The Community Systems initiative, a unique collaboration in the province of Ontario, is premised upon the view that all young people are potentially at risk of diminished life quality and opportunity unless we find new and increasingly effective ways of using all available resources--public, private, and voluntary--to promote their healthy development and overall well-being. The initiative seeks to contribute to the improved well-being and life prospects of young people by developing local community systems approaches or "prototypes." These prototypes demonstrate the feasibility of providing effective, comprehensive, and customized supports to children and their families on a local basis, as a prelude to the eventual transformation of the broader systems and networks of support to children and families.