ABC's of Advocacy Guide

ABC’s of Advocacy: Community Guide to Change

September 2015

Tish Atkins: [email protected] • (202) 827-8018 Susie Cambria: [email protected] • (301) 832-2339

Provider of grant funding for the series

mailto:[email protected]


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http://erfsc.org/

http://erfsc.org/

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Why engage in advocacy? Because you want to change something—policy, practice, rules, or behavior. They will likely not change by themselves. What is advocacy? Advocacy is all about influencing public policy and/or practice. When done by community members, it can strengthen communities and societies and empower people. According to Wikipedia, “Advocacy is a political process by an individual or group which aims to influence decisions within political, economic, and social systems and institutions.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advocacy) More simply: Advocacy is problem solving. Community Toolbox says advocacy actively promotes a cause or principle is a set actions which lead to a selected goal Is one of many possible strategies or ways to approach a problem a stand-alone effort or can be part of a community initiative or other initiative can involve confrontation or conflict but they are not necessary elements (http://

ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/advocacy/advocacy-principles/overview/main) In which situations can you use advocacy? Budget Legislation Regulatory and administrative issue Systems Community-level work

ABC’s of Advocacy The Basics


Decisions are made by those who show up.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advocacy

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advocacy

http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/advocacy/advocacy-principles/overview/main

http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/advocacy/advocacy-principles/overview/main



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Step 1: Identify the problem Determine what the problem is. The problem is not always obvious so spend time talk-ing with others, identifying ideas about what the problem is, and refine. This step involves doing research: Understanding the breadth and depth of the situation, problem Identifying the players including decision makers, allies, opponents Knowing what laws, policies and practices are related to the situation or problem Understanding the context surrounding the problem Collecting data

ABC’s of Advocacy The Problem-solving Process




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Step 2: Identify the goal State the goal, what you want to achieve. Note: This is not a laundry list of strategies or ways to achieve the goal.

Example from real life Several years ago, advocates for homeless individuals decided they could make a big difference among the chronic homeless by focusing on ending homelessness among veterans. Their goal was to end veteran homelessness by 2015.

Step 3: Identify solutions, select the “best”, and implement When you identify the solutions, do two things. First, list all the ideas you have. Second, don’t discuss them as they are being identified. Once you have a list of solutions, you need to consider them against the resources you have available along with other important considerations such as external forces and deadlines. External forces to consider include: Your allies Your opponents Current political environment Supporters who may not be allies If this is a widespread public advocacy effort, how will you reach out? If the goal requires legislation to be passed or changed, where are you in the legisla-

tive cycle? If the goal requires government funding, where are you in the budget cycle? Has the media weighed in on the issue?



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Step 4: Assess, repeat Step 3 as needed Did you achieve your goal? Yes or no, assess why. Use your plan as the guide to assess the ef-fort.

The important thing is to learn a lesson every time you lose. Life is a learning process and you have to try to learn what's best for you. Let me tell you, life is not fun when you're banging your head against a brick wall all the time.

John McEnroe



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ABC’s of Advocacy The Plan


Create your advocacy plan Community Toolbox has a terrific step-by-step on how to prepare you advocacy plan (see http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/advocacy/advocacy-principles/advocacy-plan/main). From this page you will find a helpful checklist and list of tools needed. Items on the checklist, for example, include: What's the best way to plan? Planning is done as a group What should we plan? Planning is done under six headings: goals; resources and assets; supporters / opponents; targets and agents of change; strategy; and tactics How do we plan for goals or objectives? Objectives are SMART + C: Specific; Measurable; Achievable; Relevant; Timed; and Challenging How should resources and assets be included in the plan? The following resources are included: funds; people currently available, and likely to be available in the future; important contacts; and facilities

Selecting the target(s) Selecting your target(s) is perhaps the most important decision to make, second only to the goal. Advocates typically target members of the Council of the District of Columbia and not the mayor. Both have benefits.



http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/advocacy/advocacy-principles/advocacy-plan/main

ABC's of Advocacy Guide

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