Community engagement events are public affairs activities that support the relationship between military and civilian communities. By increasing exposure to military personnel, facilities, equipment and programs, community engagement improves the public's understanding of the Department of War's mission and the U.S. defense posture. Two types of community engagement exist: proactive and reactive.
Proactive engagements
Proactive engagements are activities or programs, planned in advance, that bring together DoW personnel with a community. This type of engagement increases the likelihood of connecting community members with little interest or knowledge of an installation's mission. Proactive engagements educate, grow trust and credibility and increase support for quality-of-life programs that benefit service members and their families.
Examples include:
- Open houses and airshows
- Band outreach tours
- Base tour programs
- Reading programs with local schools
- Volunteer events
- Outreach with local colleges
- Biannual civic leader and mayoral lunches with the commander
- Service-specific programs (e.g., Fleet Week or Marine Week Charlotte)
- Memorial Day or Veterans Day ceremonies
- Community days or fairs
- Sports events/military tribute
Reactive engagements
Reactive engagements are responses to requests to participate in a community event. The invitation may require a legal review to determine its acceptability. These activities and events may include recurring events your unit or organization has been invited to and participated in many times. For recurring events, plan for these pop-up events just like proactive engagements.
Examples include:
- Town hall to address an issue (e.g., water contamination)
- Base realignment and closure announcements
- Speaking requests
- Civilian air shows
- Volunteer events
- School programs
- Chamber of commerce events
- Veterans organization events
Reactive engagements aren't always foreseeable due to a lack of funding. Consider them when writing project proposals to ensure funding and resources are available. For additional tips, refer to Don't Fall on Your Community Relations Sword.
Regardless of the type of engagement, appropriate decision-making is key to establishing and maintaining positive relationships between the community and the military. Use the following considerations to determine and plan the right programming for your unit.