Understanding that there are underlying conditions that contribute to violence, poverty, and negative early childhood outcomes, First 5 Alameda County is using a strengths-based approach and a variety of partnerships to support communities that have faced the greatest disenfranchisement. The agency is focused on place-based approaches to strengthen families and community environments for both optimal child development and community safety. These include partnerships and initiatives to improve the sociocultural, physical/built, and equitable opportunity environments. As First 5 moves into its 2017 to 2021 strategic priorities, the team continues to build multi-sector partnerships and increase their capacity for place-based efforts. First 5 Alameda County is a member of the Center for the Study of Social Policy’s Early Childhood Learning and Innovation Network for Communities (EC LINC).

This narrative is based on two separate presentations of First 5 Alameda County’s place-based work: Lisa Erickson’s presentation during a 2016 Prevention Institute web conference on engaging the community development sector, and Carla Keener’s Cradle to Community panel presentation at the 2016 American Public Health Association’s Annual Meeting.