Cities of Service strongly believes in giving cities the power to engage their communities to solve pressing challenges in the ways that work best for them. No matter how they do it, success in our cities can always be traced back to the power of partnerships. Our work would not be possible without strong partnerships between mayors and city managers, nonprofit organizations, businesses, and community volunteers — from those who help drive months-long projects to those who pitch in for an hour.

2016 was an exciting year for Cities of Service. We launched Chief Service Officer Leadership Initiatives in Detroit, Miami, and Phoenix, where we are working to harness the power of senior government staff to drive citizen engagement projects throughout their respective cities. Our Bay Area Impact Volunteering program focused on achieving lasting impact with disaster preparedness efforts. Serious work was also under way through our Love Your Block AmeriCorps VISTA program, focused on neighborhood revitalization, and our Resilience AmeriCorps program.

This booklet provides an overview of our 2016 programs, along with highlights from cities across the US and UK.