Research report available

This spring, I conducted research in the Yukon on why some people get involved in advocacy while others don’t. This blog has been one approach to sharing my thoughts on this topic and collecting people’s comments.

Earlier this month I finished the related research report (done as part of a Masters project). The report summarizes what I heard from people during my research and provides some thoughts on what organizations might do to better engage people in their advocacy work. It is written in fairly plain language, includes all the postings in this blog, and a list of resources (some on this site, some not).

If you would like a copy of the report, I can send you a PDF (about 500 kb in size). Just send me a request by email (only electronic versions are available). Send to jaellis (at) uvic.ca.

Thanks to those who took their time to participate in the interviews, leave comments on the blog and participate in the workshop! And thanks to all who are committed to working for change in our community!

Jennifer Ellis

Looking down the barrel of a gun

Although my Masters is done, and this blog will soon fade out, I wanted to share this story I just read online with those still checking in as it really makes the point about the imperative of advocacy and activism.

Basically, the premise of this article in Orion magazine is that the world (not “our” world as the author notes) is looking down the barrel of a gun. He asks what a person would do, how they might act, if a person was rampaging their house, killing their loved ones.

“Would the question burning a hole in your heart be: how should I live my life right now? I can’t speak for you, but the question I’d be asking is this: how do I disarm or dispatch these psychopaths? How do I stop them using any means necessary?”

It is not enough he says to “be the change you want to see in the world” as the world won’t last that long. Being enlightened isn’t an option if there is no world to be enlightened in. Buying green won’t make a difference if there is no world to go shopping in. He argues that the question we need to ask isn’t about asking ourselves how we should live our life, but to ask the land that supports us“What can and must I do to become your ally, to help protect you from this culture?” Of course, you then need to be willing to listen and act on the answer if things are going to change.

To read the full article, see the “World at Gunpoint” in the latest issue of Orion Magazine.

“Our communities need creative pioneers”

In the 80s and 90s, a lot of social change movements seemed to use messages full of doom and gloom in their attempts to motivate people to act. People were bombarded with urgent pleas of “Act now!… Or the world as we know it will end.”

However, in this decade it looks as if social change activists (and the Obama campaign) have clued into people’s need for inspiration and hope. While social change movements still have their messages about what we have to lose, I’m seeing more and more about what we have to gain. Movement organizers and spokespeople have recognized that people know about the doom and gloom but they need to feel inspired before they will do anything about it. They need to be able to imagine another world is possible and that we can get there.

Artists are well positioned to provide such inspiration by tapping into the realm of the imagination (whether on their own or through a collective process) to explore new visions for the future.

Enraged or engaged?

Earlier today I watched a short video of a march organized by Avaaz.org in London, England this past weekend. Marchers were calling on the meeting of the G20 countries to deal with the global economic crisis by supporting “green recovery.” Quotes from the green helmet clad demonstrators highlighted that they saw this current crisis as a way to do things differently, as a way to support the growth of a green economy that would be good for people and the planet. They were both worried and hopeful about the future.

Yet “activists” like these demonstrators are often portrayed as being against things – against big business, against government decisions, against development, against war. They seem to be all about fighting and opposing and struggling. They are depicted as inciting conflict, as being unbending and uncooperative. They are never happy or satisfied.

No Gandhi Pill

In the 1990s, four researchers conducted a several year study of over a hundred diverse people “who had sustained long-term commitments to work on behalf of the common good.” They were interested in exploring what made these people that way, how they sustained their commitment over the years, and what might be done to encourage this kind of citizenship in others.

In public forums on their resulting book, “Common Fire: leading lives of commitment in a complex world,” parents often asked what they could do to make their children socially aware and responsible. The authors’ reply was that there was no “Gandhi pill”.

In other words, there is no one thing, no one event, that will ensure a person lives a life of commitment to the common good. It is a blend of influences that matter.

While there is no clear recipe to follow, according to one of the study’s authors, Laurent Parks Daloz, there are some key ingredients that help foster individuals who care enough about others around them and feel compelled to act. He notes that there are four types of social engagement that help people learn greater social responsibility.

Activists fail to see success

When I worked for an environmental group years ago, and women’s organizations years before that, I often wondered out loud if I was getting anywhere, making any contribution to positive change. People responded that “it would be worse if you weren’t doing this work.” It wasn’t really that much of a comfort; but I wasn’t sure how to measure my success.

Although social movements have played a key role in bringing about significant social change, somehow activists often believe their movement is getting nowhere. In the process, they sometimes create a culture of failure and even develop an aversion to success.

Have you been asked?

I was reading a journal article last night about why people participate in protests. The findings were pretty straightforward: the primary determinant was that someone had asked them to participate!

While this may be stating the obvious, it echoes research I have read in the past about on volunteer recruitment. In national surveys, many people also said they didn’t volunteer because no one asked them to! So if it is so obvious, why isn’t it happening more?

Of course organizers working on an issue need to ask people to write letters, attend meetings or rallies, sign petitions and so on. And they do, time and time again. However, I think it is often  ”the same damned bunch” that gets asked.

In some of my interviews with local organizers, people have noted that their more successful campaigns have involved building partnerships with different groups in order to expand the reach and legitimacy of the campaign. Partnerships increase the number of people speaking out and show multiple perspectives are concerned about the same issue. It not just “that same damned bunch”.

Over the next few days, I will be setting up in a café or two to ask people why they do or don’t get involved in advocacy. I am hoping to learn more about whether Yukoners feel they are being asked enough, and if they’re being asked in a way that works for them.

But if you have comments on how important just being asked is to your involvement in advocacy, or how you might be effectively asked to speak out, I would love to hear them! When was the last time someone asked you to speak out on an issue? Did it work? How could they reach you more effectively?

A Delicate Balance

The information you provide to people can make or break efforts to mobilize people to act.

Give people too little and they might not know enough to feel confident about speaking out, to counter the counter arguments, or even to know what needs to be done.

Give people too much and they might feel too overwhelmed at the scope of the issue, too confused by the complexities of the topic, or too intimidated by the level of change that is needed.

Make the message too strong, and it could make them feel like they’re a nail being slowly pounded into a board by one heavy-handed hammer blow after another. Or they might feel like you are Chicken Little crying that the sky is falling, that you’re just another over-the-top activist claiming their issue is the biggest and most important of all.

Make the message too weak, and people could put it at the bottom of their “to do” list, somewhere between walk the dog and buy fluorescent light bulbs. The lack of urgency makes the cause forgettable unless it is happening between them and the hardware store.

So what does work?

Workshop – April 21

I will be holding a workshop about the topic of why do people act for change in Whitehorse on Tuesday, April 21st. The room is small so if you’re interested in attending, please email me to let me know.

****************************************************************************************************************************************************

Engaging the Unengaged

A free workshop for social change organizers

What motivates some people to speak up for change while others stay on the couch? How can you get more people to speak out on an issue or cause you are working on?

Tuesday, April 21^st, 2009

7:00 to 9:00 pm

Whitehorse Public Library

Please pre-register to guarantee a seat!  Email me at: jaellis@uvic.ca

*****************************************************************************************************************************************************

Red noses & feather boas

Imagine this scene:

A small group of clowns is makings its way to the G8 Alternatives march [in the UK]. They pass over a bridge above the motorway. Half a dozen policemen line up, they face the line of clowns and stare at each other. Two clowns start to count down: “Three, two one – go!”. The police and clowns rush towards each other, the clowns’ hands are outstretched and, faces grimacing, the clowns scream “Kazamm!”. There is a floating moment of confusion…and they run into each others’ open arms. Clowns hug policemen, policemen hug clowns. Everyone is a bit surprised, there is a roar of celebratory cheers from the clowns and slightly sheepish and embarrassed applause from the police….” (Fremeaux & Ramsden, p. 21)