Cornell Alliance For Science
The Cornell Alliance For Science (AFS) is a global network of scientists and advocates helping to create access to resources, combat scientific misinformation, and promote scientific innovation. Enhancing food security and working to improve environmental sustainability are but examples of the work AFS engages in. Creating an organizing and communications course for community members, representatives of governmental agencies, and journalists in Nigeria. This course supported Nigerians who were seeking to pass pro food and financial security for the country through biotechnology legislation. It trained them on best practices to prevent legislation and court judgments that would hinder their ability to create more food security for their communities. The course also focused on methods to organize community support.
OUR STRATEGY.
Using years of personal experience in organizing, communications, and digital marketing, we boiled down all of the theory and best practices for creating social change and working with government systems, into short modules using common language that was easy to understand for the varying levels of education. We needed to ensure that the coalition of people coming together was using a shared language to accomplish their goals and that they could build a solid strategy to make it happen.
We launched a pre-course survey to gauge participants' understanding of organizing and mobilizing, and a general sense of how they viewed their role within the issues. Taking the results of that survey, we drafted a course and accompanying materials that would meet them where they were, while also expanding their understanding and confidence around the work to come.
OUR EXECUTION.
n collaboration with the client, we drafted a four-day course that covered relationship building, digital communications, earned and paid media, creating roles and responsibilities, and drafting a timeline with benchmarks for accountability. We then trained new facilitators from the client’s staff to assist in the execution of the training, and served as lead facilitators when implementing the training in Nigeria.
OUR RESULTS.
As a part of the post-course evaluation survey, more than 80% indicated that the training was the most clear, concise, and transformative training they had ever participated in. Approximately 8 months post-training, the coalition had a decisive court battle against biotechnology opponents
