Strategic Advocacy: Tactics, Power, and Campaign Design

Catalog description

This course is for those who want to imagine social justice resulting from people working together to envision, advance and win policies that transform their lives. We will delve into some of the theories, strategies and tactics to build power rooted in communities and to win campaigns that secure meaningful material improvements. We will focus on the art of issue advocacy and organizing as a method of social change, impacting public policy, most often through changes in regulations and legislation and always entailing new, effective narratives. There are a wide range of roles campaigners can play, from research and policy analysis to education, communications and organizing constituencies to reaching out to a wide range of legislators and other government officials. At the same time, the skills of public advocacy – listening, finding areas of consensus and building on that consensus, finding ways to make change happen – are skills that can be applied to all professional and life settings. This is not a course on organizing (building a base, leadership development, creating coalitions etc.) but rather on the practice of advocacy that will enhance students’ repertoire of strategic and tactical advocacy approaches that can be understood and used by grassroots organizations, nonprofits, political campaigns as well as professionals in government and elsewhere. Students who are interested in working in politics, government, organizing and non-profits will find this course especially helpful for understanding how to engage in impactful advocacy and learn fundamental approaches to achieving policy solutions and social change.