Campaigning Resource Pack

The information in this guide is designed to help you successfully run a campaign in your university, in the following sections:

  1. How to Run a Campaign
  2. Lobbying
  3. How to Take Action
  4. Talking about your Campaign
  5. Using your Student Union
  6. The Medsin Network

How to Run a Campaign

Campaigning is only worthwhile if it leads to real, long-term change. A newspaper headline, a big event, or a lobbying meeting are worth nothing unless change follows. Sometimes it’s hard to measure the impact of campaigning, and we know that change can take a long time. But we know our efforts have made a difference in the campaigns to ban land-mines, cut third world debt and have begun to change the rules of world trade. We believe that if we continue to campaign for change, alongside our emergency response to disasters and our long-term development work, Oxfam will play its part in the fight to overcome poverty and injustice.

Adrian Lovett, Oxfam's Campaigns Director

The main stages of a campaign are outlined below in eight steps;

  1. Setting Objectives
  2. Time Plan
  3. Market Research
  4. SWOT analysis
  5. Decision-makers and channels of influence
  6. Definition of Strategy
  7. Operational Plan
  8. Run the Campaign!

This guide uses a Fair Trade campaign as an example where illustration is needed.

Step 1: Setting objectives

Before you do anything, it is extremely important to be clear about your objectives.

Write a campaign mission statement – or better still, write a strategic plan (see Section 5.4 Strategic Planning). Using Fairtrade university status as an example;

“The overall aim of this campaign is to create a Fairtrade University according to the criteria set by the Fairtrade Foundation (see 'Five Goals for a Fairtrade University').”

Before starting the campaign, more immediate objectives need to be laid out, based on these criteria and according to the individual needs of your university.

An example of a campaign group's list of objectives is as follows:

Overall aim To create a Fairtrade University. Long-term objectives:

  • To incorporate Fair Trade into the university's mission statement.
  • To incorporate Fair Trade into the catering contract.
  • For Fair Trade to be sold by all retail outlets on campus.
  • To improve existing selection and promotion of Fair Trade at the Student Union shops.
  • To ensure the use of Fairtrade foods in the Student Union offices.
  • To ensure the use of Fairtrade foods at all university meetings.

Short-term objectives:

  • To establish a society as a campaign base for Fair Trade and other issues.
  • To raise awareness of Fair Trade at the university.
  • To raise support from students and staff.
  • To create links with other Fair Trade campaign groups in the area.

When you have established your objectives you will have a basis from which to plan your actions. This is also useful to refer back to, in order to ensure that you stay on track. A strategic plan will ensure you cover all of this.

Step 2: Time plan

Compile a time plan which includes dates that are likely to influence the campaign, such as end of term, catering forum, Fairtrade Fortnight, University Policy review, Student Union UGM. Use this to identify key opportunities, deadlines, and other important dates. It should also be the basis for your campaign plan.

Step 3: Market research

It is very important to research the potential audience for your campaign – in this example, consumers of Fair Trade products at your university – for three reasons:

  • To establish how much support you are likely to receive and to identify where it will come from;
  • To see if sufficient demand is there for the campaign to be a success;
  • To enable you to provide information about demand to the decision-makers.

For more information, see the section on 'market research' in People and Planet’s campaigning guide at www.peopleandplanet.co.uk.

Step 4: SWOT analysis

A SWOT analysis is incredibly useful in allowing you to see the situation from an objective point of view, from which it is easier to decide on the appropriate action.

Step 5: Decision-makers and channels of influence

Brainstorm people who will be making the ultimate decisions, and those who have influence on them. Separating them into groups will help you to prioritise your activities. You can think of decision makers as:

Primary: People whose behaviour you would like to change Secondary: People who directly influence the primary target audience Tertiary: Community leaders, celebrities and external influences.

Step 6: Definition of strategy

Make sure your plan encompasses the following: Objectives Re-assess your objectives and think about how you will achieve them. Campaign issues Draw these from your SWOT analysis. They will help you to consider your method of approach. Target audiences Identified by your research into decision-makers and divided into primary, secondary and tertiary.

Step 7: Operational plan

Define activities Think through exactly what you will do and how. This will include activities such as:

  • meeting with decision-makers
  • awareness raising
  • support-building and establishing demand
  • fundraising
  • utilising support.

Resources required Before you can do any of this, consider the resources you will need to do these activities, and how you can access them.

Timetable for action Now you are able to create a timetable for your campaign. This will allow you to stay focused and on track.

Step 8: Run the campaign

Do it!

During the campaign it is vital to keep referring back to all of the above - especially your objectives, timetable and definition of activities. Things will change and progress as your campaign does. Prepare to be flexible and alter your methods as necessary.

Lobbying

Lobbying boils down to persuading someone to get them to do what you want. There are several ways of doing this, some more gentle than others.

  • Start with a letter to whomever you're lobbying
  • Have some specific requests -If you get their support, use it for publicity

"If you go to one demonstration and then go home, that's something, but the people in power can live with that. What they can’t live with is sustained pressure that keeps building, organisations that keep doing things, people that keep learning lessons from the last time and doing better the next time."

Noam Chomsky

Lobbying targets include your MP, MSP, AM or MEP, specific ministers, or university figures like your Vice Chancellor. So where do you start?

This guide uses to refer to all of the targets above, but remember specific details and systems may vary. This section includes:

  • Writing the Wrong Face to Face
  • Spreading the Word – making sure your voice is heard!
  • Writing the Wrong

The natural first step in any lobbying exercise is to write to the person with the power to resolve the situation. Letter writing is an age-old technique within the social change movement. Letter-writing meetings are often a good idea, because even with the best intentions, people don’t always get around to writing the letter on their own.

Often you will receive a standard reply with little relevance to the original points that you raised, in which case you should persist - write back asking for relevant answers. You can avoid it in the first place by asking specific questions and inquiring about your MP's personal opinion. Try spreading letter writing around the group with each person addressing only one important point in their letter. Your MP has the power to do several things: ask oral and written questions, write to a Government Minister/European Commissioner on your behalf, or sign an Early Day Motion.

  • Write to your own MP!
  • Ask them to give their opinion or to do something specific
  • If you're not happy with their answer - keep going! When writing a letter, remember:
  • Be polite and stick to the point. It might be frustrating, but you'll get a far more useful reply.
  • Give the person you are lobbying a good reason to listen to you (your potential vote?).
  • A letter will get more attention than a postcard - it shows you've put more effort in.
  • Avoid exaggeration - it does more harm than good.
  • Keep a file of correspondence, both of your letters and the replies.

Your MP can help you by doing the following things.

  • Ask oral questions: these are tabled two weeks in advance to a government department and are drawn by ballot. There is only time for 10 - 15 questions to be answered.
  • Ask written questions: they can ask an unlimited number of written questions, usually to elicit information from a government department. This can be done on your behalf.
  • Write to a Government Minister/European Commissioner on your behalf.
  • Sign an Early Day Motion (a kind of parliamentary petition).

MPs will answer letters from their constituents before any other, as this is their duty. However, in most cases they will forward your letter to the relevant Minister, government department or party spokesperson and hence you are likely to get a standard reply. If you don’t get the response you want, don’t just sit there and take it. Pick up your pen, or put fingers to keyboard, and restate your case, if necessary pointing out the errors in the reply.

Contact details

You can find your MP, MSP, AM or MEP's address through the following sources: MPs

Post: write to them at House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA

Or call 020 7219 3000 for their constituency address

Full details: look at: http://www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/alms.htm Fax: from www.faxyourmp.com

MEPs

Post: write to them at European Parliament UK Office, 2 Queen Anne's Gate, London SW1H 9AA

Or call 020 7227 4300 for their constituency address

Full details: look at: http://www.europarl.org.uk/uk_meps/MembersMain.htm

MSPs

Post: write to them at The Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh EH99 1SP

Or call 0131 348 5817 for their constituency address

Email: firstname.surname.msp@scottish.parliament.uk

Full details: look at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/msps (click on "biography")

AMs

Post: write to them at National Assembly for Wales, Cardiff Bay, Cardiff CF99 1NA

Or call 029 20 825111 for their constituency address Full details: http://www.wales.gov.uk/who/constit_e.htm

Face to face If your letter doesn't get the results you are looking for (or just to emphasize your point), arrange a face to face meeting at a surgery.

  • Know what you're talking about!
  • Write down what is agreed
  • Follow it up with more letters, appointments etc.

MPs, for example, hold regular 'surgeries' for their constituents. These are often advertised in the local paper. You will also be able to find out times from their constituency office (look in the phone book).

Make an appointment in advance if you can, or turn up early! Sitting in the waiting room to see them may feel a bit like waiting at the dentists - but remember they are there to serve you. Just like the dentist is there to fix your teeth, your MP is there to fix your country!

Before the meeting

  • Make sure you are well prepared and fully acquainted with the issue. However, unless the issue is one of your MP's main interests you will often know far more than they do. See the later section on Public Speaking for ideas on presenting yourself clearly.
  • Meetings are normally only 10- 15 minutes long and usually quite informal; you don’t need to prepare a long presentation.
  • In a group, decide on whether you will make individual appointments or go together as a party (normally not more than 3 or 4). Get together beforehand and decide which aspects of the issue each of you will concentrate on, so that the discussion does not focus on one spokesperson.
  • It is often a good idea to have one person just observing the conversation, perhaps making notes, and only entering it if the discussion is wandering off course or getting a little too heated.

During the meeting

  • Ask your MP to do something specific (if appropriate).
  • Take brief notes on what your MP is saying.
  • If you are a group, don’t disagree with each other as it detracts from your message.
  • Offer to send further information on any point of particular interest to your MP.
  • Take along any briefing material you feel is suitable to give to your MP. After the meeting
  • Keep a record of anything the MP agreed to.
  • Write a short letter to thank your MP for seeing you.
  • Keep up the dialogue - react to events and campaign initiatives with further letters bringing to their attention developments and news stories.
  • If the MP has agreed or refused to do something see if it is of interest to the local media.
  • As with letter writing, if you don’t get the response you want, be persistent. And again, as with letter writing, encourage others to visit them, or go in a large group to demonstrate the support your cause has.

Spreading the word

If you don’t think your voice is being listened to - take your message out to get more support and raise awareness!

  • Petitioning - shows more support and involves more people.
  • Open meetings - MPs need to show their faces at public meetings, so take advantage!
  • Photo opportunities - cook one up if your MP is sympathetic.
  • Action - sometimes you need to be more direct to catch the attention of someone influential…
  • Letters to the press - try shaming an uncooperative MP into action!

Remember - MPs are there to serve you, so you're in control and MPs love to be seen doing something good in public!

Petitioning

Holding a stall or pestering your friends with petitions has pros and cons (see also Running a Stall, under Taking Action):

  • You will almost certainly get more signatures on a petition than you will get people to write letters, but remember that those signatures count for less than individual letters. So even when you are petitioning, encourage people to write as well. The pre-printed postcard is a nice half way position.
  • It's easy for people who have signed a petition to feel that they have 'done their bit'. Have information leaflets at hand, with suggested further actions that people can take (writing letters, attending meetings, joining a protest)

Don't forget to have spare petitions for people to take away. Make sure they have a return address and return date clearly shown on them.

It is worth trying to get your student, or local, paper to print a petition in the newspaper. Again make sure it is clear when it needs to be returned by, and to where. You might also want to add an option to find out the results of your petition – your email address or mailing list details.

Open Meetings

All our parliamentary representatives need publicity to survive. This means that they will regularly attend local meetings and functions. Go along and ask questions, hand out leaflets, and generally make your presence felt. It's best not to hijack the meeting of another pressure group who are in sympathy with your aims!

You could 'Do It Yourself' - organise your own public meeting and ask your MP to be a speaker. Let them see the strength of local feeling. If they attend a meeting in a crowded venue, where feeling on an issue is running high, they will be hard pressed to ignore your demands. Of course make sure you book a venue you can fill. Be realistic - better to be able to say that you had to turn people away, than to have only the first two rows full.

Press release the event for added impact (see section 5.12 How to Write a Press Release). Don't forget to make public any promises s/he makes!

The Photo Opportunity

Where there are cameras, there you will find politicians. Cook up a nice picture for your student or local paper and invite your MP to attend - it could be as simple as getting them to a street stall to sign your petition. Make it more interesting by having a giant petition to sign, preferably with a giant pen! Of course the photo is a permanent record of your representative's commitment to act! Don't be afraid to remind them of that in the future. Take your own camera just in case the media don’t turn up.

Actions Speak Louder

You can use actions to continue your lobbying - take your banners, petitions etc to meetings and other public occasions attended by your MP. Before you do this though think about the tone of what you are trying to achieve. You may get what you want through this route, but it may sour relationships in the long run. Aggressive demands are less likely to succeed, but can be used as a 'hook' to get media coverage of a broader campaign.

Letters to the press

Try shaming an uncooperative MP into action! If they won’t listen or they just regurgitate the party line, a letter to the paper saying so could be a good way to coax them into listening to you…

Be persistent, and follow up.

Don't just accept 'no' for an answer - engage in more correspondence, meetings or actions, always bringing more people on board. Think of creative ways to raise the stakes and increase pressure. Lobbying is a cumulative process: your individual action may not seem so grand at times, but alongside similar actions across the country it forms an important political influence.

How to Take Action

Actions, encompassing everything from speaker meetings to letter-writing, are an essential part of a campaign. Here we focus on those you can do as a group.

  • Think creative!
  • Always consider the aim of the action, and whom you're targeting.
  • Make sure everybody involved knows where they stand with the law.

Types of action

Varying your actions will make them more fun and increase their impact. The more creative you are the better! Here are a few ideas to get you started:

  • Auction of promises (to do someone's shopping etc.)
  • Blood bath (fill a bath with fake blood and sit in it!)
  • Boycott
  • Chalking (but consider the law – see below)
  • Commemorative action (such as organising a concert)
  • Conference
  • Debate
  • Die-in (lie on the floor covered in fake blood! - again consider the law)
  • Demonstration
  • Food & drink evening
  • Fundraising (provides a way of helping a cause where you do not have the capacity to undertake a major action)
  • Get other groups involved by asking them to dedicate some of their time to talking about a campaign
  • Leaflet
  • Lobby fax, letter or in the House of Commons
  • March
  • Memorial service
  • Motion to your student union (see below)
  • People's hearing (a structured but open debate on an issue; write up your conclusions and send them to the people who are involved (perhaps your MP)).
  • Petition
  • Pledge (get people to commit to doing something good (e.g. teaching someone to play an instrument, painting a picture for someone) or avoid doing something bad (e.g. by boycotting unfairly traded chocolate)).
  • Posters
  • Puppets
  • Quiz
  • Rally
  • Round-table discussion
  • Seminar
  • Sign-in (have lots of postcards and petitions to sign in one go)
  • Sit-in (sit on the floor outside an office or important building)
  • Stall – see below
  • Street theatre or a production at a local venue
  • Teaser campaign with cryptic posters etc.
  • Vigil
  • Write to your MP, or go and see them when they have local question & answer sessions

With a little thought, a good idea can be made into a great action.

Planning

To plan an action you need to do a series of things:

  • Assess your time and resources. There's no point planning an event or action that you don’t have the money, time, people, or energy for. That said, a small group with a bit of planning and creativity can have an enormous impact.
  • Answer a few key questions:

What is the message you want to get out? Keep it simple and direct.

Who do you want to hear it? Are you lobbying your MP, the Vice Chancellor, or are you asking your fellow students to do something?

Is this a one-off action, or just one in a series of events? The first needs to be focused with a very clear message aimed at a very clear audience. The second needs to be strategic and you have more time to get your message across.

When is the best time to do this action? Is it a breaking news story? Is there a relevant local meeting or event?

How many people can you realistically expect to turn out?

  • Actions are a bit like meetings - they can be welcoming and attractive or they can seem insular and aggressive. Be aware not only of what your message is, but how you are conveying it.
  • You can increase the impact of your action by using the media. With the right visual image you can almost guarantee a photo in your campus newspaper. Be creative!

Preparing

Here's a list of things to think about when planning an action - you could use it to divide up tasks beforehand.

Coordination - you could appoint an overall action coordinator to act as a point of contact and make sure it all happens!

Props and banners - what is necessary, when will you make them?

The law – do you need police permission? What about university regulations? Make sure at least one person has followed this up - know where you stand with the police or university authorities if they are called. For example, you need council permission to collect money in the streets or to hold a large street protest.

Research - get some handy facts and figures on your action, to be used in news releases, leaflets and briefings. Leaflet - you'll probably need to find or write one. Media – send news releases, make sure there's a good photo opportunity, maybe appoint a media spokesperson. Publicity - make sure people who might be interested know what, when and where.

Briefing - ensure that people on the action know what it's about. You could arrange a speaker meeting the week before, send a briefing by email, or meet beforehand to talk over it.

Review the action afterwards - what went well and what could have been improved?

Stalls

The stall is a venerable campaigning tool. It can get your message to hundreds of people in a short time, and help to raise your profile. And if it goes well, talking to the public can be inspiring! You can use this model for planning for your University Freshers’ fair too.

  • Sort out your location - as busy a spot as possible, but think about the legal implications.
  • Set up your stall - make your message visible, bring the necessary pens, paper, blu-tack etc.
  • Go get 'em - be proactive and approachable, smile, don’t just loiter behind the stall.
  • Work on a good opening line.

Preparation

Sort out your location - you need to be aware of the legal implications of certain locations:

  • Do you need a licence from the Council or permission from the university/union?
  • Will it cause an obstruction and lead to hassle with the police?

Once you have these issues dealt with, set up in as busy a spot as possible - somewhere where people will notice from a distance, but the flow of passers-by isn’t too fast or furious. The ideal would be to create an atmosphere where stopping to chat is OK - a little haven amongst the high street /union foyer madness, but not so obscure that nobody finds you.

Think about using colour and music to reinforce this atmosphere - but don’t get so laid back that you lose the urgency of taking action!

Publicise the stall through posters, the press and all other means at your disposal.

Setting up your stall

  • Make your message visible - hang a banner on front of stall, or better still have a banner strung above the stall. Invest in some 2-3 metre rods or canes (they will need to be quite sturdy or they'll just bend under the weight of your banner). Tape these to your table legs and string the banner between them. Make the banner clear and obvious, so that people can see it from a distance.

  • Pasting tables cost less than a tenner and are great for stalls. You could gt a spare one and open it up as a signboard. Stick posters to either side and place it near the stall.

  • Prepare for high winds! Weigh down your table and bring lots of paperweights. In extreme weather you might need to hold leaflets down under lengths of elastic, drawing-pinned to the table!
  • Now raise the surface of your table - a sloping board, some leaflet racks & holders (ask around in your student stationery shop for cast-offs), or even some cardboard boxes under a coloured cloth - all these make the stall look more interesting.
  • Make sure you have: blue tack; scissors; drawing pins; marker pens for last minute signs a notepad/signup sheet and pens.
  • See if you can organise some free things to give away, such as Fairtrade tea, coffee or chocolate. You could give it away on the day, or get people to put their names and addresses into a prize-draw box (a great way of increasing numbers on your mailing list, but don’t forget to tell them they'll be added!).
  • Why just have an information stall when you can make it more exciting by running a game or a quiz?
  • Get people doing something, like signing an action card or some other creative action.

Talking about your Campaign

It's important to be able to tell people about your campaigns. We all have to spread the word at some time - behind a stall, down the pub, in front of an audience of hundreds, or meeting a Vice Chancellor.

  • Check you're the best person for the job
  • Don't argue when you're unsure of the facts
  • Keep emphasising a few key points

Why Me?

Trying to win an argument or give a talk that doesn't need to happen can be very demotivating, so ask yourself a few questions:

  • Why do you want to talk to this person? What will it achieve?
  • Have you got a clear message?
  • Is this the best way to get the message across? Giving them a briefing, directing them to a website, or giving them someone else's email might be a far better solution.
  • Are you the best person to have this discussion or give this talk? If you think you'll make a mess of it and someone else is more experienced than you, don’t be afraid to ask them to do it. Pick the role you're most comfortable with, but don’t be afraid to stretch yourself.

How to sound convincing

Whether you're speaking to one or a hundred people, sounding convincing and countering hostile opinions can be a tricky business…

People compare the different messages to see if they are consistent. If the words you are saying don’t match the way you are saying them, and most importantly the way you look, your message is undermined. So the most important thing is to be consistent and aware of your body language and the tone of your voice. Don't worry if the words you say aren't perfect - said with conviction and body language to match, they can be convincing. Equally, no matter how articulate you are, if your tone of voice or body language are not, you won’t win people over.

It is impossible to collect all the facts on a issue. What you can do is to identify a clear problem/area of need which isn’t being met and some facts to back it up. If you can’t answer a question, don’t try to get out of it: admit that you do not know, suggest where the answer could be found, and explain why it does not weaken your point. Always come back to the clear area of need.

  • Think body language and tone of voice
  • Have some killer facts at the ready
  • If you can’t answer a question, say so.

Making an impact

Using the press and doing actions are both effective ways to communicate your message, but sometimes nothing is as good as an impassioned and informing conversation, or a rousing speech. There are a lot of simple things you can do to make yourself clearer. But first some facts…

  • The average attention span is 8 seconds.
  • People forget 25% of what they hear within 24 hours: 50% within 48 hours and 80% within 4 days.
  • Of what people perceive and remember: 7% is verbal (the words you used) 38% is vocal (how you said them) and 55% is visual (how you looked and behaved).

Being persuasive even if you don’t know it all

It is impossible to collect all the facts on an issue! So what can you do to convince someone of the need to campaign?

  • Identify a clear problem/area of need that isn’t being met, then keep coming back to it when you talk.
  • Try to research one level deeper than the knowledge you think the people you are approaching will have.
  • As a group, read up on an issue, then discuss all of the questions you can think of.
  • Get some practice - approach people you think know about the issue and see if they can pose any questions you can’t answer. This will help you build up some set responses, and also build your confidence!
  • If you can’t answer a question, don’t try to get out of it: admit that you don’t know, suggest where the answer could be found, and explain why it does not weaken your point. Go back to that clear area of need.

In many issues there are a lot of grey areas. For example, there are many questions surrounding the science of climate change. When you are challenged about something complex accept this challenge – but try to engage the person in debate.

  • Restate the clear area of need, along with the evidence for it, and identify any areas that would not be affected by their point. If you can do that, then, no matter what the objections people have, they will have to concede that there is a basis for some action. (For example, they can disagree with your solutions to the problems of world trade, but they can’t deny that it is currently failing to benefit millions of starving people). -Don’t make up what you don’t know!
  • Don't get bogged down. You can challenge their facts, but don’t get drawn into debating a side issue.
  • Take an interest in their point of view, and make an effort to find out if they're right. It's much easier to challenge their opinion with your facts.
  • Take your time - if you try to rush out a response you could miss out important parts of the argument, or make a mistake with your facts, which could further undermine you.

Public speaking

Public speaking is often seen as terrifying, but it can also be an amazing experience if you're well prepared and practiced!

  • Work out your 3 or 4 key points. Introduce them early, and then move on to reiterate them with facts, anecdotes, humour etc.
  • Give the talk a clear structure.
  • Practice makes perfect - get someone to listen in.
  • Stand or sit - however makes you feel comfortable and looks authoritative.
  • Speak slowly and expressively.
  • Take questions, but don’t be drawn into arguments.

Planning your talk

  • Check who your audience is going to be - this affects the tone of your talk.
  • Think about what you want to achieve from the presentation - what change in the audience do you want to see? Pick 3 or 4 key points that will help you achieve your end. Don't give in to temptation and stuff your talk full of information - the audience won’t remember it all. Stick with a few choice areas and present them well.
  • Make the important points in several different ways - anecdotes, facts, images, videos, etc.
  • A few facts help give your talk credibility. Make sure they're accurate and don’t use too many. However difficult, choose the most relevant to the issue and to your audience.
  • Involve the audience in the talk. Ask them questions, run a quiz, play a game, get them to take an action together, anything. The more like a workshop and less like a talk it is, the more people will engage with it. Plus it will be a pleasant surprise if they're expecting a lecture!

How to structure your talk

You've got 3 or 4 points you want to make. You have enough, but not too many, impressive facts to support those points. Now what?

  • Introduce yourself, your background, what you're going to talk about and for how long.
  • Introduce your key points early, then expand on them with facts, anecdotes, humour etc.
  • Signpost it all - eg. "I've explained X and Y, my final point is Z…" Try to use an overhead or handout with key points/headings.
  • Finally, summarise your points and tie it all together. It's good to finish on an upbeat note, like an inspiring quote or a call to action. Never leave people feeling hopeless!

In other words…Tell them what you are going to tell them. Tell them it. Then tell them what you've just told them. They should get the message! You can find more information about this in section 5.15 Presenting Yourself and Your Work.

Taking Questions

  • Ask for questions at the end (and during if you're really confident!).
  • If you're stuck, turn the question back on the audience, or one of the other speakers (if there are any). Don't pretend to know, or argue something you haven't had a chance to think through.
  • Don't be afraid to pause and gather your thoughts - you can always say, "let me think about that and get back to you…"
  • Don't get involved in an argument with anyone during the presentation. Ask them to bear with you, and tell them you'll come back to it at the end. If someone fundamentally disagrees with you, agree to differ and move on, or everyone else will get bored. You can always say, "let's talk about this after the meeting…"

Using your Student Union

Students' Unions aren't just about petty politicking and organising club nights - they're there to help you and Medsin groups have used them to great effect.

What can your SU do for you?

Students' Unions can be really useful to work with when campaigning - they have access to far more resources and people than your group could have on its own. What Students' Unions offer societies, and what you need to qualify for them, varies a lot. However, a few things that SUs often offer are: cheap/free facilities, grants, minibus hire, training, promotion, room bookings.

Getting your SU behind a campaign can really give it a boost. It can:

  • Pass policy supporting your campaign
  • Write letters of support
  • Lobby the University
  • Take a more active role in your campaign

If your campaign is university-centred (promoting Fairtrade, good sex education) your union is probably in a position to take action itself.

Resources

What Students' Unions offer societies, and what you need to qualify for them, varies a lot. However, a few things that SUs often offer are:

  • Cheap/free facilities for computing, printing, photocopying, faxes.
  • Grants
  • Minibus hire
  • Training in running a society, media work, budgeting etc.
  • Promotion via freshers' fair, societies handbook, website etc.
  • Cheap/free meeting rooms

Whilst some of the things listed above are available to all and sundry, to access others you might have to register as a society, or pass a motion to get access to it. To register, you need a constitution, which isn’t as scary as it sounds - just a case of jumping through a few hoops. Have a look on your SU website or ask them for a template. It may be sufficient to simply submit a summary of who you are and what you do. Your Medsin group may already be registered. If it comes to it, contact the Medsin President ( president@medsin.org) for advice.

Endorsement and active campaigning

Getting your SU behind a campaign can really give it a boost. It can:

  • Pass policy supporting your campaign. This requires a motion to your union council (see below). As well as nominal support, it could mean you get financial resources, support in kind, or you can mandate even previously unsupportive union officers to support you.
  • Write letters of support. A letter from (or at least signed by) your SU President carries the weight of however many thousand students are at your University.
  • Lobby the University. SU Presidents have regular meetings with their Vice Chancellors (VCs), whereas most students never even know what their VC looks like. Other SU Sabbaticals (full time officers) might have contact with other staff members. This special relationship means that Sabbaticals are in a great position to persuade University staff, particularly the VC, to take action. If you want to lobby the University, get them to go with you or on your behalf.
  • Get more active. If you can get you union Sabbaticals enthusiastic about your campaign, they can do even more. This could mean:

Helping you get an article in the student (or even local) newspaper, with quotes. Putting resources into organising a local protest.

Featuring the campaign in their publications and on their website. Holding information and action stalls. Raising the issue whenever any of the Sabbaticals have meetings with the VC, other University officials and the lecturers' union branches.

Practical stuff

Sometimes it's just a case of asking the right person, whilst other times you'll need to go through the formal channels of your union. So how do you do it?

  1. Find someone supportive on your SU exec
  2. Ask the President for support
  3. Pass a motion

Find someone supportive on your SU exec

If your SU has an environment, ethical and/or campaigns officer, they should be on side to start with (if they aren't, stand for the position yourself next year; if there isn’t one, lobby for a post to be created!). Approach them and ask what they think the union will do. If you have friends on the exec, that's another option - knowing who is likely to be sympathetic is important.

Ask the President for support

If it's endorsement or active support for your campaign that you want, sooner or later you'll need the SU President on board. If you've found someone supportive on the exec, get him to approach her first. Otherwise, just go for it – remember, his or her job is to represent you, whatever his/her personal views.

Pass a motion

If your Sabbaticals aren't being very helpful, you can "mandate" them to help you through an SU motion. Often you'll need to do this anyway, if you want them formally to represent the union, or if you want to set/change union policy (you don’t have to ask you SU to do anything active).. Different unions work in slightly different ways, but there is usually a permanent representative Union Council and/or an Union General Meeting (UGM), which anyone can attend.

You should find out details from your SU - Sabbaticals will often help you write a motion, too. There are four stages to go through:

a) Get the motion onto the UGM agenda

Find out when the next UGM is and when the deadline is for getting a motion on to the meeting agenda. When you submit the motion you'll usually need the names of two people, one to propose and one to second the motion. These people will need to be prepared to speak on the motion at the UGM.

b) Write the motion

Motions are usually structured in three sections:

  • "This union notes": The facts that underpin the motion
  • "This union believes": The principles that mean the union should act on them
  • "This union resolves": What you want the union to do about it.

Ask the union if they have a model motion, or to see one which has been passed recently. You can also see the People and Planet site for a model motion.

c) Attend the UGM

Get as many supporters as you can along to the meeting (publicise it, and maybe hold an event like a debate beforehand to get people interested). Hand out leaflets and flyers to people as they go into the meeting so they can see what the campaign is about. Student apathy is a huge problem – one successful solution is to have someone with a big mouth and a megaphone stand outside the union for an hour beforehand informing people about the issue your motion is on. They should keep it short – e.g., “Motion to make the union a fair trade union being presented in half an hour – end slavery in third world countries! If you care, come in and be counted.”

There will probably be an opportunity for people to ask questions, so be prepared to answer them. The discussion will probably take the form of someone proposing the motion (speaking in favour), then a balanced debate of alternating discussions in favour and against. The motion can be amended, so if there is one sticking point you can delete it or vote on it separately and keep the rest (of course this means it ends up watered down, or occasionally improved!).

d) After the UGM

Meet up with Sabbatical officers to work out how you're going to follow through what was voted on.

Campaigning and the Medsin Network

The Medsin network is a great opportunity to share campaigning ideas, motivation and resources. Check out what’s on offer and add your own by sharing on the website or via the campaign co-ordinators. Share it all from press releases, plans, posters, photos…

Also consider joining up with other local student organisations to have a more successful and exciting campaign. Lots of student and non-student organisations share similar agendas – campaigning will be so much more effective if we work together!

Medsin is all about creating new ideas… If there’s a campaign you think has great potential then why not start a discussion on the Medsin discussion board (online at www.medsin.org) - spark some interest and maybe take things forward. The Global Health website is a great gateway to all the information to support your campaign, and you can share your campaign information by contacting the Global Health co-ordinator ( globalhealth@medsin.org). See section 3.12 Global Health for more information.

For further information on anything about campaigning, contact Medsin’s campaigns team.

You can also look at the People and Planet campaigning guide at www.peopleandplanet.org.uk and www.campaignstrategy.org.

How to write a Press Release

Stuck with dealing with the media? Visit http://www.medsin.org/resources/pressreleases to find out how to write a press release for your event, stunt or camaign or project. E-mail the committee at committee@medsin.org if you need more help with dealing with the media.

Last updated on Thursday 23 October 2008 at 18:38.