HOW TO BUILD COALITIONS

The purpose of an NLAAD Coalition is to assist you in providing additional input/resources as you raise awareness about the importance of HIV/AIDS prevention efforts in your community. Organizing community members to form an NLAAD coalition will help you forge new or strengthen existing partnerships in the fight against HIV/AIDS, organize collective and pull existing community resources to expand the reach of your local National Latino AIDS Awareness Day (NLAAD) activities.

IDENTIFY AND CONTACT POTENTIAL PARTNERS
Identify organizations in your area that work with Hispanic/Latino populations. Personally visit with key players, write a letter, send an email, and follow up with a phone call. Explain what the epidemic looks like in your community. Explain how NLAAD could positively impact your community and why it is important to form a coalition focused on addressing HIV/AIDS in your community. Highlight the potential benefits in working together (resource sharing, idea generating, best practices, lessons learned, funding).

Potential partners include:

• Local Hispanic/Latino service organizations
• Community centers, community based organizations
• Existing coalitions
• Religious/Church/Spiritual leaders
• People living with HIV/AIDS
• Hospitals, clinics, community health centers
• Local businesses, business associations, chambers of commerce (restaurants, dentists, doctors, stores)
• Research foundations
• Retail stores: ALDO, H&M, Gap, Target, Walmart
• Health insurance companies
• Local colleges or universities, student groups, fraternities, sororities
• Existing NLAAD partners in your community can be found at www.nlaad.org

RAISE AWARENESS IN YOUR COMMUNITY

• Create flyers and distribute them throughout your community in store front windows, beauty salons, barber shops, community centers, libraries, houses of worship, schools, and media outlets including newspapers
• Contact a local radio station to make announcements about NLAAD and/or schedule a program about HIV/AIDS
• Write letters and encourage community members to write letters to your local newspapers/media outlets (about a personal HIV/AIDS story, local HIV/AIDS statistics, local activists, activities occurring in your neighborhood, etc.)
• Write letters to potential partners

FORM A COALITION

• Arrange a meeting to become acquainted with potential coalition members. Create an agenda to help guide the group through the meeting.
• Look to identify new players in and outside of the community
• Provide information and statistics about Hispanics/Latinos and HIV/AIDS.
• Establish your coalition’s infrastructure: Create goals; Identify what your coalition would like to achieve; create roles and responsibilities of participating members
• Make sure coalition members understand the 6 R’s: Recognition, Role, Respect, Reward, Results, and Relationships
• Make sure that the coalition is based on building personal relationships, transparency and frequent exchange of information
• Evaluate the readiness of the community for events and actions
• Plan an NLAAD Event and have examples of different activities your coalition could organize together
• Schedule follow-up meetings

HOLD A FUNDRAISER – TO BENEFIT YOUR NLAAD EVENT

• See document in your campaign toolkit CD named “10 ideas to Raise Funds” for more information

PLAN AN NLAAD EVENT

• See document in your campaign toolkit CD named “How to Prepare for your NLAAD Event” for more information