The Fundamentals Of A Social Change Agency Strategy
A social change agency is a private nonprofit organization that promotes social change and the economic empowerment of all people. It is an arm of the United Nations or U.N. Inc., or some other international intergovernmental organization. The behavioral sciences portion of the organization deals with the causes and treatment of behavior disorders. Other areas of specialization include youth and family development, healthy environments, post-literacy, preventing violence against women, economic development, civil society, and political participation.
An example of a socially change agency is ACT, formerly known as the Center for Thought Leadership and formerly known as the Center for Economic and Social Policy Research, now known simply as ACT. This is a non-profit organization founded by doctoral scholars in the behavioral sciences. The association provides opportunities for professionals and students to obtain academic credentials while engaging in hands on projects that promote social change. For those already in government or non-profit organizations such as schools, colleges and universities, they conduct research and training for a fee.
A social change agency has its own strategy. Its mission statement should be reflective of what it does. It is also required by law to publish an annual report detailing its activities for the previous year. This is called the Annual Report on the Social Impact of Human Needs and the Environment. These reports are intended to provide comprehensive information about how the activities of the agency affect the environment and human needs.
In the past, these types of activities were considered only for research purposes and they did not engage in direct services. However, this has changed in recent years. Today, these social endeavors are also engaged in governmental programs, as well as for private sector purposes. The scope and scale of such projects have increased significantly. One reason is the recognition of the fact that not all individuals and families can take action on their own.
An agency cannot succeed if it does not have the right knowledge, contacts and resources. The first component of the strategy is to make sure that you have the right contacts. This means you should visit the offices of the agencies in your area or find contact information through various media. For example, you can talk to your local chamber of commerce or business association. You may join or create an organization in your community. You may also sign up for various networking groups and forums that focus on the environment, human rights, issues concerning the vulnerable, etc.
The second component is to understand how the people in your community or the community in general view environmental issues and social change. This part of the strategy includes interviewing people who are knowledgeable and influential in the community. You may conduct focus groups and polls among them. Surveys can also be conducted among other relevant samples.
The third component is to understand what types of changes need to be made to ensure sustainable change. A strategic assessment should be done which will identify what existing processes are not serving the needs of the people. In addition, the analysis of these process should provide enough information for you to develop feasible alternatives. A final assessment should be done to assess how well the strategies and actions have been able to achieve the desired change.
The best part of the strategy is that an external organization helps. An outside organization ensures that the information and data gathered by you are authentic and complete. It also helps in ensuring that the strategies developed by you are actually achieving the desired change. Thus, if you have a particular community, then look no further than a social change agency for help.