Make the extraordinary, ordinary: The power of advocacy and coalition

On Tuesday night, I got the opportunity to participate in a very interesting group discussion on the power of advocacy for the non profit sector. This group discussion was lead by Larry Ottinger, President of the Center for Lobbying in the Public Interest, and it was hosted by the Young Non profit Professionals Network. The goal for this discussion was to hear different perspectives on the real impact and influence that well driven advocacy strategies can bring to any organization. The discussion lasted for more than an hour and a half, many important statements where said, and many question also flourished.

I strongly suggest for anyone who is interested in trying to make a powerful change in the world, to help me understand, if at the end it might be accurate to conclude that in any event(it does not matter if it is made by a non profit organization, by a for profit, by the private sector or by the government), advocacy, coalition and even lobbying should be almost mandatory in order to spread the word, have a more powerful voice and to make what seems extraordinary, almost ordinary.

But what happens when this secret power ends up in the wrong hands, and all the information is suddenly favoring only one side of the story? When it comes to advocating, and spreading the word, everyone has something to say, and it can be related to any current event. This reminds me of the article that was posted on Wednesday on USA Today call “A legacy of 2008: facts, lies and videotape” by CGNS political writer Chuck Raasch. In http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnist/raasch/2008-10-29-raasch-column-10292008_N.htm. Which made me wonder if it is safe to compare non profits advocacy strategies, to the power of media and the way they are constantly spreading the word.

Finally, to help you understand even more everything related to Advocacy and Coalitions (not just in the non profits, and during the elections, but for any type of movement), I suggest you to read the “Mobilizer’s Guidebook”, which you can purchase from us, for a discount price of $20.