WHO WE ARE

Founded in 2007, the Arizona ACEs Consortium is a diverse group of individuals working together to create a strong and productive Arizona, where good health is available to all. We promote ideas, policies, and practices that bring awareness and understanding to the depth of the impact of childhood adversity and build resilience in individuals, families, and communities. We know that adverse childhood experiences can last a lifetime, but they don’t have to.

Our organization engages professionals and agencies to increase awareness about the causes, effects, and opportunities to mitigate the impact of ACEs in our community. We also support and empower Arizona’s most vulnerable groups so they can reach their full potential, which benefits our communities, our economy, and society as a whole.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
– Margaret Mead

ACEs Overview

Throughout our lives, a great deal of our health is shaped by what we experience in our families, homes, and communities. Aspects ranging from our housing, education, and jobs, to the safety of our neighborhoods all affect our health. When we experience chronic stress—related to unstable relationships, dangerous surroundings, or unmet needs—it can result in negative outcomes, not only in our own health, but in our children’s health, in every stage of life.

The Arizona ACEs Consortium recognizes that wellbeing doesn’t just happen. It’s built, like a house, through a network of relationships and community assets that create stability and help people to thrive. And just like any other construction project, well-being requires an investment of resources.

Individuals can’t do it alone. It takes a strong community to raise strong kids. That’s why the Arizona ACEs Consortium is working to help communities make family mental health and support services available so that early interventions can take place. By offering this support early, communities put into place a framework that catches children before they fall, so they can reach their full potential. Studies show that these kinds of early investments pay off for everybody, because a child with a solid foundation becomes a member of a solid community who contributes to our economy later on.

Our Work

By working together across communities and taking a practical, comprehensive approach, we believe we can create the kind of health system we all deserve. We strive to identify promising new approaches that enable everyone to make healthy choices, no matter their economic or social status, so they have the support they need to do well in life.

Addressing ACEs is vital to helping Arizona, because when everyone realizes their abilities, everybody benefits. The foundation of a rich and sustainable society begins when we bolster the skills and abilities that start to develop in early childhood so that all kids have the chance to develop intellectually, emotionally, and socially.

To build the well-being of Arizona’s communities, the Arizona ACEs Consortium supports the human service organizations that monitor and sustain the programs, services, and opportunities from which well-being is built. We also educate Arizona’s community and state leaders about preventing the long-term effects of adverse childhood experiences. This work requires the engagement of all sectors—from policymakers, to civic groups, to youth, to business owners, to health and education professionals, to parents and volunteers who want to get involved. It is not an easy task. But changes are happening, and communities are transforming in ways that put better health within everyone’s reach.

Join Us

The Arizona ACEs Consortium is a collaboration of more than one hundred individuals, state, county, and private organizations working together.

We are made up of professionals from all walks of life, united by a desire to help Arizona’s children.

It’s a big group, and we’re committed to making sure that all families have the opportunity to raise healthy children from the start, so that every child has the opportunity to thrive.

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