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Building Your Organizing Group

Greenpeace USA

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Greenpeace is the leading independent campaigning organization that uses peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and to promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future.

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What brings you here?

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  • Learn group building best practices

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  • Go in depth on a few ways to build your group

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  • Share a sample outreach plan

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  • Practice one key skill of group building

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  • Share specific next steps you can take!

Tonight we will...

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What is organizing?

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Organizing is

leveraging the power of regular people to make change for the better.

The grassroots level of

organizing is the most

local and people-centric.

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Relationships: the currency of organizing

Find and build community

Build relationships

Build a collective vision

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ACTIVITY:

You’re throwing a party for a good friend. You want 30 people to attend.

Brainstorm all the ways you’d invite people to the party

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ACTIVITY:

What 3 ways of inviting people to the party would work best?

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What 3 ways did you choose?

Share in the chat!

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There are many approaches to recruitment...

  • Gathering petition signatures at a public event
  • Making an announcement at a group event
  • Reaching out to like-minded organizations
  • Making a Facebook group
  • Posting a Greenwire event
  • Emailing people individually
  • Texting people
  • Calling people
  • Creating a Meetup.com event
  • Making posters
  • Chalking public places
  • Handing out fliers
  • The list goes on…

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Pick a few approaches you think will work best

People need to see things at least 3 times before really catches their attention.

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You could try:

  • Facebook event
  • Phone call
  • Text message

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Or:

  • Public announcement (with sign up sheet)
  • Follow up email
  • Follow up phone call

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Hot Tip: Talk to People!!!

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But seriously. Talk to people.

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The Art of Following Up

  • If you haven’t followed up, you haven’t really recruited them
  • Follow up at least 2 more times than you think
  • Assume the person has forgotten what you were talking with them about
  • Don’t act like you’re owed anything
  • Try multiple approaches - email, Facebook, text
  • Focus on getting a yes or no answer
  • Have a plan
  • Say thank you!

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The Art of Cultivating Leaders

  • Let folks know it matters that they PERSONALLY show up
  • Get to know people and remember their interests
  • Find ways that folks can help
  • Listen more than 50% of the time
  • Give everyone a role
  • Develop partners instead of minions
  • Support and encourage people to lead
  • Make bold requests
  • Build a core team
  • Have social events!! (this is important!)

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Sample 3-Week Outreach Plan Goal: 10 people attend meeting March 15th

Week 1 (Feb 22 - Mar 1)

- set date/ time/ location & create Facebook event

- research organizations to outreach to

- call and invite people you know to attend

- invite friends to help do outreach

- find public places to go talk to folks

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Week 2 (Mar 2 - 8)

- do public outreach with friends

- call people you talked to & confirm them

- reach out to other organizations

- ask eager people to help lead the meeting

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Week 3 (Mar 9 - 15)

- send reminder email & text

- do final public outreach/ phone outreach

- final event logistics prep

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Activity!

You’re hosting a #ResistOften community meeting on March 15th.

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The purpose is to meet other like minded folks, and strategize ways to #Resist locally.

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Your goal is 10 people attending, and you know that person-to-person contact works BEST.

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Practice making a phone call to invite a friend to the meeting!

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Tips for making a great phone call

  • Make a connection with them personally

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  • Provide an inspiring context for why it matters that they attend

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  • Ask confidently for a commitment to attend

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  • Give them the event details at the end of the conversation

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How’d it go?

  • What worked in your practice phone call?
  • What could make it go even better in the future?
  • Share in the chat!

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What’s next?

  • Building Organizing Leaders - Mar. 8, 5:30pm pacific

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  • Organize a #ResistOften Houseparty!

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  • Join us on Greenwire!

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  • Text the word RESIST to 877877

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  • Give us Feedback!