Advocacy and influencing skills IS2011 Ottawa

IS 2011 Advocacy and Influencing Skills

How to promote the Green Economy

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Aims and Objectives

Aim• To enhance your advocacy and influencing skills• To explore ways in which effective advocacy can promote the Green

Economy.

Learning objectives• Identify your personal advocacy style• Define a ’Nudge’• Explain the 6 ’Weapons of Influence’• Apply some of the main advocacy and influencing tools to promote the

Green Economy

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Indicative Content

Nudge Theory

• Why people find it hard to make a decision

• Nudges not commands• Choice architecture• Power of the default option• Framing• Storytelling

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Indicative Content

Weapons of Influence

• Consistency• Reciprocation• Social proof• Authority• Liking• Scarcity

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Ways of working

Respect

Listening

Speak from “I”

Timekeeping

Other

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What is Advocacy?

Advocacy

Lobbying

Campaigning

Education

And what is the difference?

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What is Advocacy?

Advocacy is …

about actively putting a problem on the political agenda

solution focused

A process not an event, requiring patience, persistence and flexibility

Closing the gap between policy and action

“ A systematic succession of actions designed to persuade those in power to bring a change to a

specified issue of public concern”

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT TRUST (HDT), Tanzania

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What is Advocacy?

“ A systematic succession of actions designed to persuade those in power to bring a change to a specified issue of public concern”

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT TRUST (HDT), Tanzania

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Nudges & Choice Architecture

What is a nudge?

• A nudge is any factor which significantly alters the behaviour of humans

• Authors of “Nudge” favour nudges over commands = libertarian paternalism

Source: Nudge, Improving decisions about health, wealth and happiness Thaler and Sunstein 2008

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Exercise

Get into groups of 3 people

person advocates

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Nudges & Choice Architecture

What is choice architecture? The power of default options - can have huge effects on

outcomes Putting fruit at eye level counts as a nudge, banning junk food

does not Other nudges: opportunity to donate money to charity every

time you withdraw money from a cash machine.


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Power of default options

“Research shows that whatever the default choices are, many people stick with them, even when the stakes are much higher than choosing the noise your phone makes when it rings”

Tick box options...


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Framing messages

People hate losses Losing something makes you twice as miserable as gaining the

same thing makes you happy People are loss averse, and loss aversion produces inertia.

Conforming Following the herd Peer pressure


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More on Framing : conforming

“I saw some research last week from America’s Yellowstone Park. When they put up signs saying: ‘Please don’t litter’ littering went up.

Saying ‘Please don’t litter’ makes it acceptable that littering has taken place, whereas signs saying: ‘People who love the environment take their litter home’ saw people take it home.”

Tim Smit, Founder of the Eden Project, Interviewed in Metro 10 July 2009

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Framing: Energy Conservation

QuestionWhich of the two “nudges” below is likely to be most effective?

(a)If you use energy conservation methods, you will save $350 per year

(b) If you do not use energy conservation methods, you will lose $350 per year


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Don’t mention Climate Change

In December 2009, “America’s Environmental Protection Agency declared that six greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, ‘threaten the health and welfare of the American people’.

The decision could open the way for the Obama administration to impose its own curbs on emissions, although Congress may want the final say”.

The Economist 10 December 2009

Timing and Framing

What was happening around this time?

How is the message framed?

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Conforming: “Don’t mess with Texas”

Effort to reduce litter on Texas highways

First tried civic duty messages - failed

Targeted messages:many of the litterers were men aged 18-24

Officials decided they needed ‘a tough-talking slogan that would address the unique spirit of Texas pride’

Enlisted Dallas Cowboys football players to participate in television ads in which they collected litter, smashed beer cans in their bare hands, and growled “Don’t mess with Texas!”

Main Website

ttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7TTOgaj9n8&feature=related


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Don’t mess with Texas campaign

What was the impact in terms of litter reduction?

Litter reduced by 29% in first year72% reduction in first six years.95% of Texans know this sloganIn 2006 voted America’s favourite sloganSource: Nudge, Improving decisions about health, wealth and happiness Thaler and Sunstein 2008

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UK government campaigns: storytelling

ACTONCO2 "Bedtime Stories" TV advertisement, October 2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w62gsctP2gc

Cap and Trade Bedtime Story Parodyhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BptZ7CXHziA

Saddle up for Cycle Fridayshttp://www.tfl.gov.uk/roadusers/cycling/11598.aspx

And excellent example of how to engage cyclists in London

HIV /AIDS communication

Tombstones

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Balancing Advocacy and Inquiry: Self assessment exercise

Get into groups of four and study the handout

1 Ask each other:• What do you do most of? What is your default behaviour?• What do other people say you do well or could do better? (this was

part of your preparation for workshop)

2 Write down at least one thing you do well and one thing you want to do better a card (one thing per card)

3 Present each other

4 Put you paper on wall under either “do well” or “do better”

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Comfort Zones and

Unconscious Incompetence

Learning logs

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Elevator Pitches

Sign up!

Schedule on the wall

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Six Weapons of Influence Robert B Cialdini

What are they?

• Consistency• Reciprocation• Social proof• Authority• Liking• Scarcity

Rationale

• Lack of time• Thinking is hard• Short cut to good decision

making• As world gets more

complex we take more short cuts

• Automatic compliance• Click whirr

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Weapons of InfluenceRobert B Cialdini

Consistency...is valued by others

The more publicly we take a position on something the more reluctant we are to change our stand – can we think of any examples? (Pope)

Small commitments can manipulate a person’s self image

The act of signing a petition makes people more likely to take action later

People tend to honour written commitments

Start small and build (Korea)

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Reciprocation... Creates feelings of indebtedness, obligation

Ethiopia and Mexico: Invasion/earthquake

Free samples

“Reject then retreat”: realistic demand followed by smaller demand, creates feelings of responsibility, satisfaction, commitment to fulfil agreement, and maybe enter into future agreements

Perceptual contrasts (my flat)

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Social proof..we view a behaviour as more correct in a given situation to the degree that we see others performing it (e.g. Cars, motorway)

We are most influenced by the actions of others like us

In conditions of uncertainty we look to others to guide our actions

In urban environments 3 things make it difficult to decide what to do: Confusion, number of people, weak social ties – climate change responses?

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Liking

Tupperware parties: recommendation from a friend Don’t underestimate power of relationships (sales) Naked wine !

Halo effect: looks

Sales: Mirroring and matching behaviour, dress

Greater liking leads to great social influence

Co-operative learning develops team spirit and like: educating the person you are trying to influence?

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Authority...is powerful, shortcut to decisions

People go to almost any lengths on command of an authority: nuclear train, legs, no help offered

Authority may mean superior knowledge

Appearance of authority, titles, uniforms, Nestle

German politician?

Are credentials relevant – TV doctors, Ashridge, medication for mother

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ScarcityPeople are more motivated by the thought of losing

something than by thought of gaining something of equal value (you can save money if you use energy efficiently works less well than your electricity bill will increase by X if you do not...)

We value a piece of information more if we think we can’t get it elsewhere

Scarcity and competition leads to conflict

We hate to loose freedom e.g. censorship

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Six Weapons of Influence

Exercise

One the floor you will find island where the weapons are made

Go to an island that interests you and have conversation about each weapon. o Have you ever used it in

advocacy? o Have you ever had it used on

you? o How could you use it to promote

the Green Economy?

Reminder: The islands are

• Consistency• Reciprocity• Social proof• Liking• Authority• Scarcity• Other?

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Lunch followed by “Elevator Pitches”

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Boogli Fruit followed by Negotiation Theory

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Positions What you want

Interests Why you want it

Needs Must have

I I

The PIN Model: Advocacy works best when we try to understand each others’ positions, interests and needs. In order to understand other people’s positions we need to Inquire

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P-I-N model

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Looking below the tip of the iceberg

The 'map' The 'territory'

POSITIONS INTERESTS NEEDS

always negotiable can be negotiable sometimes

generally non-negotiable

proposals aimed at settlement

ambitions (goals and objectives)

constraints aimed to prevent loss

statement allows progress achievement of them gives pleasure

absence of them causes pain

expressions of what might be achievable

perceptions of what could be acceptable

fears of what would be a loss or failure

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Dialogues works best when we are aware of our assumptions...

My beliefs,assumptions,

and values affectthe data I select

2 - I select ‘data’ from what I observe

3 - I add meanings(cultural and personal)

4 - I draw conclusions

5 - I take action

1 - Observable ‘data’ and experience

The Ladder of Inference*

* William Isaac, The ladder of Influence, 1992 in “The Fifth Discipline Workbook”, pg 242

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We are always adding meaning or drawing conclusions,

Improve your communications by using the ladder of influence

• Being more aware of your thinking and reasoning (reflection)

• Inquiring into others’ thinking and reasoning (inquiring)

• Making your thinking and reasoning more visible to others (advocacy)

* William Isaac, The ladder of Influence, 1992 in “The Fifth Discipline Workbook”, pg 242

The Ladder of Inference*

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How can the ladder of inference help us to become more effective at advocacy & influencing?

If I don’t know fully understand why a person is either for or against a policy or strategy, I will not be able to influence them.

Once I understand a person’s underlying needs I can select information and tailor my arguments to your interests needs

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Applying the ladder of inference framework: Has this happened to you before?Have you noticed a time when someone you were trying influence has

been on different rungs of the Ladder of Inference?

What happened?

How successful were you at using inquiry to identify the difference in perspective and changing your approach to advocacy?

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Why people find it hard to make a decision

Nudges not commands, choice architecture

Power of the default option

Framing

Storytelling

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Opportunities to influence decision-making

Complexity means people find it difficult to make decisions which are in their best interests

Lack of time, short-cuts, passivity

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