Campaigning & Advocacy
This guide provides an introduction to the use of campaigns, advocacy and other democratic processes to advocate changes in or for communities.
Advocacy can be a key tool for change, although in New Zealand it mostly means action on behalf of an individual rather than a community.
Some successful campaigns have involved advocacy for a large number of people on the same issue. On US sites, you will find "advocacy" used to mean organising or campaigning on a wide scale.
Your help in developing this guide is essential. If you come across websites, resources, case studies or news, please email details to information@community.net.nz
Karen Davis, the editor of this guide, has been active in a number of campaigns against poverty and unemployment in New Zealand with the Auckland Unemployed Workers Rights Centre. She is now a trustee for Kotare Research and Education for Social Change, an organisation which uses popular education methods to support and strengthen the work of community activists- see the Kotare website for more information: www.kotare.org.nz.
Note: Views expressed in these guides reflect those of the authors, not those of CommunityNet or the Department. Links and references are provided for your convenience, and do not imply endorsement. See Disclaimer.
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Mary Richardson's presentation at the Good Engagement seminar in Christchurch advocated debate as fundamental to the development of good public policy and a well-functioning democracy.
Date added: 28 April 2010
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Autonomy from the state has been considered a core feature of civil society, and understanding the consequences of perceived threats to that autonomy has been a central theme in social and political theory.
Date added: 1 October 2009
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The first UK qualification for campaigners has been launched recently and will run from October 2006 to November 2007. Unfortunately for New Zealanders, you have to be able to attend some modules in person, so it's not yet a distance learning qualification.
Date added: 28 August 2006
Full List
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The Community Toolbox website has been developed for community health practitioners in the United States, but it has a wide range of tools and resources that are applicable to campaigns and advocacy situations in New Zealand. The following is a selection of the resources available.
Date updated: 19 April 2010
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The Office for the Community and Voluntary Sector's website Good Practice Participate is set up to assist Government departments involve communities in decisionmaking. However, it includes a range of techniques for encouraging participation that many community organisations will find useful. These include Open Space Technology, Future Search, Participatory Appraisal, as well as the more common submission writing, questionnaires, interviews etc.
Date updated: 18 May 2009
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Sometimes change can only be done at the government level. Here are some resources that help you find out where you can make change at a national level through existing government processes.
Date updated: 19 September 2008
Full List
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A SWOT analysis is an exercise which can help identify strategies for your campaign.
Date updated: 19 April 2010
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The Change Agency is an Australian community organisation which provides training and resources for environmental and social change campaigners.
Date updated: 21 February 2006
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Knowing who your allies are can make your campaign stronger. Three templates from the Community Toolbox website can be used to learn to recognise allies, assess their relative strengths and any possible risks.
Date updated: 2 December 2004
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Some of the longest running campaigns in New Zealand have been led by Māori, campaigning against injustices from breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi.
Note that these sites and books are selected from my pakeha perspective as being useful case studies of Māori campaigns. I am sure there are other sites that I have neglected to mention and I welcome your suggestions.
Date updated: 26 June 2008
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The best website I've found for campaign case studies is The Change Agency from Australia. These are environmental campaigns in the broadest sense from nature conservation to transport and food campaigns. This link takes you to the list of case studies (all PDF files) and you can also find out more about The Change Agency from here:
The Change Agency Case Study Index Page.
Date updated: 30 July 2006
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An action research report on Te Tairawhiti Special Benefit “Impact” October 2003, by Catherine Delahunty of Kotare Research and Education for Social Change Trust.
Date updated: 10 January 2006
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Methodist, Presbyterian, Churches of Christ, Quaker churches working for justice, peace and the integrity of creation.
Date added: 14 December 2004
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The Office for Disability Issues has links to consumer and advocacy groups from the disability sector on its website.
Date added: 13 December 2004
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EASY is an online legal advocacy training project for youth-workers. EASY aims to build community-level capacity for effective assistance of children and young people with legal issues. The EASY ...
Date added: 22 April 2010
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