Organizing for Policy, Systems and Environmental Change through Strategic Community Events
When you’re working to pass policy, systems and environmental (PSE) changes in your community, the strategic use of events is a keyorganizing tool. Such events can help youbuild and demonstrate support for the changethroughout your PSE campaign.They also can help you developan influential base of grassroots and grasstops supporterswho have strong skills. In addition, events convey to decisionmakers the urgent need to address active living, healthy eating and tobacco control in their community with the passage of PSE changes.
While essential to any PSE policy initiative, such eventsmust also fit within the context of a comprehensive, coordinated campaign plan that includes:
- assessing community readiness for the active living, healthy eating and tobacco control PSE change work
- engagingthe community in a culturally relevant way
- describing the need for the PSE change — the “why”—through a strategic education and capacity-building plan that includes “soft” events (see below)
- describing and showing support for the PSE change — the “what”—by organizing and mobilizing your coalition, gaining support from decision makers and scheduling “hard” events (see below)
- successful implementation thatprovides many opportunities for events and helps achieve social norms change.Events should focus on preparing the community and the group for the next PSE campaign.
Events in any PSE campaign, very simply, provide a reason for advocates to organize their community.By sponsoring an event, you have an opportunity to focus the media, decision makers and the public on your issues; you also can direct their attention to the benefits of the specific PSE changes for which you are advocating.An event creates an opportunity to build new relationships; to recruit new coalition partners, potential allies and volunteers; and to work directly with the public and the news media.Learning how to implementeffective community outreach and community events requires planning, attention to detail and a dedicated focus on recruitment, turnout and follow-up.Planning and executing events allows supporters to practice these essential advocacy skills and build capacity.Because the process of planning strategic community events engages whole groups of people, such as coalitions, it stretches beyond personal empowerment into community empowerment.
Events in a PSE change campaign fall into two general categories: “soft” and “hard.”Bothare essential tobuilding an educated and skilled grassroots and grasstops support base within a community. Both are critical in demonstrating that support to decision makers.
“Soft” events are aimed at educating the community about the health impacts of obesity, physical inactivity, unhealthy eating, tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke.These types of events provide the community with information and help recruitsupporters.In addition to allowing advocates to practice and hone their skills around recruitment, turnout and media, they alsoprovide opportunities for coalitions to test their ability to bring out large numbers of supporters in a low-stress and fun environment while communicating “the why.”
“Hard” events are aimed at elevating the profile of a specific proposed PSE change by demonstrating the power and commitment of a coalition and its supporters to decision makers.These events are centered on clear and concise messages, strong grassroots and grasstops turnout, advocacy and gaining as much earned media as possible. Hard events also seek to draw out the opposition and invitea community debate on public health.This is particularly important, given that opposition to tobacco control, active living and healthy eating PSE changes may be happening behind the scenes with decision makers and community members.
For more information and assistance with engaging your leadership team and sub-committee members in your planning, contact Sarah Senseman, senior community prevention consultant, at (651) 662-7102 or .
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