advocacy

The final of four workshops in the 2012 Advocacy Leaders Network (ALN) series will be held next Friday, September 21. The fourth workshop, “Learning the Lessons of Campaign 2012 and Transforming them to an Advocacy World,” will discuss how to apply campaign tactics to your advocacy efforts – all aimed at senior advocacy, government affairs, and public relations professionals. ALN is hosted by the Congressional Management Foundation, as part of its Partnership for a More Perfect Union, which seeks to enhance communications, understanding, and the relationship between citizens and Congress. It is sponsored by Beekeeper Group, Bloomberg Government, and Verizon.

Building relationships with lawmakers and their staff often appears intimidating, confusing and – worst of all – a waste of time. However, a survey of congressional staff conducted by the Congressional Management Foundation showed “in-person visits by constituents” was the best strategy to influence an undecided lawmaker. But how do you do it?

Does your organization advocate well on the local level, but is afraid to make the leap to Washington? Look no further. Anyone can launch a winning advocacy campaign on Capitol Hill – you just have to follow the right steps.

As the Congressional Management Foundation continues to expand the Partnership for a More Perfect Union, we are seeking ways to provide Partners with additional tools to educate your grassroots supporters on effective citizen advocacy. With that in mind, CMF is creating two new benefits for Partners.

CMF is excited to introduce a new feature in which we look at successful advocacy campaigns that align with what congressional staff members have told CMF are effective methods for communicating with Congress. It’s always valuable to learn about real-life examples that support the research!

This month, we’re talking with the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) about their legislatively successful and award-winning “Kids Just Want To Ride!” advocacy campaign.

Much ballyhoo has been made about the loosely coordinated mid-January effort to encourage citizens to contact Congress and voice opposition to two pieces of Internet-related legislation. The much-publicized darkening of major websites has been hailed as a wake-up call for Internet advocates. However, the strategies and tactics of those opposed to the Stop Internet Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect IP Act (PIPA) actually just relied on some tried and true elements of advocacy which have existed for the last 50 years.