20 How to Engage Key Stakeholders in Your Campaign During any type of community mobilization or advocacy initiative, it is essential to involve key stakeholders – those who have a direct “stake” or interest in your issue. They may include community members, the government, the private sector, activists, and others. Identifying and involving key stakeholders from the beginning of your initiative is an essential part of the advocacy planning process, as stakeholders are an important element of your success or failure. Engaging those aligned with your initiative, knowing who the key decision makers are, and being aware of those who oppose you is a key step in helping you to allocate resources and identify the best approach and tools to get the results you want. Below are some tips to help you identify your issue’s stakeholders and plan your campaign accordingly. WHAT IS A STAKEHOLDER? A stakeholder is any person, group or organization that is directly or indirectly affected by your organization’s advocacy initiative, target issue, or project. Stakeholders may include individuals, community groups, industrial and business associations, non-governmental organizations, municipalities, government agencies, businesses, schools and universities, and decision-makers, among others. For example, if you are working on the issue of climate change, stakeholders may include the Ministry of Environment, environmental agencies, environmental lobbyists, and the private sector, specifically factories, the automobile industry, etc. Each of these stakeholders has unique concerns and priorities, and each one is a key component of the issue of environmental protection and climate change. Your relationship with each stakeholder will vary depending on their level of engagement and position: are they an ally or oponent of your initiative? A youth organization engaged a local mokhtar (village leader) in supporting their campaign to improve local road conditions. Your relationship with each stakeholder will vary depending on their level of engagement and position. IDENTIFYING KEY STAKEHOLDERS Before you can engage stakeholders, you need to identify who they are. Think through the following questions: • Who has a key interest in this issue? • Who will be affected by the change(s) you are promoting? • Will these groups or individuals benefit or be negatively affected? • Who are potential allies (those who can support you) and who are potential opponents (those who will fight against your proposed changes)? • Who are the key decision makers? Consider This: Tools of the Trade You can use a variety of tools to involve diverse stakeholders: • Field visits or meetings to engage the community • Surveys to identify community priorities and concerns • Working groups to bring key people together for planning and discussion • Newsletter to keep stakeholders informed and also to solicit feedback • Traditional and social media to inform potential stakeholders and update them on progress • Townhall meetings to gather stakeholders and discuss solutions showing BENEFITS OF ENGAGEMENT To successfully engage stakeholders who will benefit from your initiative, it’s important to tailor your approach to their unique circumstances and interests. Each stakeholder will have a different level of interest, time, and resources to allocate to your issue, as well as different priorities and concerns. For example, if you are advocating for a law to ban smoking in public places, your main stakeholders would include the legislature who will vote on the law, universities, hotel and restaurant owners, anti-smoking organizations, health care Civic Activism Toolkit | Mobilizing the Community for Your Cause professionals, and the general public. Each of these groups will have a different position on the issue, and you will need to approach each one differently. Even each individual legislator will have different priorities and concerns. To engage them effectively, highlight the benefits of supporting your campaign that are uniquely relevant to that person’s interests and position. When contacting possible allies, start by explaining Tips from the Field: Identify Alternative Stakeholders the benefits of joining your It is important to identify alternatives when you are unable to reach campaign. Don’t focus your primary stakeholder. As some public authorities in Lebanon on why your organization tend to be hesitant to change, many NGOs turn their efforts to needs their support; instead, relevant stakeholders: highlight why supporting • NGO Khota Al Shabab could not convince the Aley Municipality your initiative will benefit to support their campaign to reduce traffic in the downtown area. them. During their Zero Instead, they focused on engaging shop owners by convincing them that less traffic Waste campaign, NGO and additional parking spots would bring more customers to their shops. IndyAct convinced a • To pressure local authorities to fix a roundabout that caused many traffic number of municipalities incidents, the Siddiqine Youth Group engaged the families of accident victims to support their project. visiting them and getting their stories and data to be used in their campaign. Their approach was successful because they • The Lebanese Organization for Studies and Training, cooperated with restaurant helped municipal council and business owners in Hermel to campaign for better tourism in the region. members see the benefits of supporting the campaign: for example, being able to say they were among the first municipalities in Lebanon to fight for a zero waste policy, and being part of making significant positive change for their country. When contacting possible allies, start by explaining the benefits of joining your campaign. Don’t focus on why your organization needs their support; instead, highlight why supporting your initiative will benefit them. ADVANTAGES OF INVOLVING STAKEHOLDERS Including stakeholders in your project brings a number of benefits. Key stakeholders can assist you in securing resources for your initiative and provide technical support, research, and legitimacy. They may also bring creative ideas and new approaches that can help your campaign succeed. In Lebanon, many civil society organizations have been advocating for a new Domestic Violence law to protect women and children from violence. Their main opponents, and some of the key stakeholders, are the religious authorities and conservative political forces. When addressing these groups, human rights organizations need to address the specific concerns of conservative authorities and counter-attack, for example highlighting that protecting women and children does not threaten traditional values and is in fact supported by religious texts. The general public is also a stakeholder and can play a key role in lobbying decision makers, bringing the issue to the forefront of the national agenda, signing petitions, etc. Lawmakers can also be involved in lobbying for the issue among their peers, as well as actually approving legislation. The private sector can help provide funding or other resources. Key stakeholders can assist you in securing resources for your initiative and provide technical support, research, and legitimacy. Additional Resources: • Spectrum of Allies – An online stakeholder analysis tool developed by the Center for Victims of Torture New Tactics in Human Rights program. www.newtactics.org/en/tools/spectrum-of-allies “How to Design an Effective Advocacy Campaign” “How to Provide a Platform for Community Participation” “How to Frame Your Issue” “How to Organize Roundtable Discussions and Town Hall Meetings” Civic Activism Toolkit | Mobilizing the Community for Your Cause