The editorial in this issue of PHN by Dr. Risa Lavizzo-Mourey (2012) President and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), reminds me of the many reasons I sought a career in public health and nursing. The mandate for social change and the pathway for improvement in the health of populations demand that we seek collaboration and build coalitions to assure the future of nursing's contribution. Coalitions are social movement organizations oriented to a collective goal (Mizrahi & Rosenthal, 2001). Empirical and practice evidence to support the impact of coalitions are found in political, sociological, organizational, and nursing literature. Strategic support for coalition building was funded by the RWJF successfully in the 1990s through the Colleagues in Caring (CIC) programs in the states. These programs produced broad community investment in the design and sustainability of state nursing workforce offices and activities.
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