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Frameworks Institute Field Building ResourcesWhy Field Building?Our mission is to build the communications capacity of the nonprofit sector. The FrameWorks Institute engages in a variety of technical assistance and curricula to advance field building throughout the country. Our advocacy curricula are designed to engage coalitions of social policy advocates, analysts and experts in a series of communications sessions based on FrameWorks' approach to communications for social change.
The FrameWorks ApproachOur goal is to deliver a communications strategy that is grounded in research and has the real potential to change the public debate, if effectively deployed. We believe our unique integration of research and applications avoids the problems we frequently observe in message development: scant research under-girding creative communications work or, conversely, extensive opinion research with no demonstrable communications outcomes. We work hard to investigate different approaches, test rival hypotheses, eliminate those that don't yield strong policy preferences, and translate our findings into tools and presentations that front-line advocates can use.It is our belief and our experience that diverse coalitions can be galvanized by the research; people will learn new communications strategies and messages if they understand why the old ones don't work. In addition to pursuing a unique research approach, we take seriously the challenge of explaining what works, why it works, and how to do it. Our history of successful work with coalitions on youth and children's issues, health, and the environment attests to our ability to move the message into the field. FrameWorks stresses multi-method, multi-disciplinary communications research with an emphasis on empirical testing. This critical combination underscores all the work we undertake on social issues. The technical assistance we provide stresses strategy and message applications first, using the research to explain these tactics. It is this ability to translate the research into clear message directives that has made our reputation among practical, front-line advocates on numerous issues.
Field Building StrategiesWe view field building as the essential next step to any research investigation. These activities allow us to inform the work of those on the ground who are eager to move policy using strategic and sustainable techniques. We strongly believe that this kind of unified research and resulting messaging will yield far greater value than the piecemeal approach that supports issues advocates currently.Examples of a variety of engagement opportunities can be found below, but we should note that, from these elements, we work collaboratively to construct a curriculum that will best serve the needs and capacity of the specific coalitions with whom we work. All technical assistance engagements are "immersion experiences," where we seek to immerse the coalitions in Strategic Frame Analysis™ and the advantages it affords as a way to frame effective communications to advance public engagement and support in social issues.
Field Building Technical AssistanceTo discuss organizational needs as they relate to field building, email National Field Director Lynn Davey at ldavey@frameworksinstitute.org.
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