Mobilization for Advocacy; When the Community Chooses Civil Action Mobilization for Non Material Development When the Community Chooses Advocacy by Phil Bartle, PhD Module Introduction Documents Included in this Advocacy Module: . Mobilizing for Civil Society, when the community chooses non material goals; . HIV-AIDS and Empowerment Mobilization, when the community chooses to fight this scourge; . Community Based Social Work, (CBSW), interventions by community members; . Female Genital Mutilation, FGM eradication. Action alternatives to building (physical) communal facilities Issues for the Mobilizer and Community: This module is still being written and edited. Several documents will be added over time, on various topics related to community goals other than orthodox projects such as clinics, water supplies, schools, and other communal facilities. The main concern is changes in values and behaviour, and how community mobilizing methods can be adapted to encourage social change. The purpose of the module is to present to the mobilizer some of the issues when a community makes goals other than physical communal services its priority. As the main issue facing communities usually features the desire to advocate for some legal, legislative, or social change, the module is identified as "advocacy." It is written to compare and contrast with the Water module, which epitomises a community choice of a physical communal service facility (a communal potable water facility). In general, we call this "Advocacy Mobilizing." In general, your work as a mobilizer follows the same principles, but applied to different conditions. Perhaps a little more than with communal facilities, you must be prepared to keep the organization you form from being subverted: (1) by the government authorities, (2) from commercial interests, and (3) individuals with personal political aspirations. Perhaps also you may find it necessary to go beyond a local community based organization (CBO) and let it expand to a larger non-governmental organization (NGO) that can operate beyond the boundaries of the local community. Overall, you must ensure there is participation -- in decision making. Remember the principles of empowerment. Let your clients do things for themselves, so that they become stronger. They will learn better by doing than by watching, and they will become stronger by the exercise (struggle). Avoid the temptation to do things for them, which weakens them by their becoming more dependent upon you. An overview mobilizing for goals other than communal facilities is included in Mobilizing for Civil Society. Fighting the scourge of HIV-AIDS by a community approach is explained in HIV-AIDS. In some situations, a Community Based Social Work programme is appropriate. A special problem; Female Genital Mutilation. --» «-- If you copy any text from this site, please link it back to www.scn.org/cmp/ Updated: 2003 April 21