Campaign Planning & Advocacy Training Conservation Federation of Missouri Affiliate Summit

1. Campaign Planning & Advocacy Training Conservation Federation of Missouri Affiliate Summit September 14, 2018

2. Goals for Session What is this Toolkit? Review of the Campaign Planning Tool Defining of Terms Questions

3. What is in the Toolkit? • Facilitation Guide • Pre-Planning Worksheet • Campaign Planning Meeting Worksheet • Campaign Planning Meeting Template Power-Point • Tactics Resource • Post-Campaign Planning Meeting Worksheet • Campaign Check-List affiliates.nwf.org/resources/campaigntools

4. Wkst #1: Campaign Goal Examples: • Short: Establish Missourians for Monarchs as a leader and clearinghouse • Medium: Restore public and private habitat to support monarch populations • Long: Reverse the decline of monarch populations in Missouri What is the concrete policy objective that will help achieve this strategic vision? What is a win? (Short, Medium, Long Term?)

5. Wkst #1: Long-Term Organizational Outcome How will this campaign also serve to build and strengthen your organization for the long-term? Example: Engage new diverse partners Build our relationship with a member of congress Expand our geographic reach with grassroots partners Cultivate powerful grasstops allies

6. Wkst #1: Strategy In order to win on our campaign goal, what are the key levers that we need to influence? Examples: Goal: pass legislation no one has heard of; • Strategy: build champions, elevate the issue and the solution with the public Goal: get a state agency to reject a permit; • Strategy: influence the key decision-makers (governor?) to do the right thing, build relationships within constituency or geography most impacted by permit decision

7. Wkst #1: Timing What is the length of this campaign? Based on your goal, how long will it take to achieve a “win”? Examples: 6months 12 months 5 years

8. Wkst #1: Milestones Milestones: What are the key moments on this campaign that we should be aware of? Examples: hearing in legislature, comment period, other campaigns having big moments/opportunities for collaboration Valentine’s Day Legislative Session State of the State Address

9. Wkst #1: Targets Target: A key decision-maker who we are attempting to influence on our campaign. This can be a Member of Congress, the President, a Governor, a State Legislator, a State or Federal Agency head, etc. This conversation is both about the inside game and the outside game -- meaning, both about lobbying or grasstopsand about field and the grassroots.

10. Wkst #1: Targets: EXAMPLE Clean Water For All: Senate Firewall Strategy to prevent attacks to Clean Water Act authority. Criteria: We have the ability to influence these members (strong ground game, good messengers) Moderate swings who need the political cover Targets: Hill team identified the Democrats who needed the most political cover in order to vote the right way and the one moderate R worth targeting on water issues in the Senate. Senators Warner and Kaine Senator Casey Senator Tester Senator Brown Senators King and Collins (R)

11. Campaign Planning Meeting Invitations Worksheet #2: Campaign Planning Session NWF Campaign Planning (with background) NWF Campaign Planning - Tactics Resource

12. Wkst #2:Campaign PlanningSession Prep, Invitations, and Follow-Up ReviewGoals, Strategies, Timing, Targets and Receive Feedback • PITFALL: Do not attempt to incorporate feedback in real time. Capture it in good notes and assign someone to make changes. Tier Targets: • Prioritize your list of targets • Identify field targets v. inside game Power-Mapping: Identify key influencers to your target(s) – only do this during campaign planning session if you have two or fewer targets.

13. Wkst #2: Inventory of Assets Who are the key players already in our sphere of influence that could make a difference and need to be engaged? Internal Example: CFM Affiliate Family NWF Family Coalitions External Example: Partner organizations Business leaders Legislative champions

14. Wkst #2: Limitations or Challenges Anticipate some of the challenges or hurdles that you are likely to face in winning on this campaign and influencing your targets. Example: Target is up for reelection and will be more hesitant to take a stand We do not have existing relationships with a constituency that is critical to the fight Our opposition has a lot of influence with the decision-maker

15. Wkst #2: Tactics Tactics are the specific actions that we take on campaigns in order to move our targets and achieve our political and organizational goals. (Brainstorm, Evaluate, Calendar) Examples: Constituency Engagement Members of Congress Actions Events Communications Generating Media Paid Media Report

16. Phase I Building the Campaign: Creating the plans, leadership, structures, and resources to make a campaign effective. Phase II Entering the Community: Learning about a new community, listening, gathering information, and building relationships. Education on Issue: Once trust has been built, educating the target(s), key constituencies, the media and the grassroots in that community on the issue. Phase III Build to Action: Increased engagement on the campaign. Tactics Resource

17. Tactics Resource Ladder of Engagement:A plan for building the leadership of key members of a campaign by continuously educating people about the campaign, building a relationship of trust, and asking for incrementally more difficult or time-intensive actions. • Grassroots • Grasstops • Decision-Makers

18. Wkst #3: Ground- Truthing Ground-Truthing: The final phase of the planning process should be to test your plan’s assumptions by overlaying the real-world factors that might impact your ability to be successful with a set of tactics. Do we have the budget for this activity? Does the plan need to be adjusted given the objectives of funders? Do we have the necessary field, online, communications staff or capacity to execute?

19. Wkst #3: Ground- Truthing Budget: Is this a plan you want to shop to funders? Or do you already have a set budget? Are there funder needs that must be met? Power-Mapping: Consider your tactics in terms of your targets and their influencers. Communications Strategy: As you begin creating materials and messaging, consider factors such as Audience, Readiness, Core Concerns, Theme, and Messenger State or Community Specific: Do these tactics have some salience for the communities you are organizing in?

20. Wkst #3: EXAMPLE Power- Mapping Public Influencers: • Philadelphia Inquirer • Scranton Times Tribune • Evangelical Environmental Network • American Lung Association • Pittsburgh, Philly and suburbs, Scranton VIP Influencers: • Governor Wolf • Pope Francis • Cindy Dunn (head of DCNR) • Pittsburgh Children’s Hospital Senator Casey (PA-D) Financial Influencers: • League of Conservation Voters • UPenn • Comcast • Blue Cross/Blue Shield Personal Influencers: • Bob Casey, Sr. • Rev. Philip Boroughs (President of his alma mater) • Sister Carol Keehan (Catholic Health Association) Circle the ones who have the most influence over the target • Star the ones that your organization has access to • Prioritize the categories that have circles and stars • Identify the top 3 best influencers to prioritize.

21. Wkst #3: CommsStrategy Audience: Target for your message, should be informed by your power-map and/or your overall campaign strategy. Readiness: Where is the audience on the issue? Core Concerns: Anticipate the core concerns/barriers of your audience for engagement. Theme: Big picture appeal Message: What is the topline message you want your communications tactics to be reinforcing? Messenger: Who is the best messenger for this message/audience?

22. Comms Strategy: EXAMPLE Recovering America’s Wildlife Act Audience: Pro-conservation voters particularly in districts represented by moderate Republicans with a good history on wildlife issues. Readiness: Not aware of the wildlife crisis or about the resources of the state agency. Needs to be educated on the problem and solution. Core Concerns: Prioritizing this issue in a crowded political space. Concerned about cost. Big Picture: Businesses and conservationists agree that proactive wildlife conservation helps us save long-term and protects our cherished outdoor heritage. Message: Recover America’s Wildlife with Proactive Conservation, not Emergency Room Measures Messenger: Business owners, Hunters/Anglers, Birders, Governors, State Agency officials

23. Campaign Check-List Planning Team Internal Communications Reporting & Accountability Rapid Response Field