Activists sometimes want new policies enacted. Sometimes they create a new policy idea and try to sell the idea to lawmakers or voters. The creation and selling of new policies are two undertakings that call for systematic problem solving by activist groups. 

Policy ideas are usually meant to solve a social or environmental problem. A little problem analysis can seperate symptoms from problems. Good problem analysis starts with good questions. Michael Michalko's brainstorming book Thinkertoys offers questions for studying your problem. Buy a copy and check out the section on Pheonix Questions and the chapter on exploring a challenge.

(WARNING: Sometimes the "real" problem can't be addressed by ANY policy. Human nature is one example of such a problem. The complexity of many organizations is another example. Other "problems" are invented by a political ideology: "Capitalism is the problem!"  Some problems can't be addressed because nobody knows how to solve them. Drug addiction seems to fit into this category.)

Getting an idea of what problem to address with your policy is only one step in the process. You might have an idea about the policy that's needed. It may also be true that you don't really have an idea to present and need to do some brainstorming. 

Once you've come up with a policy idea, whether by borrowing or brainstorming, you'll need to convince people that the policy needs to be adopted. The selling of your idea to politicians or voters is another opportunity for creativity. Resource shortages may force you to get creative about the advertising medium, the message itself, event he audience to target with your message.

Posted by sustainabilityideas at 11:13 AM EST

Updated: Wednesday, 12 December 2007 7:09 PM EST

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Mood:  hug me

So, lets change subjects from talking about rasing money to the subject of program design.

"There needs to be a program for that issue in this town."
"We need to launch a project to deal with ______."

Social problems and social opportunities often get handled by new programs or projects. Some are run by the government, some by nonprofits. Whatever.

Program design calls for problem analysis, so you can be more confident that the program is going to help fix the problem, or take advantage of the opportunity. When it comes to program design there are really two options - design a new one or borrow and adapt one that alredy exists. Regardless of the approach you choose, there are a few things to do. Always state your challenge explicitely. Be aware of the available resources. Know the social environment.

Those last two steps can be facilitated with aproblem analysis technique called "Appreciation." The details are explained at www.mindtools.com, which also describes other problem analysis tools. You should  also take some time to study the problem itself. Try using the 5 Why technique, also explained at Mindtools.com. Try to framw your challenge in different ways, such as curing or selling, or marketing. Try to maximize the number of times people DON'T need help instead of maximizing the number of people who need help and get it.

Posted by sustainabilityideas at 8:53 PM EST

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In my last post I wrote about the potential for stealing concepts, rather than specific ideas. This time I want to describe an easy way to identify a concept, related concepts, and specific ways of using a particular concept - the concept map, sometimes called a concept fan. The starting point in creating a concept map is to name the general thing you are trying to do. This could be convincing people to stop smoking or getting voters to vote for a particular ballot initiative. How do you generally do this? By advertising, perhaps?

Advertising is a concept, a general way of spreading a message designed to spur some sort of action. What other ways of "spreading a message..." are there? Those are other concepts you can use in the next step. Next, try to find specific ways to carry out each concept. We know how to advertise for example - use the newspaper, hand out pamphlets outside of subway stations, produce a television

commercial, et cetera. You get the picture. We know how to promote an idea. "Promote" is another concept, as are marketing and education. How might we use education to get people to kick the smoking habit? What can we promote as an alternative to cigarettes (or smokeles tobacco)?

Maybe there are other ways to advertise that won't occur to people right away? It used to be impossible to advertise by painting a message on someone's body, but now that very trick has been used.

Advertising isn't necessarily the only concept we can use here. We don't even have to restrict ourselves to the concept of "selling" a ballot initiative or a smoke-free lifestyle. 

Posted by sustainabilityideas at 7:12 PM EST

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Mood:  hug me

Sometimes, maybe most of the time, the best social betterment ideas are nes you steal from somewhere. Why not borrow and adapt a good idea that's already out there? There is no reason not to try. I describe the process of stealing ideas in The Creative Activism Guide.The process isn't that hard, and to make it even easier I offer these three suggestions:

1. Know what counts as a good idea before you look for something to steal. Write down your criteria so you are less likely to be dazzled by thte cool/sexy/sublime idea that really won't work for you. How many activists' efforts have gone awry because of ideologically correct ideas that have no other value?

2. Don't should on yourself, or the rest of us. Stay away from ideas that seem good ONLY because they promise to make people to do something or think something that you believe they should do or should think.

3. Look for concepts you can use. A great idea may not be something as concrete as a boycott or a carbon tax. The general way of doing something, like putting financial pressure on companies or creating taxes that internalize the costs of a behavior, might be what you need. Identify the concept by thinking about the general method or strategy or approach embodied in the idea.

Posted by sustainabilityideas at 7:35 PM EST

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What counts as a good idea? That's a question worth answering, especially where the design of a new

program, policy, or public eduction campaign is concerned. You need to consider at least three issues, issues that may seem obvious but still need to be treated systematically:

1. Time - How much time is available? There might be a self-imposed deadline. You want to start your campaign during the Christmas shopping season and the day after Thanksgiving is two weeks away (Yikes!). The deadline could be externally imposed - the grant proposals have to be in by December 15, 2007. Yikes again!

2. Money - How much money can you invest in your plan? If you don't have money you better have some other resource.

3. Other Resources - Volunteers (for labor or who possess specialized skills and knowledge), reputation, and things that could be bartered are all resources that could help.Don't treat time as a resource! All plans need firm deadlines or the necessary work to move things forward.

Next time: More notes on defining a "good idea" for your group or organization.

Posted by sustainabilityideas at 10:29 PM EST

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Mood:  hug me

Now is a good time to say more about the three "scientific planning" tips I posted last time. First, here is the tip I left out last time: Know the factors that seem to contribute to the problem. Exploiting an opportunity works the same way, in the sense that you need to know what factors contribute to the situation you would like to create in the future. Consider the example of climate change. How can we use science to exploit an opportunity related to

climate change. Let's ride the wave of public concern over climate change and promote the diffusion. Do you want to see all of the public buildings in your city using solar power in some way? What factors (call them variables if you wish) will influence the potential for success? You may already know what factors are relavant and how, or some research and some consulttion with experts could be in order.

Facts and figures - Know the numbers that are most relevant to your subject, and know the source too! If you don't know the relevant facts you MUST know where to get them. How much will solar power equipment cost for various buildings? How much energy can you generate with each square meter of solar photovoltaic cells? How much money can be saved by getting a certain percentage of electricity from solar power?

Theories and concepts - First, remember that a theory is not a guess. Theories are statements about the measurable relationships between related phenomena (not a precise and complete definition but good enough to work with). What theories or concepts from social science research might help us to do a better job of selling people on solar power?

Data on trends - You need to know what the trends are, or at least where to get that information. What are the trends in use of solar power? Maybe hard numbers will help make "going solar" into a more normal or respectable thing to do. Trend data may also make soalr designs more economically attractive to developers.

Data on current conditions - You also need to know what's going on now. Seems obvious, but the devil is in the details. What numbers are most relevant for your cause/goal/objective? What is the context? What social reality is reflected in these numbers? So what if 10% of DC homes have solar panels on the roof and 40% of home owners say they are very interested in using solar power for their homes?

Why all this rationalism? Well, there is nothing wrong with passion or with emotional commitment per se, it is just that emotion can displace a concern with getting the best results for our available resources. Arguably, that situation cannot be allowed to persist because of the world's many problems. And don't forget opprtunities too; people spend too much time dwelling on problems.

COMING SOON: I think I will actually, finally, start systematically applying the many ideas in these posts to a social issue. The issue is TBD but might be "social pollution."

Posted by sustainabilityideas at 10:31 AM EDT

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Mood:  blue

A scientific approach to social change is especially valuable and important at the planning stage of a change effort. This is true for at least four reasons:

1. Facts and figures can bolster your case, or build your case against the opposition. Knowing what facts and figures you will be able to work with is helpful in planning a media strategy, or a demonstration.

2. Theories and concepts can provide structure and guidance. Finding the right ideas to use and deciding how to use them could be major challenges however.

3. Data on trends and on current condititions will help you to better target your efforts.

Posted by sustainabilityideas at 9:00 PM EDT

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Mood:  amorous

Solving social problems or simply improving society in some way requires strategy. I guess everyone knows that already. Having a strategy, even a simple one you haven't written down, is better than going on with no idea of what you want to accomplish or how. This post is about deciding how to best accomplish whatever it is you want to accomplish by way of social betterment (i.e., any effort designed to improve society in some way through alleviating a social problem or exploiting some opportunity for improvement).

Ask some questions about the issue:

What would success look like?
What resources do you have? What information, knowledge, money, or skill do you have now?
Where do you start - on what part of the problem or in what geographic location?
How do you choose a proper starting point?
Why do you want to tackle this issue?
When is the best time to act?
Where do you go for resources you need but don't have?
How can you work around any resource shortage that can't be corrected in a timely manner?
What factors contribute to the problem?
What factors could influence the amount of improvement you can expect?
Where are you likely to meet resistance to your plans?
What is your time frame and why?
Who are potential allies and how, specifcally, can you recruit them?
What factors in the community - cultural, ecological, economic, legal, political, technological - could help or hinder tyour efforts?

That list should suggest other questions that apply to your specific situation. Whether that's true or not, you'll want to record your answers somewhere. Your written answers are an important element of your plan to gain leverage in effecting the change you want to see.

Posted by sustainabilityideas at 6:22 PM EDT

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Mood:  down

Can you break down a problem or issue into its component parts and understadn how they relate? You probably have some idea how to do that. Still, you might learn a thing or two from this post. The best way to attack a social problem is always to begin from a point of understanding the problem and its context. Here are a few tips:

1. Figure out what data is relevant to the issue, that you don't have yet. Go and get that data. You should at least get some of the data to use as ammunition against opponents or to get a better sense of the problem as it exists now.

2. Know the difference between causation, association, and influence. If two things tend to go together, they are likely not related in the sense that one causes the other. It is much, much more likely that other factors are in play. A and B simply happened to appear to be connected. Other times one thing influences another. A could make B more severe or more common or less likely to work.

In one of my sociology courses I learned that there is a direct correlation between ice cream sales and burglaries; as ice cream sales go up the burglary rate goes up. (Can you figure out why? Hint: Something else is going on at the same time the burglary rate goes up.)

3. Think about factors in the social environment that might influence the existence or severity of the problem in question.

4. Look for statistics that reveal trends, patterns, or associations. What seems to go along with the existence of your problem? Is there some logical connection? Has reearch revealed any connection? Could you conduct your own study?

So, what is the point of all of this abstract advice? I want you to think in a rigorous (Scientific?) fashion about the issue you care about and the best ways to address the problem. Emotions are great, but they have to be guided, framed, predicated, or whatever on some attempt to quantify, decompose, study the problem at hand. Doing that leads to a better chance of your emotional investment in a cause/solution being repaid with desirable results.

Posted by sustainabilityideas at 8:40 PM EDT

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