What do you mean by advocacy? Discuss the importance and types of advocacy. Write the steps of an advocacy plan. What are the tools of advocacy? Introduction People advocate for a large number and variety of topics. Some of these are clear- cut social issues that are universally agreed to be problematic and worth solving, such as human trafficking. Advocacy can include many activities that a person or organization undertakes including media campaigns, public speaking, commissioning and publishing research. Lobbying (often by lobby groups) is a form of advocacy where a direct approach is made to legislators on a specific issue or specific piece of legislation. Advocacy Generally we can say that Advocacy is an activity by an individual or group that aims to influence decisions within political, economic, and social systems and institutions. Ritu R. Sharma from the Academy for Educational Development describes advocacy as a tool for “putting a problem on the agenda, providing a solution to that problem and building support for acting on both the problem and the solution”. [https://www.culturepartnership.eu/en/publishing/advocacy-course/what-is- advocacy] So Advocacy means taking action to create change. Importance of advocacy Advocacy includes many different types of activities. It has many importances. It can mean researching new solutions, creating coalitions of like-minded people, public campaigning to raise awareness and much more. The main importance of advocacy is to create change. Given below some importance of advocacy:  To raise awareness  To influence and change policies  To represent individuals who may not be able to speak for themselves

1. What do you mean by advocacy? Discuss the importance and types of
advocacy. Write the steps of an advocacy plan. What are the tools of
advocacy?
Introduction
People advocate for a large number and variety of topics. Some of these are clear-
cut social issues that are universally agreed to be problematic and worth solving,
such as human trafficking. Advocacy can include many activities that a person or
organization undertakes including media campaigns, public speaking,
commissioning and publishing research. Lobbying (often by lobby groups) is a
form of advocacy where a direct approach is made to legislators on a specific issue
or specific piece of legislation.
Advocacy
Generally we can say that Advocacy is an activity by an individual or group that
aims to influence decisions within political, economic, and social systems and
institutions.
Ritu R. Sharma from the Academy for Educational Development describes
advocacy as a tool for “putting a problem on the agenda, providing a solution to
that problem and building support for acting on both the problem and the solution”.
[https://www.culturepartnership.eu/en/publishing/advocacy-course/what-is-
advocacy]
So Advocacy means taking action to create change.
Importance of advocacy
Advocacy includes many different types of activities. It has many importances. It
can mean researching new solutions, creating coalitions of like-minded people,
public campaigning to raise awareness and much more. The main importance of
advocacy is to create change. Given below some importance of advocacy:
 To raise awareness
 To influence and change policies
 To represent individuals who may not be able to speak for themselves

2. The descriptions of these are given below
To raise awareness
People are often unaware of how to help, even after being introduced to a cause.
Creative advocacy brings solutions and aware them to the foreground.
Advocacy is necessary because there are still issues that many people do not even
realize these issues. Advocacy can get people’s attention and raise awareness.
To influence and change policies
Advocacy designed to change systems is distinct from advocacy on behalf of
an individual victim of violence in the courts or within the community.
Systems advocacy means efforts to change policy and practice at the local,
national or international level; to change the situation for groups of
individuals who share similar problems. While systems advocacy works to
improve the system to the benefit of individuals.
To represent individuals who may not be able to speak for themselves
Advocacy helps to represent individuals who may not be able to speak for
themselves. Every local authority commissions advocacy services to support
people who need help making their voice heard.
Advocacy services are provided by an advocate who is independent, and who is
not part of your family or one of your friends.
There are some other importances of advocacy. These are
https://adaaustralia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Why-Advocacy-Is-
Important-Poster.pdf
Types of advocacy
There are four types of advocacy. These are in the following:
 Legislative advocacy
 Judicial advocacy
 Administrative advocacy

3.  Grassroots advocacy
The descriptions of these are given below
Legislative advocacy
Legislative advocacy may be accompanied by wider legal systems reform,
which not only seeks to create or change legislation, but also to ensure that
such legislation is properly implemented. Advocacy for legal system reform
is the specific activity of advocating for the creation and adoptions of policies
and procedures that implement or give effect to legislation or changes to
existing legislation.
Judicial advocacy
Advocacy for judicial system reform may take the form of court monitoring,
training, dedicated courts and processes. Court monitoring, for example,
helps to systematically identify needed improvement in judicial responses.
The results of the monitoring can be used to advocate for improvement in the
system. Monitoring also increases the visibility of these issues; the presence
of monitors in courtrooms can itself cause judges to improve their handling
of domestic violence cases. Trainings for judges can provide judges with the
information they need to better address the needs of battered women and
ensure batterer accountability.
Administrative advocacy
Administrative advocacy encompasses a variety of positions concerned with
influencing the formation, application, or change of rules that government agencies
put in place to implement statutory law. Administrative advocacy takes place at all
levels of government—federal, state, and local.
Grassroots advocacy
Grassroots advocacy makes it possible for citizens and organizations to elevate
their voices and impact the issues they care about. At the core of effective
grassroots advocacy are campaigns that build widespread support in order to shape
political dialogue.

4. An advocacy plan
There are some steps involve in an advocacy planning. These are in the following:
Step 1: Identify an issue
Step 2: Set goals and objectives
Step 3: Information gathering
Step 4: Determine targets and alliances
Step 5: Messaging strategy
Step 6: Plan of action
Step 7: Monitor and Evaluate etc.
The descriptions of these are given below:
Step 1: Identify an issue
Advocacy begins with identifying an issue or problem that an organization agrees
to campaign against in order to promote a policy change. The issue should fit in
with the organization’s mission and meet the criteria set for its advocacy
campaigns.
We will need to do extensive research on the issue or issues our plan to campaign
on, so that we identify the problem or issue thoroughly.
An important part of our research will be to identify the affected group or groups
who will benefit from the change. For example, the issue may be gender-based
violence (GBV) at university campuses.
We also want to identify groups that are likely to oppose the change.
Step 2: Set goals and objectives
Clear goals and specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound
(SMART) objectives need to be formulated at the beginning of any advocacy
work.

5. For the purpose of the advocacy workshop, an advocacy goal is the long-term
result (three to five years) that the network is seeking.
An advocacy objective is a short-term target (one to two years) that contributes
toward achievement of the long-term goal. A sound objective is specific,
measurable, realistic, and time-bound.
Step 3: Information gathering
Whether we are just beginning to plan an advocacy campaign or are already start
our advocacy campaign, we'll need to gather background information.
Once the issue has been selected and defined, it will need to be analyzed, more
information found out about it and identifying and proposing some possible
solutions. It takes time to gather good quality evidence and agree possible solutions
to an issue but it is time well used.
Step 4: Determine targets and alliances
Now determine on who our target group is. Is it the general public that we want to
recognize the problem and make personal changes or push for policy changes? Is it
legislators who we would like to make new laws or revise existing ones in line
with our proposed solution? It may be the leadership of our party that we wish to
influence to commit to equal representation within party structures, a gender
policy, and greater allocation of funds to women candidates or mainstreaming
gender in the party manifesto. We may have more than one target group.
Step 5: Messaging strategy
After identifying the issues and set goals and objectives then we need to select the
messaging strategy for our target group or groups. The message answers the “why”
of our advocacy campaign.
It is important here to consider how we “frame” our message. That is, how our
message can be put across in a way that challenges and changes the way that
people see the world and what counts as common sense.
Step 6: Plan of action

6. Final step is plan of action. Our action plan will cover the range of activities that
we plan to carry out as part of your advocacy campaign. These may include media
outreach, public talks, meetings with politicians, building networks and coalitions,
public rallies, exhibitions, petitions and many other creative ways of getting your
message out.
The action plan should spell out our goals, target audience, partners we will work
with and the time frame. It should be flexible to allow us to deal with a changing
environment and new developments. This may require us to drop or replace actions
that prove to be unnecessary or ineffective.
Step 7: Monitor and Evaluate
As we implement our advocacy, we need to continuously monitor our results in
achieving the goals of our campaign. Monitor our strengths and build on these,
assess our weaknesses and come up with ways of overcoming these. Identify any
opportunities, such as timing, for example an international day like International
Women’s Day or the period of “16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence”
that we could use to get our message more widely heard.
ADVOCACY TOOLS
In advocacy, each issue demands different approaches and strategies, partners,
tactics, methods, resources, materials, and so on. In embarking upon an advocacy
campaign, it is important to have the capacity to consider all available options and
to make strategic choices amongst them. We call these options the "tools" of
advocacy. Skilled and informed use of these tools results in greater advocacy
impact. The most important of these tools include:
• Information: Gathering, managing and disseminating information lays the basis
for determining the direction of an advocacy campaign. Research is one way of
gathering information.
• Research: Conducting research and policy analysis uses the information from
various sources and develops it into policy options which become the key content
of an advocacy campaign.

7. • Media: Various media are used to communicate the campaign’s message(s) to
the different stakeholders.
• Social mobilization: Mobilizing the broadest possible support from a range of
stakeholders, including the public at large, is essential to building the influence of
the campaign.
• Lobbying: Convincing the decision-makers who have the power to make the
desired change involves a set of special knowledge and skills.
• Litigation: Sometimes, using the court system to challenge a policy or law can
reinforce an advocacy campaign.
• Networks, alliances and coalitions: Sharing of information and resources, and
strength in unity and commonality of purpose are key to the success of advocacy
work.
[http://www.nursing-informatics.com/N4111/LA12_appendix.pdf]
Social media
as politicians and corporations have adopted social media; those channels
have emerged as locations for advocacy campaigns. Social media channels
like Facebook and Twitter are public locations that allow for more public
exposure than calling or emailing a congressional office.
Conclusion
There are several forms of advocacy, each representing a different approach in a
way to initiate changes in the society. An advocate is someone who provides
advocacy support to people who need it