Capacity Building
Capacity Building
Explore one of the four pillars of the VISTA program
Building capacity is at the heart of what VISTA members do. Strengthen your understanding of what capacity building entails, see examples of how VISTAs build capacity, and explore a range of resources to support your capacity-building efforts.

Define capacity building and contrast it to direct service. Click "The Foundation of VISTA Service" below to begin.

Familiarize yourself with the key elements of capacity building. Through real-life scenarios and examples, learn what tools work and how to maximize impact during your service. Click "Introduction" to begin the course.

Build your program's sustainability by deepening your ties to the surrounding community. This course provides capacity building tips for identifying assets in your community and strengthening your program's ability to leverage those assets for win-win outcomes. Click "Welcome" to begin.

Learn about five strategic factors that have tremendous impact on the well-being of individuals, families and communities. In this paper, read about how the the 5C's (community, connections, control, cash, and collective action) work together to create successful community development campaigns.

Manage your meeting time to be productive and focused by learning and applying the lessons in this document. Facilitating effective meetings is an essential skill, and this document points you in the right direction.

Use these tip sheets for communication strategies to help resolve conflicts and unblock processes.

Use this framework to learn how to represent yourself to bring positive change in your community through the concepts such as honesty, connection, and resistance.