On the frontline of representing community interests, nonprofit community-based organizations are often considered to be an essential community-based resource. In order to maintain their value and effectiveness they require continual renewal. Research is an important component of this process. Building the research capacity of a community-based organization in the nonprofit sector is not an easy task. To identify needs and set priorities, a balance must be found between competing interests. However, because no community is entirely self-contained, self-sufficient, or self-reliant, it is a vital component of the sustainable development of an organization. All community based participatory research (CBPR) begins with the development of a research agenda.

The development of a research agenda is a multi-phased project that starts within the organization, moves to the academic arena and ultimately ends in the community it serves.

Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences Research Center

Alliance for Research in Chicagoland Communities

Coalition of Limited English Speaking Elderly (CLESE)
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