Intersections Initiative

IPS worked in close partnership with the Intersections Initiative, which was led by our sister company, the Global Institute for Public Strategies. Intersections focused on the High Desert Region of San Bernardino County. This region, while part of San Bernardino County, is known as a suburb of the larger Los Angeles metropolitan area. Its residents are separated by the Interstate Highway 15, which can serve to both connect and separate residents from services.

The goal of the Initiative was to form a collaborative of service-focused community organizations, residents, and decision-makers to work together to build an equitable high desert that positively impacts health.

The Initiative had a three committee structure focused on housing, education, and economic development. Each individual committee focused on strategies to advance health policies through their unique lenses. Together, they intersected across all three spheres. They did so by collaborating locally and in partnership with other Intersections collaboratives across the state.

Developing relationships with local decision-makers and helping them understand the connection between local investment in impoverished neighborhoods and the overall economic well-being of the High Desert Region was key. To truly be equitable, the collaborative focused on grassroots organizing to ensure that the community was at the core of the decisions and development processes. These two strategies, working with grasstops and grassroots partners alike, is what made the collaborative successful.