Model, Leadership Training, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islanders, Policy Change, Policy Systems Environment (PSE) Change, Priority Populations, Social Determinants of Health, Social Justice, Systems Change, Technical Assistance and Training, Theory of Change, Tobacco Control, Upstream Factors
Topic:
Capacity Building, Leadership, Policy, Technical Assistance and Training, Tobacco Control and Prevention
Primary Audience Focus:
Coalitions, Community Based Organizations, Nonprofits, Policymakers, Men, Women
Type of Resource:
Promising Practice