At this year’s Activate Good event, CCF Director of Programs, Lisa-Ruth Karnes shared an update on Cobb Vital Signs—a countywide initiative led by Cobb Community Foundation in partnership with Neighborhood Nexus and Kennesaw State University.
Based on remarks delivered by CCF Director of Programs Lisa-Ruth Karnes at Activate Good 2026.
At its core, Cobb Vital Signs is grounded in a simple but powerful question: How are we really doing as a community? Not just in averages or headlines, but across neighborhoods, across generations, and across lived experiences.
The reality is that no single organization or dataset tells the full story. Experiences with housing, education, health, and economic opportunity can vary widely depending on where someone lives and the systems they interact with. Cobb Vital Signs brings these pieces together—combining data, community voice, and local expertise—to better understand what’s happening beneath the surface.
This work is already yielding valuable insights. To date, more than 750 community surveys have been completed in collaboration with 23 nonprofit partners, alongside focus groups with local nonprofit leaders. Several themes are emerging clearly: transportation remains a significant barrier, affordability challenges—particularly related to housing and healthcare—are affecting many households, and caregiving needs, both for children and older adults, are becoming increasingly critical for local families.
The result of this effort will be a public report, set to be released in October, along with interactive tools designed for broad community use. Nonprofits, businesses, civic groups, funders, and residents alike will be able to access the data to make more informed decisions, align efforts, and take more strategic action.
This work matters because a shared understanding allows us to move beyond isolated efforts toward collective action—investing more thoughtfully, collaborating more effectively, and focusing on what will make the greatest difference over time.
Community members can play an important role in this process. Helping share information about Cobb Vital Signs—whether by making introductions to local groups, hosting conversations, or engaging with the findings—will ensure the insights reach and reflect the full community.
As shared during the event, this is a community effort in every sense. By engaging with the findings and helping shape what comes next, we can work together to build a stronger, more informed future for Cobb County. View more on Vital Signs here and reach out to Lisa-Ruth at Lisa-Ruth@cobbfoundation.org if you’d like to partner with us and activate good alongside Cobb Community Foundation.
