Partner with Cities Forward
Build it with us.
No single organization can fix how cities follow through with residents. We’re looking for city leaders, funders, and community organizations to build the first version with us in 2027, and to keep the work nonpartisan, practical, and owned by the cities it serves.
Ways to partner
There’s a role for everyone who believes in local government
City leaders
If you want to know what residents hear after a request closes, let’s talk. Pilot cities designate a coordinator and a contact in each participating department. Cities outside the pilot can join our convenings of mayors and city staff.
Funders
We’re seeking partners for the 2027 pilot and what it will teach us: the build, the rollout, the independent evaluation, and the convenings. Local funders can support programs in pilot cities directly.
Community and nonprofit leaders
The Dashboard can show a city where to look. Local organizations are how residents get reached. We’re looking for partners to run listening sessions, benefits enrollment help, block parties, and civic learning, and to tell us when the data don’t match what residents see.
Everyone else
Follow along as the pilot takes shape. We’ll share what we learn with mayors, city staff, and partners, including what doesn’t work.
For pilot cities
Start with work your city already does
The pilot is built to fit the routines and capacity of the staff delivering the work.
Your city brings
- A coordinator reporting to the city manager or chief of staff
- A point of contact in each participating department
- Staff time and access to existing data
- One service area to start
Philanthropy covers
- Support for the pilot and build-out
- The Dashboard, refined alongside your team
- An independent evaluation
- Convenings with peer cities
Not required
- New service programs
- New service-delivery funding
- Citywide adoption at the outset
The pilot documents what running the Dashboard costs, so cities can judge what’s sustainable.
The 2027 pilot
How the year unfolds
Get Involved
Build it with us.
No single organization can fix how cities follow through with residents. We’re looking for city leaders, funders, and community organizations to build the first version with us in 2027, and to keep the work nonpartisan, practical, and owned by the cities it serves.
Get in touch
Let’s talk about your city.
Tell us what residents in your city are asking for, and what you’d want them to hear back. City leaders, funders, and community partners are all welcome.
Prefer email? hello@citiesforward.org