Unit 4. Action Planning

Action planning breaks down goals into clear, actionable steps with assigned responsibilities, timelines, and resources to ensure successful execution.

Action planning is about pulling together the people, resources and knowledge needed to successfully enact a chosen strategy. Particularly when engaging a diverse collective, it is important to develop a clear and agreed-upon structure that can serve as common ground and provide guidance during implementation.

Unit 4 begins by highlighting the role of shared visioning in keeping root causes and fundamental goals at the centre of collective action and discusses the importance of a clearly articulated theory of change. Module 4.2 reviews mapping tools that can help guide action planning, with notes for participatory methods provided in Module 4.3.

Concepts, tools, and participatory methods discussed in Unit 4 include:

The three modules of Unit 4 will help users:

• understand different forms of power and the value of collective action
• appreciate the importance of a shared vision for effective action planning
• articulate a theory of change for their LLACPS intervention
• explain why power mapping is a useful first step in action planning
• conduct a resource mapping exercise to complement a power map
• develop a project roadmap based on a collective vision
• engage community members in participatory mapping analysis
• align project expectations across diverse actors
• confirm that the chosen intervention is the most appropriate to pursue

The overall purpose of Unit 4 is to ensure facilitators are equipped to guide communities in refining and shaping an identified intervention.