management resources for community media

CIVICUS Better Communications and Planning Toolkits

CIVICUS has produced a range of toolkits to enable organisations to improve their capacity in a number of communication and planning areas. From learning how to write a funding proposal to developing more effective action planning skills, the toolkits provide many useful tips and ideas to help strengthen organisations.

Many of the toolkits are available in English, French & Spanish.

- Writing Effectively & Powerfully
- Writings Within Your Organisation
- Producing Your Own Media ? ? (Word) or (PDF)
- Handling the Media
- Promoting Your Organisation
- Planning Overview
- Action planning
- Monitoring and Evaluation
- Strategic Planning
- Developing a Financing Strategy
- Financial Controls and Accountability
- Writing a Funding Proposal
- Budgeting

Budgeting - PDF, Budget examples - PDF
This toolkit provides guidelines on how to go about developing and monitoring a budget. It will help you with an overall organisational budget as well as with a budget for a specific project. It includes tools for estimating costs as well as tips for ensuring that your budgets meet the needs of your project or organisation. In the examples section we give actual examples of budgets and how they can be monitored.

Also in Word - Budgeting - Examples

La budgetisation (en deux parties): Premiere partie (Word) ou (PDF)
La budgetisation (et deuxieme partie): (Word) ou (PDF)

Elaboración de un presupuesto (Parte 1) (Word) o (PDF)
Elaboración de un presupuesto (Parte 2) (Word) o (PDF)

Developing a Financing Strategy - PDF
In this toolkit you will find:

A discussion about why there is a need for a financing strategy.

Information about what is required for a successful financing strategy (Prerequisites for a successful financing strategy). This contains ideas about what you need to put in place in your organisation in order to be able to plan a successful financing strategy. You will need to think about the basics of planning, budgeting, financial systems, your public image and values clarification.

A description of a number of strategic options for financing your organisation, including donor funding, earned income, member fees, fundraising from the general public, investments and careful spending.

Some ideas for preparing a strategy document.

Some ideas for making the strategy work.

Also in Word

Développer une stratégie financiere (Word) ou (PDF)

Desarrollo de una estrategia financiera (Word) o (PDF)

Writing a Funding Proposal - PDF

This toolkit deals with planning and researching a funding proposal before you write it; how to write the proposal; and the follow-up required once it is written and sent off. There is also an example of a funding proposal to guide you. You will find advice on what you need to know about donors, and what you need to know about your own project or organisation before you write a funding proposal. You will also find guidelines on what to put into your proposal and how to write it, and references to other CIVICUS toolkits that can help you.

Also in Word

Rédiger une proposition de financement (Word) ou (PDF)

Redacción de una propuesta financiera (Word) o (PDF)

Strategic Planning - PDF

This toolkit provides a model for taking an organisation through a strategic planning process. It covers planning to do strategic planning, covering the background issues that need to inform or direct the strategic planning process, and then defining the strategic framework for the project or organisation activities. It is this strategic framework that gives the activities coherence and direction. We have included practical exercises to use during a strategic planning process. The toolkit expands on the short introduction to strategic planning in the toolkit on Overview of Planning.

Also in Word

La planification stratégique (Word) ou (PDF)

Planificación estratégica (Word) o (PDF)

Action Planning - PDF

This toolkit provides a model for taking an organisation through an action planning process. It takes the user through a basic action planning format, step-by-step, covering all the key elements. By following the format, any project or organisation should be able to prepare a comprehensive action plan, in the context of a strategic planning framework. The toolkit expands on the short introduction to action planning in the toolkit: Overview of Planning.

Also in Word

Le plan d’action (Word) ou (PDF)

Planificación de acción (Word) o (PDF)