Since 2006, the IAF Northwest has been hosting 6-day Leadership Trainings, currently in rotating cities across 4 countries: USA, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. 

This intensive training provides a thorough introduction to the organizing practices and principles developed by Industrial Areas Foundation member organizations in its 79-year history.

The IAF Northwest helps to recruit, identify and support organizers in the 14 different affiliates and start-up alliances in our region. 

Our veteran staff draw on their years of organizing experience when they provide support and training to local organizers, either onsite or at regular Organizer Retreats, conducted three times per year.

IAF Northwest aims to disseminate winning practices and success stories between the organizers and civic leaders in our alliances.   We work to help organizers and leaders learn from each other in what has proven successful in both addressing issue problems and ways to engage more people through organizing strategies. 

The IAF Northwest Health Equity Organizing initiative works with health clinics, residency programs, and students to use community organizing tools and practices to address the social determinants of health - the conditions in our community where we work, live, and play, that have been demonstrated to influence our health far more than medical care.  There is immense interest within the healthcare world to address the social determinants, but direct services to individual patients (e.g., housing referrals, food vouchers, resume workshops) are not enough to address community-level issues like unstable housing, food insecurity, unemployment.

We support our affiliates in researching issue areas affecting their regions, and sharing solutions with each other.

Examples: