Boy, did you miss a fantastic conference! Power Shift 2009 in Washington, D.C., has been a transformative event ... not just for me but also for the 12,000 college students who came to our nation's capital to learn and to hold our government officials accountable. The students are presenting a four-part plan, including capping carbon emissions, building a green economy, promoting clean energy and restoring the U.S. as a leader in the climate debate.
While attending sessions, I learned several lessons that apply to public relations, social media and framing. Many of the speakers, in fact, sounded as if they could have been delivering some of the lectures you hear in your PR courses when it comes to setting measurable objectives, knowing your audience, doing research, etc.
One story I heard was about how the Humane Society of the United States has used Facebook incredibly effectively. Many nonprofits think of their publics simply as names or addresses for donation checks. But the Humane Society has recognized the importance of allowing local chapters to reach out to their individual publics and pursue individualized causes. Thus, the Facebook community supports about 1,200 different local causes rather than just one dictated by the central organization. This is a many-to-one rather than a one-to-many, top-down approach.
One of the students on our bus (Alex) brought up the interesting way the word "alternative" is used: alternative families, alternative lifestyles, alternative energy. What an interesting frame!
One last word ... and then I have to get off this hotel computer. Preserving the environment is not a cause. It is a matter of life or death.
See you soon.
My Final Blog
15 years ago
I am so glad to hear that you had a wonderful trip. I would have loved to join all of you to learn more in depth the things that you stated above. I agree with your last statement about preserving the environment. I wish more people would start to take it more seriously.
ReplyDeleteThat's great to hear that 12,00 people showed up for such a good cause! I'm glad everything worked out in the end and seemed to be worth it all! Because of this class, I have realized that framing is VERY IMPORTANT in convincing/informing people about issues, politics, etc. I am going to definately try to improve my knowledge on framing for future classes and jobs. I wish I was there to hear all the speakers, but I didn't have the money. ;/ Anyways, its good to see such great teachers like you Dr. D! And people do need to take environmental issues more seriously...they've had plenty of warning...if we all don't make changes, things are going to get really bad and we won't be able to blame anyone but OURSELVES.
ReplyDelete-- samantha savory
** 12,000
ReplyDeletePS...I found an error in your post! First paragraph...second to last line...the world clean is spelled "clearn". EXTRA POINT FOR MEE!! ;) lol
-- samantha savory
I agree that we must come up with alternative lifestyles in order for our great grandchildren to have a healthy and eco-friendly life. My sister and I have already joined the fight in making our environment a clean and healthy place to live by recycling and picking up trash that we see on the ground. We also try to make recycling seem cool to our friends and peers so that they will do so as well.
ReplyDeleteI thank you Dr. D for keeping us updated about environmental issues and ways to heal our atmosphere and keep it clean.
-Armegan Anderson
I'm so glad that power shift was such a powerful event. I hope that the people that you all spoke with will heed to the warnings that were presented to them. It's very important that we all do our part but we need government to create policies that will truly protect our environment. Many people just do not take global warming serious enough. Even many young people do not believe that this is something that will affect them in their lifetime. I'm very proud that students from FAMU served as representatives for such a serious cause.
ReplyDelete-Nicole
I am so happy that you enjoyed your trip. I know that there was alot of tension and hassle surrounding leading up to your departure, so I'm happy to see it was all worth it. I really think that this is such an important thing and that I, myself, need to take more steps to become more knowledgable about environmental protection. Recycling and reusing is not enough and I know that. I agree with you fully; the environment is no laughing matter and we should definitely take the situation that we're facing seriously. I commend you for all you're doing to make a difference. I only hope that with a combined effort we can make a change in the way the we treat our planet. We only have one and we need to reminded of that sometimes.
ReplyDelete--Porsche
What is being called an alternative lifestyle or alternative uses of energy, in reference to the green movement, should become come the new standard.
ReplyDeleteThe green movement is also an opportunity to revitalize the economy with "green collar" job opportunities popping up in fields like wind and hydro technology.
Wow, as I heard you tell about your experiences during the conference in class on Tuesday, I was very sorry I missed it. I want to express my gratitude for you efforts and leadership on this crucial situation Dr.D.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the frame of alternative, I fell that the way it is used implies that the alternative to the alternative, the norm, is somehow the way that the majority of the people want or do something. What it leaves out is whether the majority of people WANT to do it that way. For example, the idea as alternative energy gives the impression that coal and oil is the normal way of getting energy. But normal doesn't mean good. So I think that is the main problem, we equate normal with good and alternative with new and unproven, instead of normal with limited options and alternatives with more options, no connotation involved.
Mandla Deskins
I'm glad that Power Shift was such a success. This weekend I watched 'Inconvenient Truth' without interruptions for the first time. What really hit me was the comparison models of how the earth once was, how it is today and how it will be in the future if the climate continues to change at the rate it is today.
ReplyDeleteI just wish events like Power Shift would get more exposure. Maybe if more people are exposed to global warming, more people would take it seriously!
I am also glad that the Power Shift Conference was a success, and I agree with Travis that these groups need more exposure. And this just comes to show that PR is needed everywhere for everything for an effective message and outcome.
ReplyDelete