How to use this toolkit
This toolkit is designed to be a living knowledge product that consolidates and builds on the collective insights, experiences and resources of ZEP2030 in establishing and strengthening local convergences to reach and address the needs of extremely poor Filipino families in support of the country’s push to meet the Sustainable Development Goals.
Given the novelty of ZEP2030’s local convergence approach in multi-stakeholder coalition building, the toolkit aims to concretize the key phases and features in building local ZEP2030 coalitions by highlighting stories of local convergences in varying stages of development in seven ZEP2030 provinces and cities.
The toolkit is rich in details with common elements interwoven throughout some of the narratives but it is in no way prescriptive. It does not “manualize” the ZEP2030 process in the traditional sense of providing standard, detailed procedures for all local convenors to follow rigidly.
At ZEP2030, we celebrate the diversity and strengths of communities and their capacity to lead their own development processes. Local convergence implementation may take on different configurations and sequences and may happen in a non-linear and iterative manner. Thus, consider this toolkit as an ever-evolving guide to prototype and model new ways for local actors to come together, innovate and address the problem of extreme poverty in the communities we serve.
ZEP2030 envisages this toolkit as:
- a living document that will be developed in an agile fashion, enriched by the experiences of ZEP2030 convenors in facilitating local coalitions. A printed version will be produced as a handy guidance together with an online version (page on ZEP2030 website) with hyperlinks and commenting. The content will be lean and also visuals-driven (infographics).
- supplemented by an online repository (Google Drive Folder) of tools, cases, and other useful references in support of the ZEP2030 local convergence process, to which the various members can contribute.
- a collaborative space where ZEP2030 members can share their reflections and feedback on the application of these tools and how these can be improved. The toolkit will be revisited by the Secretariat with the Technical Working Group regularly to reflect these comments and feedback.
Who can use this toolkit
There are different ways to use this toolkit depending on the user’s needs and purpose.
Members who are new to ZEP2030 and are interested in establishing their own local coalition will find the toolkit useful in acquainting themselves on ZEP2030 and the process of ZEP2030 local convergences as told from the point of view of local convenors who have pioneered and are championing the work in their respective localities.
Those who have been with the ZEP2030 Movement long enough but have yet to take on a more active role in our current work streams may find the contents of the toolkit more familiar in a broader sense but also more focused around ZEP2030’s going all-in local approach, a necessary pivot to localize efforts in pockets of poverty by mobilizing CSOs, LGUs and other non-traditional partners on the ground to share and leverage resources and co-create solutions for poverty reduction. The toolkit is designed to be used by organizations who wish to embark on a similar journey of establishing their own local convergences or supporting ongoing collaborative efforts towards the SDGs.
The toolkit can also benefit those who are currently outside the ZEP2030 network but share ZEP2030’s mission to uplift the poor and vulnerable sectors of society and improve their quality of life. Since the information contained in the toolkit is rooted in authentic experiences of convenors and implementers, users will find it practical and feasible to adopt.
What you will find in the toolkit
The toolkit is divided into four sections. Each section tackles a specific theme and topics that can be read on its own or in conjunction with the other sections.
Section 1 | The Next 10 Years: Meeting the Challenge of the SDGs
This section describes the Sustainable Development Goals, a set of 17 global goals and actions that addresses some of the most pressing development and humanitarian challenges in the world today and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly. The SDGs, as they are more popularly known, are set to be achieved by the year 2030. With less than a decade left until the deadline, countries are hard at work to meet their commitments to the SDGs. The ZEP2030 Movement’s work is grounded on the SDGs particularly on SDG 1: eliminating extreme poverty for at least one million Filipino families (or five million Filipinos), moving them from a life of survival to subsistence to self-sufficiency by 2030.
Section 2 | ZEP2030 Coalition: Building Grassroots Innovations for Poverty Reduction in the Philippines
This section presents everything you need to know about ZEP2030. It is a quick introduction to the work and mandate of the coalition, its core values, vision and mission, structure and roles and poverty indicators. It also presents ZEP2030’s leadership, its lead convenors and technical working groups and its growing membership of 140-strong non-government entities and their geographic reach.
Section 3 | Pathways to Building ZEP2030 Local Convergences: What Works
This section contains the meat of the toolkit, broken down into four phases. Each phase starts off with a general description and overview then expands into a full story that vividly illustrates how seven local convergences in various stages of maturity have convened their respective area-based ZEP2030 coalitions. These reflective stories will guide readers through real-life examples as an experience that they can replicate themselves. The toolkit also curates a growing cache of tools and resources either developed by ZEP2030 or its partner networks that can provide additional support to local convergences.
Section 4 | Measuring Collective Impact to SDGs: Guidance on Reporting on ZEP2030 Indicators
This section fleshes out ZEP2030’s key poverty indicators that were briefly introduced in Section 2 and how they can be tracked, analyzed and reported. Using data innovations such as machine learning and COVID Pulse PH chatbot survey, this section also presents local poverty situationers in select provinces, cities and municipalities to guide ZEP2030 convergences in effectively designing and prioritizing programs and services for the poor and vulnerable.