GAVA partners with a variety of local Austin agencies to engage more than 2,000 active community residents since 2012.  Below, you will find information about our coalition partners and how their work contributes to the overall GAVA mission.

Urban roots

Urban Roots uses food and farming to transform the lives of young people and inspire, engage, and nourish the community. Urban Roots is the only farm-based youth leadership organization in Austin and has been empowering youth and nourishing community for more than 10 years. As a partner of GAVA, Urban Roots youth are working to develop a community-led vision for a newly relocated urban farm and headquarters for youth leadership development in Dove Springs.

Lone Star Circle of Care

GAVA & LSCC are collaborating to address the social determinants of health (SDoH) for patients and families served by both of our organizations. LSCC will help GAVA reach patients in our neighborhoods of focus while we also provide feedback to LSCC informed by community knowledge and lived experience of people receiving services from LSCC and its partners. Through this collaboration we seek to develop community-driven adaptations and interventions that improve health outcomes for people in Austin’s Eastern Crescent (including but not limited to Dove Springs, South Austin, or the Rundberg area surrounding Collinfield clinic.

Austin Free-Net

Austin Free-Net (AFN) mission is to provide technology training and computer access to the community, fostering skills that enable people to succeed in the digital age. AFN believes that access to the internet is imperative in the 21st century and beyond and those without the digital skills to use any digital device and specifically computers are at a disadvantage. GAVA and AFN are working together to provide Disaster Preparedness Navigator Training, organized to leverage technology tools and resources to support community members in anticipating, preparing for and responding to climate disaster.

United Way for Greater Austin

United Way for Greater Austin is a local nonprofit & community service organization providing resources and volunteer opportunities with local Austin charities since 1924. United Way gives everyone in Austin the chance to be a philanthropist through various Austin social services, and gives us the opportunity to work together to help families overcome barriers to economic opportunities.  United Way works with GAVA to strengthen health resources for early childhood care centers, as well as the network of friends, family, and neighbors home-based providers.

Foundation Communities

Foundation Communities (FC) creates housing where families succeed.  FC provide people with an affordable, attractive place to call home, as well as opportunities right at their doorstep to transform their lives.  Our organizer has been working to build resident-led teams in our Sierra Ridge / Sierra Vista apartments in 78745 to improve access to health and safety for the entire community.  Our teens have even gotten involved, creating soccer teams for kids of all ages in the local school park.

Austin Parks Foundation

Austin Parks Foundation (APF) is a non-profit organization devoted to building public-private partnerships to develop and maintain parks, trails, and open space in Austin and Travis County.  Our mission is to connect people to resources and partnerships to develop and improve parks in and around Austin. Our community organizer worked with GAVA teams to bring infrastructure improvements to their parks by helping them form official Park Adoption teams, apply for funding opportunities, plan work days and beautification events, and host community celebrations.  Our city-wide events included It’s My Park Day, National Trails Day.

Sustainable Food Center

The Sustainable Food Center (SFC) cultivates a healthy community by strengthening the local food system and improving access to nutritious, affordable food. SFC envisions a food secure community where all children and adults grow, share and prepare healthy, local food.  SFC helped GAVA teams establish community farm stands, gardens, and other sources of fresh, local produce.

University of Texas - School of Public Health

The Michael & Susan Dell Center for Healthy Living is housed at the University of Texas School of Public Health (Health Science Center of Houston). The Center is one of the preeminent research facilities for child and adolescent health, including a focus on obesity prevention, diet & nutrition, physical activity, tobacco and alcohol. Research from the Center includes the flagship School Physical Activity and Nutrition (SPAN) survey, which documents the rates of obesity and related behaviors in Texas school children.  UT Health worked with GAVA to evaluate our place-based health initiative, and provided an evidence-base to guide efforts and investments in child health.