Thinking Globally:

Calling for Action

A concise, personal and informative letter is one of the most effective ways Americans have of influencing lawmakers and civic leaders. On the other hand, political leaders and corporate executives may receive hundreds of letters and emails every day. So your job is to distinguish your letter, and the cause you are writing about, from the others in the mail pile. You can do this by following the basic guidelines below. TWO drafts of your letter will be due on Friday, Dec. 23rd: one double-spaced copy that you have edited and revised with a pen and one clean, single-spaced copy. Keep it Simple The best advocacy letters are courteous, direct, and fact-based. Your letter should be no longer than one typed page and it should fit the following three-paragraph structure:

Paragraph #1: Briefly describe who you are: where you live, where you go to school, and any history you have as an activist for a cause. Then you should provide a passionate and heartfelt explanation of why you care about this cause and why this injustice must be dealt with as soon as possible.

Paragraph #2: Now you provide more detail about the injustice you researched. In order to make a persuasive argument you must provide specific facts and examples that speak to the severity of the problem. Make sure to cite the sources for facts and statistics you use. You can (According to Lisa W. Foderaros article Fearing Climate Changes

Effects on the Adirondacks, published in The New York Times on December 2nd, 2011)

Paragraph #3: Close your letter by requesting the action you want taken: a change in general policy, an increase/decrease in funding for an organization, etc. Finally, make sure to thank the recipient of your letter and project confidence that he/she can and will take these urgent and necessary steps to end this injustice.

Writing Tips ALWAYS 1. 2. be courteous and respectful without "gushing." state the purpose of your letter simply and clearly.

3. personalize your letter. The recipient of your letter is more likely to listen to what you have to say if you include a couple of sentences that describe yourself and more importantly, why you care about this particular injustice.
4.

include your full name, address, phone number and email address. If you don't include at least your name and address, you will not get a response and the \ recipient of your letter is less likely to consider your ideas. use specific examples or evidence to support your position.

5.

6. state what it is you want done or recommend a course of action. 7. thank the recipient for taking the time to read your letter.

NEVER
1.

make general statements of opinion without supporting them with facts, statistics or relevant examples. ... use facts, statistics or quotes without citing the name and date of the source from which you took the facts.

2.

3. demand a response. It is important to remember that government and corporate officials are very busy and it is possible for them to take action against the injustice you brought to their attention without directly informing you of their actions.