Please note: this course will not be available until Autumn 2007.
Who is the course for?
This course is designed for people and organisations grappling with issues of power, politics, and exclusion. It goes beyond the first generation of advocacy training to delve more deeply into questions of citizenship, constituency building, social change, gender, and accountability.
The course is designed for: non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and grassroot groups interested in a rights-based approach to advocacy that combines policy influence activities with strategies to strengthen citizen participation, awareness, and organisation; donor institutions interested in supporting comprehensive advocacy programmes that focus on overcoming exclusion and subordination, as well as on building more democratic forms of public decision-making; development agencies interested in engaging their own service delivery structures and beneficiaries in the pursuit of development solutions through the political process; trainers, activists, organisers, and researchers interested in building bridges between civil society, government, business, and other influential people and institutions to promote more accountable political processes and responsive development policies.
What is the approach to advocacy used in this course?
This course is based on the manual 'A New Weave of Power, People & Politics: The Action Guide to Advocacy and Citizen Participation' by Lisa VeneKlasen and Valerie Miller of Just Associates.
The course's approach to advocacy is geared to improving the lives and participation of marginalised people and forging broad alliances for reform across society, which the course defines as citizen-centered advocacy, sometimes referred to as transformative, people-centered, participatory, or social justice advocacy.
We understand advocacy as a political process that involves the coordinated efforts of people in changing existing practices, ideas, and distributions of power and resources that exclude women and other disadvantaged groups. From this perspective, advocacy deals with specific aspects of policymaking, as well as the values and behavior that perpetuate exclusion and subordination. Thus, advocacy is both about changing specific decisions affecting people's lives and changing the way decision-making happens into a more inclusive and democratic process.
Inevitably, advocacy will involve tensions. This course aims to help activists analyse, plan, and manage strategies with a clear understanding of potential risks. Advocacy strategies will vary widely in response to particular circumstances, issues, opportunities, and constraints.
Structure of the course
The course builds on experiences in advocacy, gender, human rights, popular education, and social change. The material has been developed in the hope that bridges and alliances between peoples will be built for justice, equality and peace. There are a variety of exercises, tools, resources, tips, and stories which make learning exciting.
Understanding politics
Effective citizen politics requires conceptual clarity. Advocacy is not a value-neutral technology. Certain concepts define our vision of social and political change. They also help us to interpret reality and make strategic choices. Concepts such as power, gender, equity, and participation shape our methodology and strategies, while concepts such as democracy and citizenship direct our vision. That is why we begin the course with an exploration of concepts, assumptions, and values.
The course will cover the following topics: politics and advocacy; democracy and citizenship; power and empowerment; and constructing empowering strategies.
Planning advocacy
Good planning provides the basis for effective citizen advocacy work. Most users will find this section immediately relevant to their needs. It includes planning tools and helps to guide processes. Participatory planning builds constituencies for change while educating and empowering individual citizens.
The course will cover the following topics: planning for citizen-centered advocacy; looking inward; understanding the big picture; identifying and defining problems; analysing problems and priorities; mapping advocacy strategies; finding policy hooks; and forces, friends and foes.
Doing advocacy
The last section provides ideas and stories about doing advocacy. There are tips and examples to inspire activists to be both creative and careful when designing actions that fit their unique context.
The course will cover the following topics: messages and media; outreach and mobilisation; resolving conflict and differences; lobbying and negotiation; advocacy leadership; and alliances and coalitions.
About the authors
The course has been authored by Lisa VeneKlasen and Valerie Miller.
Course tutor
Online tutoring will be provided by Lisa VeneKlasen. Lisa VeneKlasen is executive director and co-founder of Just Associates, a strategic support and learning organisation that draws upon a global network of renowned leaders, professionals, and activists to provide training and technical assistance to grassroots groups, NGOs, donors and others committed to equality, rights and accountable governance.
During the last two decades, Lisa has directed and been engaged in a wide variety of international development and advocacy initiatives to promote women's rights and gender equality, including Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF) and similar women's rights networks in Latin America and Asia. She has advised and assisted dozens of NGOs and international donors worldwide to develop and conduct advocacy and participation strategies and training programmes. She recently completed a book with Valerie Miller entitled 'A New Weave of Power, People and Politics: The Action Guide to Advocacy and Citizen Participation.'
This course was originally developed with the financial support of the European Union, the British Department for International Development, and the Canadian International Development Research Centre.
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