Parachute is an organization with a social purpose – to save lives. Our goal is for Canadians to live long lives to the fullest by preventing leading causes of death and serious injury. Parachute works upstream, or on primary prevention, focusing on stopping an injury from happening in the first place instead of attempting to turn back the clock after an incident occurs.
In the years of Parachute’s third strategic plan, covering 2021 to 2023, we are committed to continuing our journey to change how Canadians think about and prevent serious injuries.
Parachute has an important role in preventing unintentional injuries in this country, has a seat at key tables to lead and influence, plays an instrumental role in convening and connecting diverse local, regional provincial and national players, and is positioned as the national leader to share injury prevention strategies and best practices with partners and the public. Parachute works in partnership across the public, non-profit and private sectors, to leverage the strengths of each sector and bring skills and experience to bear on the injury prevention agenda.
By understanding what causes the most-common problems, we can then pursue policies and create interventions to reduce the incidence of these injuries.
Parachute will continue to focus on priority areas related to injuries that occur at home, at play, and on the road, using national data to direct our work to the highest burden of unintentional injury.
This means the areas the organization will address are:
- Falls
- Motor vehicle collisions
- Poisonings
- Incidents in sport and recreational activities, with a focus on concussion prevention
In addition, Parachute will identify points of intersection between these areas, for example, concussion and falls in seniors.
Our inspiration to pursue “massive and long-lasting good”
We tend to favor reaction: Because it’s more tangible. Downstream work is easier to see. Easier to measure. There is a maddening ambiguity about upstream efforts… Downstream efforts are narrow and fast and tangible. Upstream efforts are broader, slower, and hazier – but when they work, they really work. They can accomplish massive and long-lasting good.
Dan Heath, Upstream: The Quest to Solve Problems Before They Happen.
In 2019, New York Times bestselling author Dan Heath published Upstream, which examines why “upstream”, preventative measures are so successful when implemented, but why it is so difficult to win support for them. His observation about the effectiveness of prevention efforts – that when they work, they can accomplish “massive and long-lasting good” – inspired the name for our 2021 to 2023 Strategic Plan.
Strategic Priorities
Parachute will focus its efforts in three main strategic priority areas for 2021 to 2023.
Strategic Priority: Lead and influence nationally
As a national social-purpose injury prevention charity striving for zero deaths and serious injuries, Parachute will lead the efforts to draw attention to and invest in injury prevention.
To achieve this we will:
Convene, connect and act collectively
Parachute will mobilize, influence and participate in high-impact injury prevention efforts working with federal, national, provincial and territorial and international networks of leading injury prevention experts, high-profile spokespersons and multi-sectoral partners. We will lead and represent Parachute on strategic national committees and working groups and at international and national conferences and meetings. Parachute will act as an umbrella organization for various bodies interested in injury prevention, organizing national working groups to provide guidance on specific types of injuries or issues. We will lead and contribute to thought leadership, specifically in emerging or topical areas and cross-sector issues.
Be the ”go to” organization
We will expand Parachute’s profile by increasing the organization’s name and brand recognition, galvanize awareness that reaches a wider audience (media, practitioners, leaders in the field, funders, and the Canadian public) in both English and French to focus national attention on injury prevention as an important social issue.
Advocate for investment and changes in injury prevention policies and priorites
Parachute will advocate for national, federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal leadership and investment in injury prevention with evidence-informed policies, standards and legislation that is targeted at specific injury topics and issues. We will develop and cultivate key relationships with government to influence priorities, policies and funding allocated to injury prevention efforts and promote Parachute as the expert national organization for injury prevention.
Strategic Priority: Address urgent, preventable injury issues
As an organization committed to translating evidence into action to prevent and reduce injury, Parachute will use scientifically supported best-practice implementation and evaluation in all of its programs and services, from the national to the local level, to expand and further the impact and effectiveness of our work.
To achieve this we will:
Translate knowledge and evaluate effectiveness and impact
Parachute will ensure that all of the information and messaging advanced by the organization is based in evidence. Using evidence-based indicators and metrics, we will undertake scientifically supported evaluation of the organization and its activities to measure the impact and effectiveness of Parachute’s work. Parachute will compile, synthesize and disseminate relevant data and evidence-based injury prevention information. We will serve as an injury prevention knowledge translation (KT) and dissemination network hub: a one-stop shop for resources easily understood by injury prevention and other sector practitioners and the public.
Parachute will collaborate with researchers to contribute new knowledge to the evidence base on injury prevention risk factors and strategies, provide insight and KT leadership and support for research projects and explore options to integrate researchers into the Parachute organization. Parachute will evaluate all of our programs and services, measuring the impact based on identified outcome indicators and metrics.
Develop and amplify programs
Parachute will ensure programs and services are feasible, innovative and leverage leading practices, using a comprehensive, consistent, repeatable framework. We will expand or amplify successful programs and will identify and develop a wide range of evidence-based solutions to prevent injury. We will explore creative and innovative ways to deliver programs, services, information and resources, such as using new technologies, gaming and storytelling. We will look for and address points of intersection with intentional injuries, such as concussions due to intimate partner violence, as well as points where multiple types of unintentional injury can happen concurrently, such as falls that cause concussion.
Engage stakeholders
Parachute will deepen and sustain networks, communicate with stakeholders, be the leader and face of injury prevention within the injury prevention community, as well as align with other non-profits and non-traditional sectors to collaborate and amplify efforts. We will elevate the issue of the burden of injury and the importance of injury prevention in public arenas, being the leading public face of this important public health issue in Canada.
Train and educate
Parachute will strengthen the knowledge and skills of injury prevention and allied professionals through the delivery of national training using a variety of delivery platforms, such as online courses, webinars and in-person professional development.
Strategic Priority: Sustain and expand sources of revenue
As an organization that seeks to be sustainable, we will ensure we generate sufficient revenue to accomplish our priorities and annual plans, and establish an operating reserve through diverse funding sources, with a focus on social enterprise revenues.
To achieve this, we will strengthen our funding partner base and streams of revenue to build and maintain sustainability. We will steward relationships with funding partners to optimize their experience and leverage all assets towards our mission. We will maintain a diverse funding portfolio, ideally with no single source accounting for more than 50 per cent of total annual revenues. Parachute will turn its attention to the development of social enterprise opportunities that capitalize on the organization’s skills and expertise.