Lobbying and Advocacy: Start Here
Welcome to the Lobbying & Advocacy topic in the Commons Social Change Library. This article guides you through a wide range of materials to inform the public in relation to lobbying, advocacy and policy-making.Â
Role
Advocate
Planning your First Campaign: Everyday Activism Handout Pack
Are you planning your first campaign? This Handout is designed to give you the skills and confidence to run your first campaign.
The Advocates: Women within the Australian Environmental Movement
This book features nine never-before-told stories of remarkable women and their courageous pursuits of climate justice in Australia.
Books to Read About Social Change
Looking for some inspiring reading for 2021 for yourself or as a gift? Here is a list of books on activism and organising to get you thinking.
A Preface to Advocacy: What You Should Know as an Advocate
Practical tips from experienced advocates. Collated by Erin Gilmer to empower any person entering the advocacy space to have the knowledge they need to make the biggest impact.
Windows and Cycles: How Policy gets Made
This article helps advocates understand and intervene in policymaking more effectively by understanding the two main models of policymaking.
Principles for a policy response to COVID-19
Five principles that must guide policymakers in the face of the unprecedented public policy challenges posed by COVID-19.
How to Present a Petition to Parliament
A guide developed by ActionStation to support community members with petitions. Some information is specific to the New Zealand parliamentary system and OurActionStation petition platform but many of the steps are relevant for other circumstances.
How to Get More Petition Signatures
A guide developed by ActionStation to support community members to run successful petitions, including notes on strategy, tips for getting more signatures, and example campaigns.
10 things to know about how to influence policy with research
10 tips about how to influence policy with research from the Overseas Development Institute. e.g. what, who, when to influence, politics, networks, etc.
3 tools for advocacy evaluation
Links to useful resources in the area of advocacy, policy change, and social movement evaluation.
Ducks For Detainees: Interview about artivism
An interview with Maggie Cowling from Ducks for Detainees which is a group that holds art events to maintain awareness of the plight of offshore detainees.
Video as an Advocacy Tool: How to Tools
3 how-to tools to improve your video and filming techniques from Witness including mobile phone filming, sound recording and interviewing techniques.
Activists Guide to Archiving Video
Archiving video is an essential but often overlooked component of video advocacy. Learn about best practices for organizing, storing, preserving, and sharing your footage.
How to Inspire a Young Activist? A Collection of Books for Kids and Teens
An inspiring collection of stories about activism and social justice for children and teenagers mostly collated by Melbourne independent bookstore Readings.
The Intertwine Charter: Going beyond anti-discrimination and towards pro-active change to welcome others
The Intertwine Charter was codesigned to address intersectionality. It outlines 6 areas where organisations can improve and proactively welcome others.
What we can learn from the LGBTQ movement’s 50 years of achievement
Despite pain, loss, disruption and grave threats, the LGBTQ movement — decade after decade — launched new campaigns for more advanced goals and won.
TED talk: How to overcome apathy and find your power
Dolores Huerta, civil rights activist, reflects on her life’s work – offering inspiration for anybody trying to overcome apathy and find their own power.
TED talk: An interview with the founders of Black Lives Matter
Born out of a social media post, the Black Lives Matter movement has sparked discussion about race and inequality across the world. The movement’s three founders share what they’ve learned about leadership and what provides them with hope and inspiration in the face of painful realities.
TED talk: Our fight for disability rights – and we’re not done yet by Judith Heumann
In 1977 Judith Heumann helped lead the groundbreaking Section 504 sit-in protest in which disabled-rights activists occupied a federal building for almost a month, demanding greater accessibility for all.