The U.S. decennial Census is a constitutionally mandated count of the population to ensure equal representation in Congress, and its data is widely used to craft policies, plan initiatives, deliver services, and promote economic mobility. The 2020 Census faced significant challenges, including a global pandemic, racial justice uprisings, natural disasters, and inadequate funding and staffing. It was further politicized by anti-immigrant policies, increasing distrust among communities of color. In response, foundations supported the Census through a multi-year initiative focusing on historically undercounted populations. ORS Impact and Barsoum Policy Consulting served as evaluation partners in 2020 and are republishing these evaluation reports in light of increasing threats to the 2030 Census. The 2020 reports include evaluations of the Census Funders’ Collaborative, case studies on advocacy efforts, and memos on census support across all 50 states.

In this companion piece to “Not Always Movements: Multiple Strategies to Advance Large-Scale Social Change”, we dive a little deeper into building fields. We outline some key theories and frameworks that underlie this approach, outcomes to look for, considerations regarding equity, and guidance on measurement and learning along the way. It is intended as a bite-sized introduction to key concepts around field building, to support further exploration and engagement.