Why do important ideas to improve public policy seem to rarely get implemented? Is signing another petition going to achieve the results you want to see? Free and democratic societies need the active and vigorous participation of individuals and non-governmental organizations in order to thrive. We all benefit from greater involvement by civil society in the public arena of ideas in an increasingly digital world. Most of us have experienced the fact that impacting public policy requires more than just a passion for a cause and good research.
Five Good Ideas
- Building coalitions of people with diverse backgrounds
- Identifying champions and opinion leaders
- Developing an effective online presence
- Focused media and communications strategies
- Being prepared to act at key moments of change
Resources
- The Art of Possible (a handbook for political activism),
Amanda Sussman, 2007 McClelland & Stewart - What is Policy?, Sherri Torjman. Ottawa: Caledon Institute
of Social Policy, 2005. - Memorandum To Cabinet (Templates) by Privy Council Office, Government of Canada.
- Writing for Government: How to Write a Briefing Note, Susan Doyle, University of Victoria.
- Taking It to Hill Complete Guide, David Mcinnes, University of Ottawa Press
Benjamin Perrin
Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law, University of British Columbia
Benjamin Perrin is assistant professor at the UBC Faculty of Law and a faculty fellow at the Liu Institute for Global Issues. His teaching and research interests include domestic and international criminal law, international humanitarian law and human trafficking. A member of the Law Society of Upper Canada, Benjamin served as a law clerk to the Supreme Court of Canada and has been senior policy advisor to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. He was the assistant director of the Special Court for Sierra Leone legal clinic and completed an internship in Chambers at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. Benjamin is the founder of The Future Group, a non-governmental organization that combats human trafficking; he served as executive director from 2000 to 2006.
Today's presentation was made all the more relevant with the two case studies presented, and the “5 Good Ideas” framework applied which showed tangible results to problem resolution. Thanks also for providing the reading list… Good luck in fall 2010 and passage of the Private Member's bill ….