A collaborative pathway model (CPM) is a visual type of program logic model that illustrates, in detail, the theory of change underlying a program. Each model below was developed in close collaboration with the community organization leaders and staff, using the values-driven CPM process which is designed to surface, protect, and convey the expertise held by community organizers and practitioners. Arrows connect each program activity to the short-term outcome(s) it contributes to. Additional arrows link each outcome to the other outcome(s) that it contributes to, tracing the pathways of change and convergence, and the incremental outcomes along the way.

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The diagrams are complex – but so are these community programs! There are various ways to “read” one: try starting at the right, with a long term outcome, and working backwards to see all that goes into achieving that outcome. Or start on the left with an activity of interest, and trace the path of change that that activity contributes to. Or look for “regions” in a model, to get a sense of the broad strategies of change that guide the complex work in these community-led initiatives. For more about this method, see this Visualizing Expertise paper.