What can you do if your issue is not on the political agenda

One of the lonely places to be in lobbying is when your issue is not on the political or policy agenda.

There are two things you can do.

1. You can get frustrated and spend the next few years hoping that the political fairies appear and put your issue on the agenda (they won’t),

or

2. You can take the necessary steps to get your issue co-opted by the right political interests and see your problem as necessary to act on.

Drawing mainly from my time working for NGOs, getting ‘non-issues’ mainstreamed onto the policy agenda and the necessary practical/policy/regulatory/legislative changes made.

I realise that there are some specific actions you can take.

1. Understand the machinery.
You need to know when and how new initiatives can get tabled.

If you step in too early or too late, you’ll miss the window of opportunity.

In the EU context, it is an understanding of how and when the annual work programme is set and who decides what’s added.

2. Understand who decides
A small group decides what ‘new’ items can be added to the ‘agenda’. There is a lot of competition for space in a crowded space.

You’ll find allies in EU Sherpas and the limited group of officials in the Commission who’ll make suggestions for new items and make the cut.

You’ll need to paint a picture of a brighter and better tomorrow. If you do this, something good will happen that makes Europe look better.

I’ve done it on species conservation and fish stocks. If you – add in the Commission, French President, Ministers, and MEPs – do this, good things will happen, and Europe will look better.

You need to show in images the problem, the solution and what the better tomorrow looks like.

While you may think in data points, Excel files, and technical words, it won’t be enough to persuade a few key people to take a leap and support change.

The Story of Stuff videos are powerful. They have had a powerful influence on public policy thinking.

I think that Lego is a powerful tool as well.

Most people dislike change. Stasis is common.

If you are the front-runner, you are likely going to be alone.

You are going to get active resistance from your many. Many officials, politicians, competitors, and your colleagues will actively resist your efforts to change the status quo.

Speaking to those who launched some of the most successful conservation efforts within the industry, there was active opposition from staff, partners, competitors, and the government. The most formidable opposition came from within.

You need to demonstrate that what you are asking for is not a dream but real.

When working on the discards ban, the best way to show it worked was to bring fishermen over from places that had adopted the system with onboard CCTV. Showing it was not a pipe dream dreamt up by wishy-washy NGOs was key.

If working elsewhere, show the benefits that it brings in.

Show how what you are asking for will bring in more profits with less effort, more tax revenue, and less carbon emissions.

Make sure the cold hard data demonstrate that pure self-interest dictates that change is made.

In the EU context, you must show what specific law/regulation/national measure is stopping progress.

You have to demonstrate it so clearly that a  bright 15-year-old would understand why change is needed and that your solution is the right one.

You need to hand deliver the solution.

You’ll spend years in the wilderness if you bring problems and no solution.

You’ll need to have a concise, plain English memo containing the following:

TV : Hugh’s Fish Fight, screened in several Member States and a well-placed news item in Norway, did wonders to promote the discard ban.

Secure the support of the gods/celebrities.

National Geographic: I’ve found there is no better way to get interest from the political class in an issue than the National Geographic covering the issue.

Media: News coverage in the journals of record in a few key countries will unlock support for change.

Political Support: To bring about policy change, the quickest way is to get political support from key people. President Sarkozy’s support was instrumental in securing EU action on tuna stock conservation.

Make it interesting for them to act: Reframing your issue in terms that is more interesting/useful for key people to act is vital. When the media and politicians found out that potentially ebola-inflected gorilla meat was coming into Heathrow airport, action by authorities was swift. A lot of support for tuna stock conservation from governments appeared once the links with Libya’s Gaddafi family and the Mafia appeared in the press. The right actions were taken that led, over time, to the stock’s recovery.

You will be sorely disappointed if you think that change happens by accident.

It will take real resources, focus, and a detailed understanding to bring policy and political change.