Tips for Choosing a Social Change Agency
A Social Change Agency was formed to enhance the social movements which have been occurring worldwide for the last century. This agency was founded by concerned citizens who were tired of being politically correct, while dealing with corporations who were polluting our environment at every turn. The thought process behind this thought process was that we were dealing with the issues from both ends of the spectrum; we were dealing with corporate greed and government bureaucracy at the same time. The way in which a social change agency would deal with these issues was to collect fees from corporations which were polluting our air, water, soil, and food supply and use the money to fund grass-roots projects to clean up the damage they have done. They would then redistribute the funds to local business owners who had not voluntarily cleaned up their pollution.
One way in which the nonprofit organizations of social change work is through the development of grassroots projects. These projects range anywhere from doing direct things such as helping to build new playgrounds for neighborhoods, to engaging in ideas such as desalination of sea water, or even developing sustainable energy resources in our country. In doing this work, they are also helping to educate the general public on the need to take action and that the problem of environmental degradation cannot be solved overnight. Many people who have joined the ranks of environmentalist nonprofit organizations are doing so because they want to do something concrete to help protect the world for future generations. Other people join environmental nonprofits because they have a deeply felt belief that the solutions which have been offered up to date are not working.
It is important to remember that any of the problems that plague our planet at this point in time will take some sort of collective action on the part of ordinary citizens if we are going to have any chance of reversing the course of our planet is currently on. Unfortunately, many individuals who identify themselves as "social change agents" either believe they know what needs to be done or that they are qualified to do it all. In reality, most people do not have the background or expertise to be able to handle these types of complicated projects. In most cases, they are more interested in becoming famous celebrities by participating in one or two high profile causes they believe in than in actually making a difference in the world. Even if you feel strongly about the causes you choose to support, there are just some high level strategic decisions that must be made by people at the grass root level of projects.
A social change agency is a great example of how a group of people can band together to do something proactive about changing the world. However, it is important to remember that there are many different types of social change agencies. They may do different kinds of work. If you are thinking of becoming involved with such an agency, there are a few things you should think about.
First of all, not everyone has the same set of skills and talents. The social change group may consist of people who all have a strong background in community organizing and similar practices. However, the people who end up being involved in this type of work may be completely different. There is a big difference between people who can effectively build coalitions to lobby for change and people who know very little about how to make that kind of impact on the people who will be affected. You want to make sure that you find a team that has the right mix of expertise.
Another consideration is the kind of politics that will be involved. You may have an agency where the people who are running the campaign are more radicals than the people who are trying to implement the changes. You need to make sure that an agency whose political views align with yours is involved in the process. This will ensure that your voice is heard and that changes are successful.
Finally, consider the kind of work that the social change agency will be doing. If you are interested in working to build coalitions and make use of traditional campaigning techniques, then you should consider an agency that already has a lot of experience in that kind of work. Otherwise, it might be better for you to start a new agency from scratch. Some of the work that such an agency may have to do might include running leaflet drops, running TV ads, or organizing events. Choose an agency that has at least a few years of experience in the kind of work that you want to do.
Once you have decided what kind of campaign you want to run and what kind of people you want to influence, you will be ready to get involved. Getting involved in politics is often a difficult and challenging thing to do. It can get really confusing as to what is important and what is not. However, if you make sure that you choose the right change agency and make sure that you are prepared to do the kind of work that is necessary, it will all be worth the effort. A social change agency that getting involved in politics correctly will see dramatic results.