"Sheldon Gen and Amy Conley Wright have written both a solid academic work, which includes a great deal of original research, and a valuable supplementary text for classroom use. ... they also frame advocacy behavior within the theories of public policy scholarship, making Nonprofits in Policy Advocacy a useful supplementary text for graduate classes in nonprofit management or advocacy, but equally valuable for graduate or upper level undergraduate public policy classes, as well as political science classes that focus on interest groups, lobbying, and advocacy." (Shelly Arsneault, Nonprofit Policy Forum, May 7, 2021)
1. Nonprofit Advocacy in the United States
Nonprofit advocacy in the context of American public policy
Political context of policy advocacy
Policy advocacy by nonprofit organizations in the U.S.: Scope and scale
Discussions
References
2. Tactics and Strategies
A menu of tactics for policy advocacy
Strategies of policy advocacy organizations
Discussions
References
3. Public Lobbying
The public lobbying stratefgy
Books not bars
"Power grab"
Discussions
References
4. Institutional Partnership
The institutional partnership strategy
Over-incarceration
Foster youth emancipation
Discussions
References
5. Inside-Outside
The inside-outside strategy
Banning plastic bags
Evaluating teacher performance
Raising the tobacco tax
Discussions
References
6. Direct Reform
The direct reform strategy
Banning trans fats
Closing coal-fired power plants
Discussions
References
7. Indirect Pressure
The indirect pressure strategy
Enhancing local parks
Discussions
References
8. Popular Power
The popular power strategy
Bring Our War $$ Home
Parent engagement in public schools
Discussions
References
9. Considerations for Strategic Policy Advocacy
Creative and strategic policy advocacy
The Challenges of Policy Advocacy
Measuring and evaluating advocacy performance
Conclusion
Discussions
References
Appendix 1. Derivation of the composite logic model of policy advocacy
References
Appendix 2. Methods
Q-methodology
Survey method
References
Sheldon Gen is Associate Professor in the Public Administration Program at San Francisco State University, USA. He teaches courses on policy processes and civic engagement as part of the MPA curriculum, and studies public engagement in policy making processes with a focus on environmental and education policy issues. These interests stem from his prior employment and consultancies with many public and nonprofit organizations in the areas of environment, education, transportation, and development.
Amy Conley Wright is Associate Professor in Social Work at the University of Sydney, Australia. She received her PhD from University of California, Berkeley. She studies effective advocacy for creating policy change for children and families and her publications include peer-reviewed journal articles on the topics of child maltreatment prevention, parent peer support, social investment, and policy advocacy.
Policy advocacy is an increasingly important function of many nonprofit organizations, as they seek broad social changes in their concerning issues. Their advocacy practices, however, have often been guided by their own past experiences, anecdotes from peer networks, and consultant advice. Most of their practices have largely escaped empirical and theoretical grounding that could better root their work in established theories of policy change. The first book of its kind, Nonprofits in Policy Advocacy bridges this gap by connecting real practices of on-the-ground policy advocates with the burgeoning academic literature in policy studies. In the process, it empirically identifies six distinct policy advocacy strategies, and their accompanying tactics, used by nonprofits. Case studies tell the stories of how advocates apply these strategies in a wide variety of issues including civil rights, criminal justice, education, energy, environment, public health, public infrastructure, and youth. This book will appeal to both practitioners and academicians, as each gains insights into the other’s views of policy change and the actions that produce it.
Sheldon Gen is Associate Professor in the Public Administration Program at San Francisco State University, USA.
Amy Conley Wright is Associate Professor in Social Work at the University of Sydney, Australia.